Is Self-advocacy good?
“To take action on one’s own behalf” — is self-advocacy.
I recently had a conversation with a friend regarding self-advocacy. They were proud of taking action to protect their rights as a tenant. And they were totally in the right for protecting their rights and preventing a yearly price increase.
Yet, the landlord was morally right to increase the price. He was preparing to perform major renevations on the appartment complex and would adjust the rent fairly to cover the costs.
So, as someone who is a third-party to the dispute. I didn’t know what to say… who’s side do I pick? And, how do I advocate for myself in this situation?
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When I am faced with a dilemma that requires me to evaluate right from wrong, I tend to select the option that produces the greatest good for the greatest number (or the greatest increase of happiness to the affected people).
To expand, [… etc]
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As such, the tenant is increasing their happiness by reducing their living cost & gaining confidence for finally self-advocating for themselves. While, the landlord is losing revenue from the tenant, and is feeling frustrated that the revenue that they are investing to fix up the apartment is not a good use of their resources. In addition, the primary reason the landlord is investing the money is to kick out a bad tenant, and he may be fearing that my friend may become a bad tenant.
In summary, the tenant is gaining happiness, while the landlord is losing happiness. As such, if they change in happiness is equal.
- How do I evaluate right from wrong?
- Who was right? Who was wrong?
- How do I asset my stance on this situation?
- What actions should I take or not take regarding this situation?
- What should I say or not say to my friend (the tenant)?
After all this thinking, I’m still confused regarding my stance and what I should say… I think — given my uncertainty regarding the actions taken and its outcome, maybe it would be best to say nothing.
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What do you think?
