# Apoliticism > Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Apoliticism > Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Apoliticism.md > Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apoliticism > Source revision: 1348224536 > License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/) For distrust in politics, see [Anti-politics](/source/Anti-politics). **Apoliticism** is [apathy](/source/Apathy) or [antipathy](/source/Antipathy) towards all [political affiliations](/source/Political_affiliation).[1] A person may be described as **apolitical** if they are uninterested or uninvolved in [politics](/source/Politics).[2] Being apolitical can also refer to situations in which people take an [unbiased](/source/Bias) position in regard to political matters.[3] The *[Collins English Dictionary](/source/Collins_English_Dictionary)* defines *apolitical* as "politically neutral; without political attitudes, content, or bias."[4] ## History During [classical antiquity](/source/Classical_antiquity), the [Epicureans](/source/Epicureanism) assumed disengagement from the life of the city as a doctrinal position. Seeking [pleasure](/source/Pleasure) in the absence of [suffering](/source/Suffering) for the body and trouble for [the soul](/source/Soul), they saw political activity as a source of unnecessary stress that would not lead to these ends.[5] However, they were not strictly apolitical and participated when political activity would bring them pleasure or aid in the avoidance of their suffering.[6] ### Christianity The [Protestant](/source/Protestantism) [Anabaptists](/source/Anabaptism) adopted apolitical beliefs and practices: Anabaptist radicalism resulted in a sharp [separation](/source/Separation_of_church_and_state) of Christian communities from the state.[7] With the progression of time, [peace church traditions](/source/Peace_churches) and [evangelical](/source/Evangelicalism) social [reformism](/source/Reformism) have led to greater engagement.[citation needed] More [ascetic](/source/Christian_asceticism) traditions have tended to adopt a minimalistic approach to political engagement, [personal salvation](/source/Personal_salvation) and church mission being preoccupations instead.[citation needed] ## Civil society [Sir Robert Peel](/source/Sir_Robert_Peel) inspired the [Peelian principles](/source/Peelian_principles) by which law enforcement by police in England was civilian rather than an instrument of the state in contrast to the basis of *[gendarmerie](/source/Gendarmerie)* model of policing. In 1984 this was brought into question at the [Battle of Orgreave](/source/Battle_of_Orgreave).[8][9] [Reithian principles](/source/Reithianism) were directly the basis for the establishment of the [public corporation](/source/Public_corporation), the British Broadcasting Corporation ([BBC](/source/BBC)), and early pioneer in [broadcasting](/source/Broadcasting) with an emphasis on [impartiality](/source/Impartiality).[10] ## Criticisms Apoliticism as an [ideology](/source/Ideology) is criticised for its claim that it is possible to remain impartial. The Italian Communist Antonio Gramsci argues that by ignoring the political nature of everyday life, "neutral" individuals make a choice to ignore oppressive regimes and practises, which manifests as an acceptance and passive approval of them. The following instance is indicative of this rhetoric: "all men are political beings […] Every man, in as much as he is active, i.e. living, contributes to modifying the social environment in which he develops (to modifying certain of its characteristics or to preserving others); in other words, he tends to establish 'norms', rules of living and behaviour."[11] —[Antonio Gramsci](/source/Antonio_Gramsci) Selections from Prison Notebooks: State and Civil Society 1971 Another example of this is the political slogan: [The personal is political](/source/The_personal_is_political). The phrase was popularised by radical feminist [Carol Hanisch](/source/Carol_Hanisch) in her essay of the same name, which analyses the ways in which the personal problems of women are actually political ones.[12] ## See also - [Abstention](/source/Abstention) - [Dealignment](/source/Dealignment) - [Disenchantment](/source/Disenchantment) - [Independent media](/source/Independent_media) - [Non-voting](/source/Non-voting) - [Political apathy](/source/Political_apathy) - [Political nihilism](/source/Political_nihilism) - [Protest vote](/source/Protest_vote) - [Religious rejection of politics](/source/Religious_rejection_of_politics) - [Social rejection](/source/Social_rejection) ## References 1. Rabin, Jack (ed.) (1984). *Politics and administration: Woodrow Wilson and American public administration*. Public administration and public policy. New York: Dekker. p. 51. ISBN 978-0-8247-7068-6. 1. ["Apolitical"](https://web.archive.org/web/20201030193055/https://www.lexico.com/definition/apolitical). *lexico.com*. Archived from [the original](https://www.lexico.com/definition/apolitical) on October 30, 2020. Retrieved 8 January 2021. 1. ["Iraq war inquiry: Sir John Chilcot vows to 'get to the heart' of decision to go to war"](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/politics/6641968/Iraq-war-inquiry-Sir-John-Chilcot-vows-to-get-to-the-heart-of-decision-to-go-to-war.html). [The Daily Telegraph](/source/The_Daily_Telegraph). 24 Nov 2009. Retrieved 10 November 2012. My colleagues and I come to this task with open minds. We are apolitical and independent of any political party. We want to examine the evidence. We will approach our task in a way that is thorough, rigorous, fair and frank. 1. ["Collins: Apolitical"](http://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/apolitical). Retrieved 10 Nov 2012. 1. Wilson, Catherine (2015). *Epicureanism: a very short introduction*. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199688326. [OCLC 917374685](https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/917374685) 1. Warren, James (2009). *The Cambridge Companion to Epicureanism*. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781139002578. [OCLC 939968026](https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/939968026) 1. ["The Anabaptists: Did You Know?"](https://christianhistoryinstitute.org/magazine/article/anabaptists-did-you-know). *Christian History Institute*. Retrieved 1 June 2025. 1. Coxhead, John (2024). ["Evaluating Tactics for Public Order Policing in the United Kingdom: Examining the Police Deployment at Orgreave During the Miners’ Strike of 1984"](https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-031-67943-8_10). *Special Topics in Policing: Critical Issues and Global Perspectives, Volume 2*. Springer Nature Switzerland. [doi:10.1007/978-3-031-67943-8_10](https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-67943-8_10) 1. Scraton, Phil (1985). ["An Introduction"](https://www.jstor.org/stable/1410119?origin=crossref). *Journal of Law and Society*. **12** (3): 251–266. [doi:10.2307/1410119](https://doi.org/10.2307/1410119). [ISSN 0263-323X](https://www.worldcat.org/issn/0263-323X) 1. Lawson, Mark (12 May 2016). ["A truly impartial BBC? John Whittingdale would be the first to complain"](https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2016/may/12/bbc-white-paper-a-truly-impartial-bbc-john-whittingdale-would-be-the-first-to-complain). *The Guardian* 1. Gramsci, Antonio (1971). *Selections from the Prison Notebooks*. International Publishers. ISBN 071780397X. 1. Hanisch, Carol (2006). ["The Personal Is Political: The Women's Liberation Movement classic with a new explanatory introduction"](http://www.carolhanisch.org/CHwritings/PIP.html). [Archived](https://web.archive.org/web/20090809102643/http://carolhanisch.org:80/CHwritings/PIP.html) 2009-08-09 at the Wayback Machine. --- Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Apoliticism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apoliticism) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apoliticism?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.