The Dawn of Parallel Societies

The first time I heard the term “parallel” societies, I thought of secret societies within countries — obviously this is not what is meant here. But it’s also more than just a community of e.g. German expats bonding together over “Octoberfest” rituals whilst living abroad.

Perhaps the “Little Italys”, “Chinatowns” etc. in major global cities are smaller versions of “parallel societies” as the cultural heritage is so rich and so condensely presented, that it almost feels as if entering another world.

On the flipside, with the refugee crisis in Europe going on for well over a decade now, otherwise positive aspects of cultural parallelism have also taken a dark turn, with police sometimes even not daring to enter certain areas in German or French cities.

For me, this trend of building parallel structures is being hyped by many global initiatives right now and therefore important to be aware of — both as a risk as well as an opportunity in Modern Times.

Ideological Drivers

Several years ago, a friend who grew up in Eastern Germany explained to me that forming parallel structures in a society (with limited political choice) was the norm and how people used them to get by in a system they had little or no say in. It was the first time my mind registered this concept but it wasn’t the last.

Five years back at a Family Office Conference in London, another friend highlighted to me that there would soon be the real possibility of people estranging themselves from each other over not just religious or political, but also health related choices.

Whilst I didn’t realize it back then, when I saw how certain communities (such as the Amish functioning as a control group) managed to get through Covid better than the rest of us, it did make me think:

Other Triggers

Religion, as in the case with the Amish, is one trigger to form a parallel society. Health, obviously, given the past few years, is yet another. Major differences in opinion of how to handle matters exist not just in health or religion, but in other areas as well, for instance:

• finance and economics
• science and education
• nature and climate
• technology, etc.

These issues come to light when political systems start to fail certain groups of people who then start to ask themselves:

1. When society stops working in my favour and protests fall on deaf ears —?is it my right (and/or duty) to build my own?
2. When the economy enslaves and controls me — is it my right (and/or duty) to build my own?
3. When life’s comforts and my family’s prosperity is solely dependent on the benevolence of an elite —?is it my right (and/or duty) to build my own?

There are many reasons for people considering forming “their own world” and it’s difficult within the context of a nation’s homogenous society. I’m not suggesting you should start a parallel society. But it is a real matter going on in the world today and given that it’s driven by many factors and with sincere vigor given the context of a wide range of citizen’s concerns, at least debating the concept of parallel societies seems to be of merit to me. Technology for instance, especially after the recent rise of AI, is one such factor.

Read on and find out more details in my latest Substack article here...