When I did a survey last week asking folks what they'd like to see a deep-dive on, how to get started in advocacy took a strong lead! That totally makes sense, so I spent the following days deep in research and writing to put together a step by step plan to help you get started with building the world we want to live in!
While I was doing that research, I had one of my subscribers reach out to share that they’d realized something they can do to drive change—use their art! Moss designed these dope ass pride flag crosswalk pins in response to Florida’s attempt to erase the symbols of trans and queer pride around the state. The template is free, check it out, send it around, use it at will! If you want to say “thank you” to Moss for their work on this, you can make a donation to https://www.stlmetrotrans.org/ and look out for Actually Aspec at Tower Grove Pride in STL! This is an awesome example of using your strong suits to make a difference, and is right in line with our discussion for today.
As always, my approach to getting started in advocacy is grounded in joy and care. If guilt, shame, and fear were going to be effective motivators for people to roll up their sleeves and get to work, it would have already worked by now. We've been trying those strategies on ourselves for a while now. It's time to try something different.
If you're anything like me, the thought of yet another person telling me to do something might trigger some defensive, uncomfortable, or self-protective emotions. Stick with me for a few minutes, will you? Unless we can have the courage to look these feelings in the face and figure out how to confront them without judgment, we will continue to sit on our couches, exhausted, isolated, and defeated, wondering why we feel so darn disempowered.
Take a deep breath. I'm right here with you, but the only way out is through. So let's take the first steps together, okay?
Getting (Gently) Real with Ourselves
We can't know where we're going until we know where we're starting! Let's take a moment to sit together and listen to ourselves.
What was your reaction when you realized that this piece is action-centered? Anxiety? Exhaustion? Frustration? Guilt?
What is this emotion telling you? What beliefs is it drawing from?
What’s stopping you from getting involved?
You aren’t a bad person for whatever feelings are coming up—these feelings are teaching us about our unmet needs. For me, the emotions that come up are anxiety and exhaustion at the rapid pace of change work. I can meet my unmet needs by learning how to find sources I trust to communicate urgency truthfully, and by making space for slowness and ease in the right amounts. Name your feelings without judgment, and see what they are trying to teach you about needs that are not currently being met. How can you meet these needs to feel more empowered to make change?
If you’re feeling really stuck here, check out this guide I wrote a few weeks ago!
Pick your lane!
Thanks to the infinite wonders and horrors of the internet, we have constant and immediate access to the pain and suffering of basically every other person on the planet. The result? We have the ability to fix the whole planet for all of humanity! Just kidding. The result is crushing pressure that stops us from doing anything at all. We are constantly hearing “why aren’t you doing more for this group? Why don’t you care about this issue? How dare you not have the same priorities as me?”
We have to let go of that! No one person can act for every issue, or can stay “informed” on every crisis happening at all times. It doesn’t mean to just abandon other issues, but we’re going to start by picking one issue that is the most important to you, the most aligned with your values, and acting on THAT issue. Change is a highway and we’re all trying to go in a similar direction, and if I’m swerving all over the road doing half-assed “help” in every lane, we’re all going to get in an accident. I trust that others have picked Climate, have picked Voting Rights, have picked other issues that matter to me too so that I can focus my energy on trans and queer rights.
Think for a moment not just about which issue makes you the most upset, but which issue you feel the most energized about. What feels urgent, important, and within your power to act on?
Great. Now let’s talk about bridging the gap between wanting to do something and actually doing it!
How do I make myself actually do something?
An excellent question that not nearly enough people are brave enough to ask! You shouldn't feel guilty for struggling with this—most people are these days.
Instead of me just telling you "you should act because it's the right thing to do and you're complicit/uncaring/privileged/a bad person if you don't!" I'd like to take some time to look at what factors actually play in to motivation! Then, we can work WITH our brains instead of against them. Maybe some of these resonate for you more than others—great! Pick the ones that matter to you and lean in!
We want to have friends and feel seen/liked
We want to feel like we know what's going on, and that we're skilled
We want to feel like what we're doing will matter
We want to feel connected to our values, and act in line with how we see ourselves
We want to have fun (yes, really)
We have someone we are accountable to
Just like in the movie “inside out”, now that we know where the buttons are in our brain, we can start pressing them! For me, If I want to hype myself up to take action on something, I need to:
Stand up! A while ago I read someone saying you should never make decisions from your couch, because you’ll basically always choose comfort/stagnancy over something unfamiliar or frightening. I try to go for a walk while I decide to commit to something.
Put on my hype up playlist to bring some fire/energy into the room, and to make it feel a little more fun.
Here’s mine! Feel free to put it on while you’re reading the rest of this article.
Find actions that align with the way I want to see myself in the world (as an advocate, as someone who isn’t afraid to have difficult conversations, as a storyteller, as a kind and comforting person) Usually, these actions are in my local community so that I can feel connected and see the impact of what I’m doing.
Invite friends to take an action with me so that I am held accountable, and I expand the impact. I also know it’ll be more fun if my friends come! I get myself excited.
