BEING HERE IS ENOUGH
One of the tenets of my particular made up devotion to staying alive is to be willing to get myself to right relationship with another. I have learned that can never be contingent on anyone else’s action or inaction. Right relationship with others is really about intentional moments to stay in right relationship with myself. The long game practice of self-inquiry —which really is self-forgiveness—does not mean avoiding mistake making or risk taking. It’s squaring up with myself all the freaking time, accepting even the shadows of my own bullshit so I understand what is mine and what is another’s. Where I am and where you are. Looking forward to the day the practice pays off, like how my arms don’t shake when I do planks on day 13 like they did on days 1-5. And yes, im two weeks into daily yoga practice with neighbor friend and i’m going to be the annoying one who tells you that unfortunately exercise DOES make a positive difference.
Yoga helps me map out my own perimeters, reminding me of the cara carved place in this world for me to take up and even my largest expressions aren’t too much. This week I’ve been thinking a lot about what David Whyte calls the ARROGANCE OF BELONGING. Meaning a personal entitlement to this space I occupy. Meaning I am allowed to be here. Elizabeth Gilbert goes on to say how “the arrogance of belonging pulls you out of the darkest depths of self-absorption (your self doubt, your self judgement, self protection, self hatred) —not by saying ‘I am the greatest!’ but merely by saying ‘I am here.’” I like to imagine how Chani Nicholas tells us in YOU WERE BORN FOR THIS, that our astrological birthcharts are snap shots of the sky the moment we landed earth side. How the symbolic meaning of the stars and planets offer us the reflection of our unique purpose & life’s direction. I’m not just here, I’m here as this. For better or for worse, this is what we are working with. I gotta be me.
I want to be offering encouragement in this newsletter when many times I initially find myself pouring out my heartache. Sometimes I dump on the draft page just to delete it. Really it might just be an exercise of letting expansive thinking address my concerns. Higher self to wounded self. Ground control to Major Tom. Finding the wisdom out of the anxiety. The last few weeks I’ve been particularly anxious, specifically for our children—what they’re inheriting from our chronic neglect. How anyone who works in schools right now will tell you the kids are not alright. Because none of us are alright. Resilient, yes and barely. But to me, it’s hard to unsee and live within the unprocessed and often violent fear and anger that continues to divide the country, communities, families.
PLEASE RIGHT NOW WILL YOU HEAR ME ALL THE WAY?
It can feel helpless bumping up against the wall, reminding me that I cannot work or heal myself or anyone else out of these patriarchal structures. I wonder if years from now, we will look back at this time to see these were the years we actually entered a war of the Information Era, where social media tech is weaponized to preserve a pecking order branded as “traditional”. This divide thrives off of our ability to avoid conflict, prioritizing an illusion of “good vibes” over authentic connection. On top of that, we are kept busy to the point of stress in order to live. We are offered all the disassociation, consensual bias, and denial we can get our hands on. Do not underestimate the agendas of a corrupt government in a sick society, pushing boundaries at every level with no shame and no accountability. I mean this is a country where the penalty for pregnancy loss is greater than the penalty for rape.
We cannot expect half of the ruling class to save us from the other half. Our current economic structure has failed & we must unite the working class and prioritze equity. By now I hope we can agree that the two party system is a scam we need to divest from AND voting is only ONE tool of many tools to protect our rights. Voting will not change dishonorable politicians who exist unchecked in both parties. The idiot politicians inciting aggression are there for a reason. There are money backing, out of sight leaders who have given us every reason to know they have thought ahead and believe themselves to be gods. They’re likely the same ones who have been waiting for 2000 years for their saviors’s return, a christ they’ve misrepresented & would crucify present day. They’ve spent 30-50 years to try to get control of the supreme court so they could overturn roe v wade. They’ve spent the last 5-10 years focusing on state and local elections.
I believe current laws are a strategic distraction. In passing all this anti-trans legislation, the elected public servants are intentionally trying to get—not just trans refugees to escape genocide, but people who are wealthy enough to have the means to leave rather than stay and challenge their local system. The ones who have the luxury of not wanting to deal with it, so they flee from certain “unfriendly” states to “friendly” ones. This is an added effort to the current unconstitutional jerrymandering —ohio, florida, north carolina to name a few. Congressional maps are submitted by whoever is in control. They will submit and be denied one unconstitutional map after another until they run out of time with a set election date so we are forced to use them anyway. Currently there is no checkpoint to fix that.
Because of the separation of powers, they prioritize the governorships, the school boards, the judges, etc and they can do whatever they want with very little to stop them that way. (google constitutional convention or convention of states, currently 19 out of 34 states have backed this so they can change the constitution without the approval of congress or the president—taking the power away from the federal government and obliterating democracy. This is a coup at state levels.)
