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"Practicing Change, Shaping Futures” [ [link removed] ]is a virtual gathering of shared practice and action that explores how we meet this moment and show up for the future that we all deserve. Our journey will be inspired by movement leaders like Dr Jasmine Syedullah, Nicole Cardoza, Dr Sará King, Rae Leiner, Frank Escamilla, Kennae Miller, Kerri Kelly and more as we build the courage and capacity to navigate this transition and build a better world. Registration is “pay what you can”.
Save your seat [ [link removed] ]!
The people have spoken. Turns out egregious laws that control and threaten bodily autonomy isn’t popular. As the first state to vote on abortion after Dobbs, Kansas turned out in droves and voted overwhelmingly in support of abortion.
This is sending a clear message to folks on the right and left: we need to run on bold ideas, not moderate ones. Progressive policies are popular. Issues like reproductive choice (71%), medicare for all (70%), higher taxes for the rich (64%), climate action (80%) are not only essential to our collective survival, but are supported by a majority of Americans. Not only has politics fallen out of alignment with our values and principles, it has fallen out with the people.
We cannot trust our collective wellbeing to unaccountable politicians. We must detox the system of anyone who is not fighting for the will of the people. But that’s not enough. We must also imagine new forms of self governance, where we take our power back and create conditions of mutual care and thriving. We can start by asking hard questions, taking bold action and bringing big love to everything we do.
And we can start now.
Kerri (she/her)
While the climate bill is smaller than we would have liked, it would transform huge sectors of the U.S. economy and affect millions of Americans. How the bill is both imperfect and awesome. [ [link removed] ][click to tweet] [ [link removed] ]
Run on abortion. [ [link removed] ]Kansas is a sign: If Democrats champion winning issues, Democrats will win. [click to tweet] [ [link removed] ]
States hostile to abortion fare worse on a variety of health and well-being outcomes, while states supportive of abortion rights tend to have a more generous social safety net. How anti-abortion states don’t care about mothers and children [ [link removed] ]. [click to tweet] [ [link removed] ]
The devaluation Of Black women’s lives and labor almost disappeared Brittney Griner. [ [link removed] ]How Brittney Griner’s story is an example of human rights violations against Black migrants during conflict and crisis. [click to tweet] [ [link removed] ]
Do Indigenous Land Acknowledgments Do More Harm Than Good? [ [link removed] ] Land back and what is really needed for repair and restoration. [click to tweet] [ [link removed] ]
States that have banned abortion (or are expected to) have among the...worst social services for women and children, and have higher rates of death for infants and mothers. There is nothing pro-life about denying people basic dignity and needs like paid family leave, a living wage, housing and healthcare coverage. To be life-affirming is to close the wellbeing gap and build a politics of care. Here’s how we start:
RESTORE DEMOCRATIC STRUCTURES: Attacks on democracy are not just threatening the power of the people, they are threatening our collective survival by paving the way for minority rule. The Freedom to Vote Act is historic legislation to strengthen American democracy, promote racial justice and equity for all Americans, and thwart the assault on voting rights taking place in the states. Here’s why it matters. [ [link removed] ]
VOTEPROCHOICE: Voting pro-choice isn’t just about supporting candidates that embody pro-choice and progressive values, it’s about voting for attorneys, judges and other local leaders who can protect people in a post-Roe world. Check out this voter guide. [ [link removed] ]
SUPPORT MUTUAL AID NETWORKS: In the absence of systems that take care of us. we must take care of us. Mutual aid exposes how our systems are not only failing many of us, but that they created the crisis in the first place. It calls us to build community capacity to meet one another’s needs. Here’s a good primer on how to have each other. [ [link removed] ]
Art by @zeaink
“Finding the self has become an all American fixation. We ask “who am I?” and “why am I here?” We claim purpose statements and start entrepreneurial projects, all for the realization and glorification of the self. We seek, we buy, we process, we manifest — anything to locate the most authentic “me” lurking inside of us. From finding ourselves to being authentic to living our purpose to profiting from our passions, the pursuit has become relentless. And it’s not just inward. The demand to project and perform our best selves through social media has taken it to a whole new level. No longer are we finding ourselves for ourselves. Now we must perform the “self” for it to be real and valid.
What we are so relentlessly seeking is a longing for purpose not for the sake of purpose, but purpose in relationship to the world. The human condition is one of connection and belonging. All of the crises we have faced — whether it is 9/11 or climate change or the coronavirus— underline the interconnectedness that has always been and the inadequacies of our self-oriented lives. We are not separate from the suffering of our people and our planet. Only when we can unhook ourselves from the demands of the self can we accept ourselves and embrace the true self. To do this, we must reject the lie of separation and reclaim our connection to ourselves and one another. In many ways, this detox is an invitation to come home to the truth of who you are as an authentic interbeing”.
Excerpt from American Detox: They Myth of Wellness & How We Can Truly Heal. [ [link removed] ]
art by @emilyonfire
Holding this brutal and beautiful world we live in.
Art by @blessthemessy
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