The Quiet Side of Activism 

It's just so heartbreaking and overwhelming what's going on in this world. It took me awhile to speak up, but I do hope that it helps others, like us, to not feel like they are less than because we are not outwardly vocal. I also hope that this helps others to not feel guilty because we don't fit into someone else's idea of what activism is "supposed" to look like. Thank you so much for watching! Love and blessings to you. 💖

It’s hard sometimes with these harder subjects, especially on social media. That’s why I believe we all need to do what we can from where we are and stand true to ourselves and our core values. Thank you so much for watching. Blessed be. 💖

I’m sorry if my thoughts did not come through clearly. I never said I was immune to propaganda or that I was too smart to fall for it. I just do my research before I take what I hear as truth. Socio-economics, the judicial system, and politics are my hobbies and my hyper-focus. I spend 30+ hours a week educating myself and making sure I’m informed so that I don’t get duped by propaganda. Because of that, I can see it and question it right away. I’m not coming from an egoic position with all of this. I’m coming from the position of an informed and educated voter. That being said… There is no need to be disheartened. You have, and always will have an ally in me. I will defend you, your rights, and the rights of every person who has been marginalized or discriminated against until my very last breath. What I meant in the video… was that I can’t participate in an active march or protest. That does not mean I don’t do anything. It only means that my activism just looks different. Yes, I pray for the world but I don’t sit idly by and watch my fellow humans be marginalized. I do “the work” but we all have to remember that that’s going to look different for everyone. Some of us work on a micro scale and some of us work on a macro scale, as well as the various degrees in between. If that wasn’t the case, there would be imbalance and the necessary changes would take longer or we’d be at a societal stalemate. My intention with this video was to talk about the OTHER side of activism. Not about doing nothing. Activism is incredibly important and it is a must in today’s chaotic and often ugly world, but it comes in many forms. And each and every form has validity just like each and every human has validity. That’s all I was trying to say. Some people peacefully march in protest with 1000s of people and there are others who are quietly helping to write civil rights legislation without ever marching. One is not better than the other and they both create change. And to speak about me particularly… no, my hands are not tied. For the most part, I am not fearful. My biggest fear is the Supreme Court and how they might rule on the cases that are currently before them. If they rule against the American people, so many will suffer horribly. They have been given way too much power to politically tip the scales. That terrifies me. But most importantly, I am not silently, and only, just praying for change. Yes, being in a crowd is very difficult for me, for several reasons. Not just the energetic reasons I mentioned in the video. Therefore, as the quote says… I do what I can, with what I have, from where I am… so I can be more effective and more of an ally in my communities and in my personal circles. Again, my point to the video was to point out, that what we perceive to see (or don’t see), as far as activism is concerned, may not be all there is to see. Just because some of us are not publicly calling things out on social media, that does not mean we are silent. As far as others are concerned… there are many people who do have their hands tied. Whether that is because they are dealing with mental illness, or they are bound and silenced by others, or they have some other debilitating issue that prevents them from speaking out… these people are not less than because they can’t stand up for themselves or others. Many people lump these people into the category of “not being an ally” and assume they don’t care or that they are against others because of their silence. Wouldn’t this be considered marginalized too in this instance? These people are just as valid as you or I, aren’t they? Should we make these people feel guilty because they are not doing what we think they should? Acceptance needs to go both ways, in my opinion. If we don’t have acceptance for our fellow humans, we are no better than those who don’t accept us. I can’t know all that you’ve struggled with. I CAN show you acceptance for being who you are, compassion for all you’ve gone though, and the unwavering belief that you matter. And I guess that’s the message I was trying to bring to this video. As a society, we can’t ever fully know what others are doing or what they struggle with, but we can show acceptance, compassion, and have the belief that despite what they can or cannot do, everyone matters and no one should be marginalized for not doing, or appearing to not do, what others think they should. We all are just “doing what we can, with what we have, from where we are.” I hope that better clarified my thoughts in this video for you. I’m sorry if you felt attacked or let down in any way. I made this video because of my own experiences of being made to feel guilty because I wasn’t behaving in a way that someone thought I SHOULD behave. I was let down and felt attacked. So, I tried very hard not to do the same. Much love and many blessings to you and… as I said above… you will always have an ally in me. Please don’t be disheartened. ❤️