It is not far fetched to see we are in an attempted genocide of trans people. It will not stop after they eradicate trans people. It will get worse. We have learned through 1930s early nazism that it starts with the dehumanization of queer people. I want to get clear that when we say “trans” we are talking about kids like our kids, people like me and my child and you and yours. We are being stripped of our bodily autonomy and medical decision making. If you went hard protecting abortion rights, I am begging you please go even harder protecting trans rights. “It’ll never happen here.” IT IS HAPPENING NOW. 470 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced at state level this year, 190 of which target transgender people.
Gender affirming care is a multidisciplinary treatment that prioritizes validating and supporting children and loving them for who they are as they explore their gender identity. It’s evidence based, done in a developmentaly appropriate manner, supported by data that suggests it decreases the doubled risk of suicidal ideation and suicide in questioning teens, and backed by American Academy of Pediatrics, the Pediatric Endocrine Society, the American Psychological Association, and the American Medical Association. It exists so a teen with gender dysphoria can access mental health support namely. Gender affirming care isn’t just for trans people and can include hormone blockers, boob jobs, laser hair removal, hair transplants for balding men, hormone replacement therapy for menopausal women, viagra. Birth control has a higher level of hormones to stop ovulation than hormone replacement therapy. Only at 16-18 and involving several meetings with psychologists, social workers and physicians can a teen consider hormone replacement therapy. In most cases only adults are allowed surgery—a surgery never questioned when doctors chose it for intersex babies. Outside of surgery, most gender-affirming care is reversible or at least partially reversible. No medical choices can be made for a child without parental consent. And now in Florida, it’s considered child abuse. In North Dakota, it’s criminalized. More than a dozen states have restrictions.
GENDERED BEHAVIORS AND ATTITUDES ARE LEARNED
IT WILL NOT HURT YOU BUT ONLY HELP YOU TO
QUESTION YOUR GENDER & SCRUTINIZE OUR CONDITIONING
IMAGINE POSSIBILITIES BEYOND THE MYTH
A SPELL: Again and again, we remember our power and reorient to loving kindness. We are resourced to gentle parent & masterfully educate our community through the influence of relationship. We show up where we are needed by sharing what we DO have, within our true capacity. We know housing, food, and healthcare should never be commodified and sold for profit. We can provide these things to every person. Everyone can contribute to their own ability but no person will have to fight for the right to deserve to live. Every single human being deserves a life of dignity. Everyone has a right to be here. I do not have to prove anything, achieve something, or impress anyone around me to be deserving of love. Being here is enough. Here is a moment to hold that with sacred tenderness towards the self. When we hold that for our self, we hold that for every single one of us. This is the only influence we have. This is the only thing in our control. IT IS A REVOLUTIONARY ACT TO BE KIND TO YOUR SELF !! May you love being you. Or at least may you be willing to love being you for the good of all. May you connect easily to all there is to celebrate about your one precious life, including the love that surrounds you. May you be free to enjoy any moment of joy you can milk out of here and now. Let’s keep going.
// 198 WAYS OF NON VIOLENT ACTION
The Methods of Nonviolent Protest and Persuasion //
Formal Statements 1. Public speeches 2. Letters of opposition or support 3. Declarations by organizations and institutions 4. Signed public statements 5. Declarations of indictment and intention 6. Group or mass petitions
Communications with a Wider Audience 7. Slogans, caricatures, and symbols 8. Banners, posters, and displayed communications 9. Leaflets, pamphlets, and books 10. Newspapers and journals 11. Records, radio, and television 12. Skywriting and earthwriting
Group Representations 13. Deputations 14. Mock awards 15. Group lobbying 16. Picketing 17. Mock elections
Symbolic Public Acts 18. Displays of flags and symbolic colors 19. Wearing of symbols 20. Prayer and worship 21. Delivering symbolic objects 22. Protest disrobings 23. Destruction of own property 24. Symbolic lights 25. Displays of portraits 26. Paint as protest 27. New signs and names 28. Symbolic sounds 29. Symbolic reclamations 30. Rude gestures
Pressures on Individuals 31. “Haunting” officials 32. Taunting officials 33. Fraternization 34. Vigils
Drama and Music Humorous skits and pranks 36. Performances of plays and music 37. Singing
Processions 38. Marches 39. Parades 40. Religious processions 41. Pilgrimages 42. Motorcades
Honoring the Dead 43. Political mourning 44. Mock funerals 45. Demonstrative funerals 46. Homage at burial places
Public Assemblies 47. Assemblies of protest or support 48. Protest meetings 49. Camouflaged meetings of protest 50. Teach-ins
Withdrawal and Renunciation 51. Walk-outs 52. Silence 53. Renouncing honors 54. Turning one’s back
The Methods of Social Noncooperation //
Ostracism of Persons 55. Social boycott 56. Selective social boycott 57. Lysistratic nonaction 58. Excommunication 59.Interdict
