What’s next?

2018 Onwards with love!  As we begin this new year, I’ve been thinking a lot about how to restore my force, how to learn how to rest, but not quit, how approaching these unique times from a place that is grounded in love (with some rage peppered in there) is what has kept me going.

I stumbled on a beautiful quote from Grace D. Chin that sums this up better than I ever could, “Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief. Do justly NOW. Love mercy NOW. Walk humbly NOW. You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it”.

In the spirit of this work, I humbly offer some light at the end of the tunnel. Some wisdom assembled over time, in the form of a book, “Together We Rise: Behind The Scenes At The Protest Heard Around The World”

Buy it Here: Together We Rise

What began as our effort in chronicling an historic moment quickly became a blueprint on how we move forward. It is, at once, a celebration of the one year anniversary of the biggest mass mobilization in recent history, as well as a how-to on organize intersectionally, have critical daring discussions, and how the feminist movement can work towards showing up for ALL women.*

Here are just some of the ways to support this movement, so that we can continue to move forward, to do the work, and to see the change:

1. Keep Showing Up From A Place Of Love

This year was a testament to JOY being an act of resistance. I love this idea that my friend Ashley C. Ford writes about. We were not made to fight all the time. As Rebecca Solnit said, “Joy doesn’t betray, but sustains activism. And when you face a politics that aspires to make you fearful, alienated and isolated, joy is a fine act of insurrection.”

In the spirit of joy, we founded The Resistance Revival Chorus. Join us at our monthly Resistance Revival Nights and create your own chorus in your community. Info here:

https://www.facebook.com/ResistanceRevivalChorus/

2. Follow the Lead of Women Of Color

As Linda Sarsour so often remarks, “Those closest to the pain are often closest to the solution.”As we just saw in Alabama, and throughout the history of the civil rights and social justice movements, women of color have always been on the frontlines of the moral universe bending toward justice.

One great organization to support:

http://www.higherheightsforamerica.org

Sarah Sophie Flicker, as illustrated by the creators of The Woman Cards, a brother-and-sister team celebrating women who changed the course of history. Read more about Zebby and Zach here

Beret SSF’s own Jacket Redemption T-Shirt Redemption Skirt Redemption Hosiery Wolford Boots Off White Earrings Jennifer Zeuner

3. Midterms: Power To The Polls! We can win BIG in 2018! Make a midterm plan and commit to it over the year!

On January 21, 2018, thousands of women, femmes and allies will come together in Las Vegas, Nevada, to celebrate the one-year anniversary of the Women’s March and to launch our collective 2018 Women’s March agenda: #PowerToThePolls.

From the Women’s March to the Women’s Convention, we’ve seen how powerful we are when we gather together, share space and lift each other up. Join us in Las Vegas as we prepare to take that power to the polls.

Together, we will show this administration that women are not backing down.

For more information, visit:

https://www.womensmarch.com/power-to-the-polls

4. Engage Men: Narrative shift from #MeToo has to involve men

As the wider conversation in our society around sexual harassment and abuse across various industries has progressed over the past months, and as we begin to hold men accountable in real and tangible ways (although not legally accountable in most cases), I have been reflecting on conversations among my own friends. Not long ago, one said, “Well, why didn’t any of these women speak out sooner?” It was disappointing because, as we hold men accountable, we also have to recognize that women are often complicit as well. Patriarchy could not be upheld without women’s acquiescence. Defensiveness is part of being blind to, or even worse, complicit in upholding systems of oppression that allow sexual misconduct to run rampant. Compartmentalizing our experiences with abuse and internalizing them is a coping mechanism that allows us to feel separate from, and thus safe from, these kinds of abuses. That said, we have been taught to internalize these abuses as “normal”. We have also been taught that our proximity to powerful men is where we garner much of our own power.

As important as this “Me Too” moment is, we are still discussing sexual abuse on a case-by-case basis, and as necessary as it is to expose individual abusers, it does little to dismantle the underlying problem. And yet, these individual stories coalesce into something that transcends any one abuser, and I don’t know how you get to that bigger, sweeping conversation without these specific cases and specific examples being brought to light first. Culture shifts are painful—they have to be—and they tend to start with specific examples. Narrative shifts involves us all wrestling down dialogues that we’ve become comfortable with, even when they are harmful, even when they disadvantage us. In the historical wave of how change happens, it starts with bold people taking a stand. It’s inevitably divisive. And people will always dismiss it as an individual instance, a single case. It’s very comfortable for people to individualize these things and take them out of the systemic culture they exist in, to call a person crazy or wrong or indict them in their own victimization. Then, we don’t have to take collective responsibility. I encourage us all to look at the bigger picture and how all these issues are connected.

I encourage us all to be nuanced and loving. I encourage us all to be brave, and, above all else, to be kind.

*Women’s March will share proceeds from Together We Rise with three grassroots, women-led organizations: The Gathering for Justice, SisterSong Women of Color Reproductive Justice Collective, and Indigenous Women Rise.