Beyond performative activism towards transformative change

So excited for this month’s community meet up where are asking the question “what skills and practices are needed for this next phase of our work together?”. We’ll also announce a new program in 2022 that explores how to bridge collective care and political change. It is a 6-month learning cohort with CTZNWELL and partners to build our collective muscle and capacity to show up for this political moment and the next. Join us on November 18th for information on how to apply.

From the “Great Awakening” that came with George Floyd’s murder to the “Great Resignation” that came with the pandemic, we’ve seen powerful uprisings and opportunities to creates fundamental shifts in society.

But for a movement moment to become transformational change takes all of us practicing justice every day. We must go beyond performative activism and embody the change we want to see.

The costs of our eroding democracy and fair weather politics are adding up and if we don’t act to stop the slide and demand the life-affirming changes that are needed for our collective survival, it might just be too late.

Now is the time to put our practice into action and build a politics of wellbeing that takes care of everyone.

Kerri (she/her)

1. An under-the-radar Supreme Court ruling is making it easier for Republicans to defend racially discriminatory voting district maps. The redistricting loophole that is rigging elections around the country. [click to tweet]

2. Here's the best-kept secret about the so-called abortion "debate" in the United States: It's actually not that much of a debate at all. Why overturning Roe v. Wade would be a disaster for conservatives. [click to tweet]

3. “If Rittenhouse were Black, his tears would have gotten him nowhere”. Justice, youth and the privilege of white innocence. [click to tweet]

4. “White people try to explain racism to me”. Elie Mystal on the hubris of white people thinking they know more about racism than Black people. They don’t. [click to tweet]

5. “Each decision to resist capitalist pressures, to disengage from harmful systems of power and truly rest, is a transcendental moment." Dom Chatterjee on the privilege of getting rest. [click to tweet]

This year we’ve seen unprecedented attacks on trans people and their right to access healthcare, on reproductive freedom, on fundamental voting rights and more. And its about to get worse. The GOP is gerrymandering their way to power instead of working for the people’s votes. And we cannot afford to lose. The next few years are critical to our shared future and survival as it will determine our ability to respond to the climate and care crisis we are facing. Here’s what we need to do:

• End the Filibuster: The filibuster blocked civil rights legislation in 1891. It blocked anti-lynching legislation in 1922. It blocked the Civil Rights Act of 1957. And it blocked the Freedom to Vote Act and every major piece of legislation in 2021. It’s imperative to end the racist filibuster and pass voting rights protections before it’s too late. Call your representative.

• Turn out the vote in 2022: Democrats have their hands full for these midterms as we defend a narrow majority in the house and senate. But we can win by activating voters and turning out the vote in key battleground states. And we can start now. Check out Vote Save America for how to make an “off year” impact.

• Take care of each other: in the absence of systems that take care of us, we need to take care of us. Join us THIS THURSDAY 11/18 for a community meet up to explore how to organize communities of care and build a future of wellbeing for all.

Art by @votolatino

In the words of @chiara.acu:

“These times of seemingly rapid change are built on the foundations of years, decades and centuries of organizing struggle. We must keep going just as much as we must pause to restore our minds, hearts and bodies. The one-on-one conversations, the letters and emails and phone calls, the workshops and skill shares, the digital organizing, the politicized work of healers, lawyers, farmers, artists, educators and journalists, the books and articles and research papers, the thousands of hands doing the care work of feeding and cleaning and tending to bodies and minds, and the solidarity moments of reflection and self accountability. This is the work of many lifetimes. It takes all of us”.

Join us Thursday 11/18 for a community meet up to explore healing in action and what it’s gonna take to build a culture and politics of wellbeing that takes care of everyone.

Art and words by @chiara.acu

Eclipses collapse timelines. The past resurfaces. Engaging with our memories and emotions begin the next chapter. Important themes in our lives are heightened by contrast and intensity.

Words and Art by @gottesss

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