Noncooperation with Social Events, Customs, and Institutions 60. Suspension of social and sports activities 61. Boycott of social affairs 62. Student strike 63. Social disobedience 64. Withdrawal from social institutions
Withdrawal from the Social System 65. Stay-at-home 66. Total personal noncooperation 67. “Flight” of workers 68. Sanctuary 69. Collective disappearance 70. Protest emigration (hijrat)
The Methods of Economic Noncooperation: Economic Boycotts //
Actions by Consumers 71. Consumers’ boycott 72. Nonconsumption of boycotted goods 73. Policy of austerity 74. Rent withholding 75. Refusal to rent 76. National consumers’ boycott 77. International consumers’ boycott
Action by Workers and Producers 78. Workmen’s boycott 79. Producers’ boycott
Action by Middlemen 80. Suppliers’ and handlers’ boycott
Action by Owners and Management 81. Traders’ boycott 82. Refusal to let or sell property 83. Lockout 84. Refusal of industrial assistance 85. Merchants’ “general strike”
Action by Holders of Financial Resources 86. Withdrawal of bank deposits 87. Refusal to pay fees, dues, and assessments 88. Refusal to pay debts or interest 89. Severance of funds and credit 90. Revenue refusal 91. Refusal of a government’s money
Action by Governments 92. Domestic embargo 93. Blacklisting of traders 94. International sellers’ embargo 95. International buyers’ embargo 96. International trade embargo
The Methods of Economic Noncooperation: The Strike //
Symbolic Strikes 97. Protest strike 98. Quickie walkout (lightning strike)
Agricultural Strikes 99. Peasant strike 100. Farm Workers’ strike
Strikes by Special Groups 101. Refusal of impressed labor 102. Prisoners’ strike 103. Craft strike 104. Professional strike
Ordinary Industrial Strikes 105. Establishment strike 106.Industry strike 107. Sympathetic strike
Restricted Strikes 108. Detailed Strike 109. Bumper strike 110. Slowdown strike 111. Working-to-rule strike 112. Reporting “sick” (sick-in) 113. Strike by resignation 114. Limited strike 115. Selective strike Multi-Industry Strikes 116. Generalized strike 117. General strike
Combination of Strikes and Economic Closures 118. Hartal 119. Economic shutdown
The Methods of Political Noncooperation //
Rejection of Authority 120. Withholding or withdrawal of allegiance 121. Refusal of public support 122. Literature and speeches advocating resistance
Citizens’ Noncooperation with Government 123. Boycott of legislative bodies 124. Boycott of elections 125. Boycott of government employment and positions 126. Boycott of government depts., agencies, and other bodies 127. Withdrawal from government educational institutions 128. Boycott of government-supported organizations 129. Refusal of assistance to enforcement agents 130. Removal of own signs and placemarks 131. Refusal to accept appointed officials 132. Refusal to dissolve existing institutions
Citizens’ Alternatives to Obedience 133. Reluctant and slow compliance 134. Nonobedience in absence of direct supervision 135. Popular nonobedience 136. Disguised disobedience 137. Refusal of an assemblage or meeting to disperse 138. Sit-down 139. Noncooperation with conscription and deportation 140. Hiding, escape, and false identities 141. Civil disobedience of “illegitimate” laws
Action by Government Personnel 142. Selective refusal of assistance by government aides 143. Blocking of lines of command and information 144. Stalling and obstruction 145. General administrative noncooperation 146. Judicial noncooperation 147. Deliberate inefficiency and selective noncooperation by enforcement agents 148. Mutiny
Domestic Governmental Action 149. Quasi-legal evasions and delays 150. Noncooperation by constituent governmental units
International Governmental Action 151. Changes in diplomatic and other representations 152. Delay and cancellation of diplomatic events 153. Withholding of diplomatic recognition 154. Severance of diplomatic relations 155. Withdrawal from international organizations 156. Refusal of membership in international bodies 157. Expulsion from international organizations
The Methods of Nonviolent Intervention //
Psychological Intervention 158. Self-exposure to the elements 159. The fast a. Fast of moral pressure b. Hunger strike c. Satyagrahic fast 160. Reverse trial 161. Nonviolent harassment
Physical Intervention 162. Sit-in 163. Stand-in 164. Ride-in 165. Wade-in 166. Mill-in 167. Pray-in 168. Nonviolent raids 169. Nonviolent air raids 170. Nonviolent invasion 171. Nonviolent interjection 172. Nonviolent obstruction 173. Nonviolent occupation
Social Intervention 174. Establishing new social patterns 175. Overloading of facilities 176. Stall-in 177. Speak-in 178. Guerrilla theater 179. Alternative social institutions 180. Alternative communication system
Economic Intervention 181. Reverse Strike 182. Stay-in Strike 183. Nonviolent land seizure 184. Defiance of Blockades 185. Politically Motivated Counterfeiting 186. Preclusive Purchasing 187. Seizure of assets 188. Dumping 189. Selective patronage 190. Alternative markets 191. Alternative transportation systems 192. Alternative economic institutions
Political Intervention 193. Overloading of administrative systems 194. Disclosing identities of secret agents 195. Seeking imprisonment 196. Civil disobedience of “neutral” laws 197. Work-on without collaboration 198. Dual sovereignty and parallel government