Politically-minded Redditors gathered this November to discuss all the times people tried implementing a "progressive" policy that backfired. Well-intentioned ideas can take a bad turn when folks don't think them through or apply them in the wrong way, and the U.S. has the scars to prove it.
Remember when they tried to call disabled people "differently abled" instead of making society more accessible? Vegan leather didn't slow the slaughtering of cows much, but it did add countless tons of plastic waste to the landfills.
There's even a subsection of progressives who champion the cause of nuclear power. Redditors listed these ideas and more in another round of Ask Reddit.
"What’s a 'progressive' idea that’s actually regressive when applied?" u/nealie_20 prompted.
Merriam-Webster defines "progressivism" as "a political philosophy and social reform movement focused on advancing the public good through government action and often calling for government to be used to meet popular social, political, economic, and environmental needs and demands and to advance rights and protections for marginalized groups."
This liberal stance differs from that of many who call themselves "leftists" in their embrace of reform rather than radical politics. Progressive folks tend to believe that the current system is mostly good, but needs tweaking in order to better serve more of the population.
While public good is the goal, plenty of progressive ideas have gone awry. Not everyone will agree with all those listed here, but they certainly inspired lively debate in the comments. Enter at your own risk.
1. Zero tolerance, zero progress
"Not sure if this was considered 'progressive' when it was rolled out more than a decade ago, but 'Zero Tolerance' in regards to bullying.
It's basically a victim-blaming tool, which means both parties are punished the same when one party is likely a victim. It also essentially encourages the victim to only respond in kind because they're 'going to be punished no matter what, so I might as well stand up for myself.'" —u/a_happy_future
2. That alternative medicine pipeline took a rightward turn
"'Natural' health and 'Alternative' Medicine. You posting about 'Big Pharma' doesn't mean plant water and essential oils cure cancer. A lot of people have died because they thought alternative medicine works." —u/Jack-of-Hearts-7
3. "Disabled" is not a bad word
"The term differently abled, just like the flaw to the social model of disability, can imply that a disabled person can do just about anything an abled-bodied person can do with just some minor modifications.
That's just not true for many of us. There is no modification that can, for example, counteract the physical limitations that come from having autoimmune conditions playing havoc with how your body functions. No matter what nothing can counteract mobility issues, stamina and fatigue issues, etc." —u/CrowsSayCawCaw
4. The real meaning of "canceled"
"Demanding purity and not allowing room for change. It’s not progressive to constantly hold someone accountable for their worst moment, but rather it is more responsible to reward people for improving who they are and judging them based on their journey from their worst moment." —u/Stunning_Ad3273
5. Pushing vegan "leather"
"May be thinking small but 'Vegan leather' is so much worse for the environment than animal leather. Vegan leather is literally plastic, it wears out and stops looking good and working well after a few months of wear, but never biodegrades, and since it’s plastic, it creates more pollution in every single step of its lifecycle.
Real leather lasts years upon years if properly maintained, is an infinitely renewable resource, and will biodegrade if not maintained." —u/sorry_child34
6. Rejecting nuclear power
"Every time the US government changed a rule, like adding an inch to the thickness of a containment dome or updating the required coolant flow, his company couldn't just make the change—they had to stop everything and get the entire project re-engineered and re-permitted from square one, going through the entire regulatory process again.
After almost ten years of delays, his company gave up and fulfilled their power generation obligations by spending less than two years building a massive coal-burning power station instead." —u/firelock_ny
7. Guaranteed jobs
"I’m surprised how many progressives have championed a 'universal job guarantee,' since in practice it’s just adding a work requirement to unemployment benefits under a different name." —u/Dangerous-Coach-1999
8. Strict pacifism
"Pacifism—specifically, the kind that treats the victim the same as the aggressor.
It's perfectly fine to say 'America shouldn't invade Iraq in 2003 for bogus reasons,' but when (some) pacifists object to Ukraine fighting back against Russian invasion, saying 'Violence is never the answer,' they're essentially saying Ukraine should roll over and let Russia murder people at will." —u/SteadfastEnd
9. Reverting to sexism to label people trans
"As a (fairly progessive) trans man, the first thing that comes to mind is: if you behave in a way that is counterstereotypical for your sex, you must be trans." —u/Emanuele002
10. Maybe don't bring back anti-voting laws
"Making people pass a test in order to vote. I hear so many progressives saying we should test people on this, that, or the other thing before we let them vote, in the name of keeping uninformed, brainwashed MAGA out of elections.
Every time I bring up Jim Crow laws, they suddenly become silent, not even acknowledging that they were just advocating for the same thing." —u/mewmeulin
11. Fixating on individual emissions
"Personal carbon footprint. It’s regressive because it takes the focus off the fact that 70% of emissions are from 100 companies. Also, the fact that it was introduced as a marketing exercise from BP for this same reason." —u/Zestyclose-Toe9685
12. Pretending LGBTQ+ people don't exist
"'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' turned out to be that. It was meant to be liberating, and it ended up being used as a tool for harassment and persecution." —u/MarvMarg91
13. Creating another poverty tax
"Clean Air Zones, done wrong, can basically be a tax on the working class. The city I used to live in implemented a clear air zone, but largely targeted vans, which are how working-class tradies and small business owners get around. So now to get around the city you work in, you need to either upgrade to an electric van (out of reach) or pay the tax." —u/CaptainMikul
14. Token minority exploitation
"So a photo of, say, some college students (because this always happens for colleges) where it's like they have a checklist… 'now make sure to add a queer, POC, in a wheelchair and can't have any more than one white, straight-looking, male.'
The more progressive thing would be to actually deal with the problems that cause some people to be underrepresented in colleges rather than just putting a lie in a brochure, then ignoring the problem." —u/Existing-Number-4129
15. Re-segregating sports
"Creating a separate sports category for only trans people. There are maybe a couple of thousand trans athletes across sports at all ages. So creating a separate category for a group of people that realistically doesn't have the numbers to form a single team in a sport would only dress up banning us in a 'progressive' skin." —u/Pvt_Penguini
The internet is chaotic—but we’ll break it down for you in one daily email. Sign up for the Daily Dot’s newsletter here.
