An epiphenomenon is a secondary effect or byproduct that arises from but does not causally influence a process—so in a way, it is an occurrence whose significance is blown out of proportion. Social life and politics are replete with such epiphenomena. They regularly garner all the attention, especially when nothing else of essence is taking place, but do not contribute at all to, for instance, resolving real problems or alleviating a crisis. Still, epiphenomena can be quite edifying because public opinion leaders and influencers revealingly project their attitudes onto them, thus illuminating the broader socio-political landscape. At the end of October, at least five such telling examples could be observed in Belarus.
Protests in Belarus
OP-ED
Grigory Ioffe: Epiphenomena in the Belarusian political crisis
Belarus' President Alexander Lukashenko (R) speaks with a worker as he visits the Minsk Wheel Tractor Plant (MZKT), in Minsk, on August 17, 2020.
