However she says writing off the rioters as mindless individuals is a cop-out. She says using this label creates an “us versus them” paradigm. This dehumanizes the rioters and negates any hope of understanding the sources of their discontent. She proposes “careful listening” as a form of political action instead. She writes: Baker says one of the motivations behind the riots may well be a lack of listening. To read more of her post on this issue, click here.