@@RockandRollMystic I appreciate your thoughtful response and will try to reply in kind; Firstly, thank you for the clarification. I was confused by your angle on activism because you didn't really mention ways you do "quiet" activism other than magick/prayer and so I assumed you were implying that this was all you do. I know there are a plethora of different and valid ways to be an activist, and many ways people can and do engage with activism, (including magick and prayer), however I did feel disheartened at the assumption I had made. I see now what you had been trying to say and I apologize for making this assumption. I also apologize if I implied you were egoic, I was not trying to imply this with my statement about propaganda. Secondly, in terms of those who are suppressed... all I can say is that we have seen those who are oppressed time and time again standing up for themselves, and as I said before, this takes bravery and it can potentially lead you into an uncomfortable or unsafe position. Due to this reality, I would never judge someone or attempt to guilt them for prioritizing their life and safety over activism. You can't fight for your rights if you're dead, afterall. But simultaneously, I wont make excuses to exempt those who have been silenced or threatened from being activists either. To be honest, this is all very circumstance based and can't be painted with a broad brush so I will refuse to do so... but, if anything, I can say with confidence that the activists whose voices have been threatened or silenced tend to have the biggest impact. We've seen this throughout history with people like MLK, Ceasar Chavez, Marsha P Johnson, and more... In terms of those who are medically or mentally incapable of defending themselves or being activists, I feel like this is not a strong point because no rational person is expecting them to be activists. But even then, disabled, mentally ill, and neurodivergent people can and do engage with activism, so like I said before, it is all very circumstance based. And along the lines of what you've said, it can look different from the usual mental image we have of what activism looks like. I am not one to think that activism is something that MUST be done a certain way, but I do believe activism needs to include action and an affect on the real world, (after all, the root of the word activism is action) so I perhaps should make it clear that I agree with you on the matter that there are many ways to engage with social and political change, and my previous disheartened response came from the false assumption that your stance was based in inaction. As far as your feelings on this subject, they're valid asf. And I think you are absolutely right, we all play our parts and we all need each other to make our goals a reality. I can also assure you that my skin is much too thick to feel attacked by this video or any interpretation I made about it, so don't worry about that. I may take some time to rewatch your video under this new context and gather my thoughts on it in this new light. In the meantime however, thank you again for your clarification and response.

@@WolfsbaneWitch I'm glad I was able to clarify myself well. Sorry for causing confusion in the first place. Since I don't write scripts, I always question whether or not my thoughts come through ok in all my videos. When I used the word "quiet" it was an umbrella term to describe the work that goes on behind the scenes. Maybe it was a poor word choice, but it was the word that seemed to signify, to me, what I was trying to say. When I mentioned the word "egoic," I did not feel that that is what you were implying. I was simply stating that I was coming from an educated standpoint. There are many people online that claim they know everything out of arrogance and because I respect you, I wanted to let you know that that was not who I am and to explain why I said what I said. I completely agree that some of the biggest social changes happen when the oppressed or suppressed rise up and hold truth to power. They are they bravest humans on the planet. however, those that do stand up, despite being marginalized, is unfortunately and historically only a small percentage. Like you said, it is all based on personal circumstances. But IMO...the vast majority of people, in those communities, throughout history, haven't had the courage or strength to stand up for themselves. And those that HAVE had the courage to rise up, understand that and are willing to fight for all, regardless. MLK being a perfect example of courage, strength, and sacrifice in the face of adversity for all humanity. Personally, I think that is starting to shift finally. And I am excited to see more stand up for themselves and others on a vast scale in order to help this world to become more balanced for all, even though there is still so much work that needs to be done. However, Even though the shift has started, there still are, and always will be, those that can't or are afraid to speak up. And for me, I can't hold that against them and still stay true to my core values. But that is just me. That's my perception and stance. Everyone is entitled to feel, think, and do what they feel holds up to their core values. I also agree that there are many struggling with neurodivergence or who are struggling with medical and mental issues that do defend themselves and become activists. But again... that is and historically has been a small percentage. However, I also believe that this is another percentage that is shifting and becoming a larger part of our society, now that there is more research and support available today. I want to add something a bit extra, in this section of my response... My view on social and global issues is coming from my personal life experiences. As a Gen Xer, I was not afforded a lot of what your generation has available. Much of my life, I have had limited support with the things I struggle with and have been struggling with for decades. I'm only now, because of the increased availability of support and research, figuring out how to make my limitations work for me and allow me to fully step into my power and have the courage to stand up for myself AND to more effectively stand up for others. I know this might seem like an odd tangent, but I think it provides you with more of an idea about why I give leeway to others like me, who are doing the same OR to those who are ultimately afraid to act or feel they can't act. This is not an excuse, just and understanding. If that makes sense. And to close out this response... in the spirit of transparency... my video was mainly a response to those putting others down regarding the war conflict in Gaza not a response to Activism as a whole. It frustrates me, (as you probably noticed in my video), that those who chose to put out those posts and videos, across social media, seem to forget about the war/genocide in Ukraine and they don't ever speak about the atrocities and genocide happening in Sudan and Yemen. It just seems odd to me how people can just pick and choose what genocide matters most and forget the rest, Again that was my trigger to create this video. Hopefully, that further explains my reasoning behind my video for you. With that being said... Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to expand my response here in the comments to the other social issues that also need to be spotlighted. 💖