If the action is difficult, I pre-plan the time on either side to be restorative, energizing, or healing.
Okay, hopefully we’re all locked in to feeling excited to pick something. Now, what do we choose?
What Counts as Advocacy?
In short, everything can count! The image of an "ideal advocate", as talked about in the phenomenal book "Social Justice for the Sensitive Soul", is a ghoul that haunts all of us doing movement work. They're relentlessly energetic, they're loud and brave on the front lines, and they're always ready to take on more.
Take the image in your head of "the ideal advocate" and toss it out the mental window. Anyone who is working to make the world a better place in ways that feel doable and sustainable for them is an advocate. A successful social movement is going to have people leading, working, fighting, brainstorming, cooking, healing, singing, crying, researching, testifying, protesting, and more. You cannot be all these people.
As you're reading through this list of forms of advocacy, listen to yourself. Which one makes you excited? Which one lines up with the skills you already have? Which one are you most curious to learn more about? Following our excitement and interests is a great way to build up our motivation. Start small and doable—pick one category that sounds exciting, and commit to yourself to take an action in that category.
Ready? Put on some music that gets your heart pumping. Stand up while you read. Let’s do this.
Here are a few examples of categories/domains of advocacy and changemaking you might see in the world around us:
Nonviolent Direct Action
Rather than trying to get authorities to act on a particular issue, direct action focuses on the power of the people. Protests, marches, sit-ins, and boycotts are forms of Nonviolent Direct Action.
Where to start learning: Watch Indivisible’s training on community resistance gatherings Session 1: The Moment & Your Mission - July 16
Where to start acting: https://www.mobilize.us/indivisible/ find an action. Put it on your calendar, and invite a friend so you’re BOTH more likely to go!
Electoral
Working to get progressive, inclusive, or harm-reducing candidates elected on every level from library boards and school boards to state-level politicians to the critical midterms next November.
Where to start learning: Check out this compilation of the most flippable house seats, this compilation of impactful progressives running for state and local office, or this organization specifically devoted to trans and queer candidates!
Where to start acting: Find a local candidate through the databases above or through connecting to a local organization. Sign up for one shift to volunteer for their campaign.
Legislative
This includes testifying in support of or against legislation you believe in, phone calls/emails to people in office, and lobbying and storytelling elected officials.
Where to start: Search the web for the name of your state + “LGBTQ+ advocacy organization”. Most states have 1-2 groups leading legislative efforts on a variety of issues. Many legislative bodies are not in session right now, but there is still plenty to be done. Reach out to your state advocacy org to sign up as a volunteer.
Direct Services & Mutual Aid
Basically, this means “helping each other out!” Direct services are usually through local nonprofits, food banks, community clothing closest, warmlines, gathering spaces, etc. Mutual aid is the regular practice of creating new systems of care and support without hierarchy.
Where to start learning: Check out activist Dean Spade’s book Mutual Aid
Where to start acting: Research “LGBTQ+ support” + the name of your neighborhood, city, or metropolitan area. See what their volunteering needs are. Alternatively, look up “Mutual Aid” + your area and attend the next gathering or potluck of this group!
Culture Shift/ Deep Canvassing
This refers to the “changing hearts and minds” that is so critical for change work. This is especially good for folks who love storytelling, extreme extroverts, and allies who are more privileged and therefore safer to be out knocking doors!
Where to start learning: To learn about deep canvassing in general, watch a live training featured here. Then, we want to look at some “messaging guides”, which help us understand forms of storytelling and speaking that are the most effective at getting through to potential allies. Here’s an overall messaging guide for talking about trans rights, and Movement Advancement Project has some great specific guides to talking about sports, healthcare, and more.
Where to start acting: These conversations can be frightening and intimidating! Practice talking about these issues with people in your life who may be neutral or unsure on these topics but are kind and trustworthy folks. When you’re ready to take a step up, look up there are organizations in your state already doing deep canvassing initiatives.
Stay accountable! Comment to let us know what action you’re going to take in the next few weeks!
Okay, this article is getting VERY long, so I’m going to bring this to a close for now. You have your lane, you have your passion, you’ve picked the format that makes you most excited. Now, it’s up to you to start!! I know it might be intimidating, but this is exactly how change gets made.
Remember: There is no such thing as the perfect person at the perfect time. No one is coming to save us. All we have is ourselves and each other, all we have is now.
We’ll never feel all the way ready, but we can do it scared because we’re doing it together.
I’m so proud of you for taking the first step. LET’S DO THIS!!!!!
Together in power,
Ben
Hi Ben,
On the "pick your lane" advice, I think the thing that trips me up most is I feel like I'm expected to pick the "trans rights" lane because I'm trans, but the thing I'm actually most passionate about and make time to work on every year is voting rights and access. I don't think I'm wrong to put my focus there, but it still feels weird, like I'm letting our community down or something. What are your thoughts?
Thanks for this. I've seen several people on Substack trying to force others into whatever action they're taking. Not everyone is cut out for battle on the front line.