Getting Started

“The first step is the hardest.”

– Marie Anne de Vichy

Before I launch into sharing perspectives or giving advice, I should start out by clarifying that I’m far from an expert in activism or getting involved in political movements. For the last several years, I’ve tried hard to be an ally to the disenfranchised, but I’ve had so many stumbles along the way, and I’ve had to learn to recognize the huge blind spots I’ve acquired being a cis-hetero white girl from a small town. But I will gladly share what I’ve learned in recent times that has helped me to turn my anxiety and anger into fuel for the fight.

Everything below is meant to be ideas and thoughts. Do what’s within your ability and your means. Remember, this fight for a better world belongs to all of us, which means we all have responsibility, but none of us are responsible for all of it. Every little positive change you make contributes to the whole.

Pick something

Pick something. Just pick something. It can be anything, any cause you believe in. Any opportunity to help someone. Any ongoing movement that accepts members or volunteers.

And then sign up. Sign up for a volunteer shift. Sign up to attend a meeting. Sign up to donate a needed item or service.

One of the biggest traps I tend to fall into is analysis paralysis. That’s where you overthink and overanalyze a situation so much that you can’t make a decision. I’ve wanted to get more involved in volunteering a million times, but I couldn’t pick an organization. I couldn’t pick a movement. And then I’d end up with a huge list of organizations and all of their volunteer schedules which conflicted with each other, and I’d get confused and overwhelmed. Then I’d feel guilty about not starting, which would make it even harder to get started.

The secret is that it doesn’t matter which organization you choose, as long as they are doing good and as long as they are not causing harm through the work they are doing. I plan to put together a guide for things to consider when picking an organization, but if their goal is to help, odds are they are doing good and worth volunteering for.

Just pick something that you want to do that is doing good, sign up for a shift, and build some momentum. If they end up not being the organization you want to devote your time to, you can change course as needed.

Build Community

Are you lucky enough to have friends who believe in the important things like you do? If so, cherish those friendships and make time for them. Reach out and check in. Make time for hangouts and phone calls. Volunteer together. See what your local shelter needs and go shopping together for things to donate.

If you don’t have friends who are on the same wavelength, that’s okay. One of the cool things about volunteering is meeting new people. And it doesn’t have to be volunteering either. Historically, a lot of women organized social and political action during sewing and knitting circles. Hobbies can still be great ways to meet people and find common ground. See if your local craft store has get-togethers. Join a library book club. Start a monthly craft or puzzle night with a couple acquaintances and encourage them to invite friends. Join a sports league and invite people out for drinks after practice.

In addition to making friends, work to strengthen the community you live in. Get to know neighbors if they’re open to it. Do your shopping at small, locally owned businesses when possible. Try to get out and attend community events like art shows or high school football games.

If you are an extrovert, you may already do all of these things. If you are a socially awkward introvert like me, it can be really hard to get started. But just like volunteering, once you start taking steps, it’s amazing how much easier it can be.

However, an absolutely key part of building community is not tolerating bullying and cruelty. You have to protect your community, and it’s okay to cut people off if they are not safe.

Vote with your Dollars

Where you spend and donate your money can send a message as well as enable political action. Currently, the wealth disparity is enormous, and the growing trend of mega-corporations has contributed significantly. Online shopping drives people to look for the lowest price and most convenient shipping options, which often means buying from the largest company.

Many of these large corporations support the current federal administration because they know it means tearing down the regulations that protect consumers and passing tax cuts for the obscenely wealthy. Having enough money to buy a new multi-million dollar mansion every day for hundreds of years apparently isn’t enough.

When you shop locally, more of the money you spend stays local and gets invested in your community thanks to the Local Multiplier Effect. When you shop at stores that treat their employees well and pay them a living wage, you enable the hiring of more employees and can contribute to better wages. When you boycott a company that acts unethically, you send the message that their actions are unacceptable using the only language that they understand: money.

I encourage you to consider your options and try to be aware of the companies you support if it’s within your means. Of course, in many small towns, there are limited options, so a big box store may be as local as it gets. And for many people, cost is the only factor they are able to consider because you still have to make ends meet. Also, if mobility or transportation are an issue, sometimes going with the large retailers who ship to your home are truly your best option. However, if you have the means to vote with your dollars, I encourage you to do so when you can.

Learn to Recognize Your Privilege and Become an Ally

As the word privilege has entered the mainstream with regards to socioeconomic factors, a lot of people have (often intentionally) taken the wrong message away. Privilege is not a free pass to an easy life. Lots of people with privilege still face challenges and struggle to find success. However, it does mean that you are less likely to have barriers placed in your way. If you play video games, you might view it as less of a perk, but rather the absence of a debuff.

Intersectionality also plays a huge role. Everyone has an assortment of social and physical traits such as race, sex, gender expression, gender identity, sexuality, religion, disability, height, and age. Each trait will have positive or negative impacts on their life, sometimes dependent on their setting. It is important to look at each person as a whole and understand that the combination of traits that makes them who they are will impact how much privilege they have and how much discrimination they are likely to face.

Being a good ally is a lot more than just wearing a Pride t-shirt or posting a Black Lives Matter meme on your social media. Those acts can be used to advertise your views and show support, but if you don’t put action behind it and step up when the opportunity presents itself, you are just another person letting down a victim of discrimination.

Here is a link to The Guide to Allyship, a great resource written by a Black woman. It’s not a long read, and I highly recommend checking it out.

Take Up Space

Be heard! Be seen! Take up space, and don’t make yourself small for the comfort of the small-minded. Wear bold colors and bold fashion. If it’s your thing, wear bold lipstick. Make-up and fashion have a long history of being used by feminist women to make a statement, and LGBTQ+ movements use rainbows and bold colors as part of a refusal to hide who they are.

The current administration has a big focus on conformity and strict gender roles, which often include very rigid beauty standards for women and dark muted “masculine” looks for men. Stand against that by wearing things that make you bold, beautiful, and hard to miss. I also find that wearing bright colors just for the sake of bright colors makes me feel confident and energetic, which is never a bad thing.

Be Kind to Everyone, Including Yourself

Regardless of what happens, there’s bound to be a lot of suffering in the next few years. A lot of people are likely to lose their jobs, their businesses, their homes, their health, and their lives. Life is short as it is, so fill it with kindness. This includes being kind to yourself. Take care of yourself as much as you are able. Let others be kind to you, too. That’s one of the beautiful things about building community – you can support them, and they can support you right back.

It’s also important to understand that you won’t always have the energy to volunteer. You might place an online order for a company you don’t like because you just don’t have the time to get what you need from a different business. Focus on the little victories, make time for family and friends, and time to rest and do something just for the fun of it, because this is a marathon, not a sprint.

In summary

This ended up longer than I intended, and I feel like I still left a lot out. Which is pretty much par for the course for me.

But the important thing is that little changes from a lot of people can turn into huge ripples and lead to big changes. Every little positive thing you do has an effect, and it might end up being a big one. Just make sure you aren’t trying to take all the problems of the world on your own shoulders. This is a team sport, and there are lots of us on this team.