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Practicing Liberation: Transformative Strategies for Collective Healing & Systems Change: Reflections on burnout, trauma & building communities of care in social justice work

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How do we do effective, sustainable social change…without burning out, internalizing systemic toxicity, and replicating urgency culture? For readers of adrienne maree brown, Staci K. Haines, and Ejeris DixonWhen your work is inextricable from your identity, your community, and your own liberation, you need a unique praxis of care to sustain it—and for mission-driven activists, organizers, healers, and changemakers, making space to center vital needs like rest, self-care, and healthy boundaries isn’t as simple as clocking out.Oppressive systems, dysfunctional structures, and the impacts of living in white supremacy culture lead to burnout, anxiety, illness, and fatigue. And often, these stressors are compounded when well-meaning organizations fail to align their internal culture with their external vision…and fail their staff and volunteers in the process.Title TK reorients collective justice work toward a model that transforms the effects of injustice, harm, and oppressive systems into resilience, joy, and community care. Through frameworks like trauma-informed methodology, transformative movement organizing, engaged Buddhism, and healing justice, editors Hala Khouri and Tessa Hicks Peterson show readers how healing, wellness, and beloved communityGuard against replicating systems of harmDisrupt racist, classist, anti-queer, and anti-trans behavior and systemsCelebrate creativity and radical imagination in movement workCenter healing from intergenerational trauma, white supremacy culture, and extractive capitalismHonor that self-care is a necessity—not a luxury—that strengthens our collectivesFeaturing editors Hala Khouri and Tessa Hicks and contributors like Kazu Haga, Taj James, Nkem Ndefo, Jacoby Ballard, Sará King, Kerri Kelly, and more, Title TK demonstrates in real time how embodied leadership, interconnected collectives, and a bold vision for transformation are the vital tools we need for collective wellbeing, healing, and long-term social change.

264 pages, Paperback

Published July 30, 2024

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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
Profile Image for Brittany.
1,099 reviews38 followers
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January 5, 2025
disclaimer: I don’t really give starred reviews. I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not. Find me here: https://linktr.ee/bookishmillennial

Add this to your TBR & request from your local libraries right meow!!! I think this is required reading for anyone who is actively working on implementing abolitionist frameworks into their day-to-day lives, rather than just focusing on external forces and others. Our internal work matters.

I will be sitting with what I read for a while, and I will be ordering my own physical copy that I can return to, for I think these messages should be re-visited. This work is ongoing and never ends, and with that, comes feelings of defeat, despair, and heartbreak. So I know I will need this book again. I encourage everyone to read it, and to try our best to put these tenets of forgiveness, call-ins, and non-punitive frameworks into action.

Quotations that stood out to me:
I realized that the work of peacemaking is a loud, messy, and chaotic process. I realized that we cannot be afraid to disturb negative peace, complacency, and business as usual. But I also learned that this loud, fierce energy needs to be grounded in love.

If our goal is healing, positive peace, and reconciliation, we must find a different way to create change. We cannot force justice and enforce peace. You cannot shove healing down someone’s throat.

However, intentionally choosing to slow down, do less, and rest requires us to go against capitalist conditioning around the use of time. There is a rest inequality along race and class lines, so slowing down also goes against inherently racist messages that bodies of color are meant for work and suffering, not relaxation and pleasure.

There is no linear process toward building a healing-centered culture. The process of culture building is ongoing and never ends, especially when we’re trying to create something that challenges dominant cultural norms. The broader culture constantly pulls us away from healing, so we must be persistent inside our organizations and collectives.

Embodied practices build up our capacity to be with discomfort without going into a trauma response. Trauma responses cause us to blame, shame, project, shut down, or lash out. They are never useful (unless you’re in an actual traumatic situation). This is especially important when doing work around social justice because this work exposes us to traumatic situations and circumstances. These practices allow us to stay connected to each other amid the chaos so we can be part of the solution...There’s no one way to build a trauma-informed culture. This is ongoing work that must evolve and adapt as an organization and its members change and grow. Organizations and collaboratives that genuinely embrace this approach will find a decrease in burnout and conflict and an increase in hopefulness and capacity. It’s difficult work that can be very confronting, but it’s necessary both for the longevity and success of our efforts toward healing and justice in our communities and the world at large.

It is this willingness to keep being willing to come undone—to do what we can to understand the world around us and how we operate and what is impacting who we are and how we are, and to allow that to keep coming undone. That’s what I think is really the paradox in what is possible, from a liberatory standpoint, is to recognize, oh, we’re not trying to become something, we’re trying to un-become. We’re trying to undo ourselves.

I shifted, then, to calling in. To listening. To paying attention and moving toward one another when there is conflict, rather than building walls. To use misunderstanding, errors, conflict, and rupture as opportunities to deepen rather than abandon relationships. This course of action demands diligence, fortitude, curiosity, and assuming one’s best intent while centering the impact of harm, honesty, vulnerability, and forgiveness. Calling out relies on shame, guilt, punishment, and blame to transform behavior. Let us note that these are the same methods used in the prison industrial complex. Calling out creates separation and isolation and severs relationships. Calling out targets the person who created harm rather than the system that indoctrinates us all in systems of oppression—it is an individual’s responsibility to think, speak, and act toward harmlessness and not replicate systems of oppression; it is not one individual’s fault that they are replicating systems of oppression. We are only responsible for our own thoughts, words, and actions, not for the whole system. Calling out should only be used as an emergency brake, as adrienne maree brown suggests, when every other method has been attempted, every other tool engaged. Calling in invites curiosity, reckoning with one’s own culpability in a situation, offering up vulnerability, and holding the gravity of the heartbreak. Calling in places blame on the system rather than the individual, while supporting individuals to uproot the systems of oppression that grow inside of each of us.

A core understanding of forgiveness is that everyone has a basic goodness in them, and we can connect on that holy ground. Hurt people hurt people—when someone is hurting in their own body/heart/soul, they hurt those around them. This compels me to do my healing work as an act of generosity toward those I share greatest proximity with (and beyond), and it allows me compassion when harm goes down—rather than blaming or shaming, I seek understanding. I ask: What underlies these words and actions? Are you doing, okay? Everything we do matters. Every thought, word, and action matters. What we do with our hurt matters. If we don’t process it directly, it can end up coming out the side of our necks, unintentionally and carelessly, when we don’t mean it to.

Accountability The idea of holding someone accountable, an individual who has created harm within social justice movements, is often an attempt to control someone else. We can invite someone into accountability; in fact, most trusting, courageous, and intimate relationships across difference involve (and demand) accountability. We can create boundaries in the interest of self-preservation if someone’s words and actions do not change. But we only have control over ourselves; we cannot control someone else... We cannot make someone acknowledge their actions or their impact. We can’t make someone feel remorse. We can’t make someone make something right or transform. This is up to the individual. Clearly, I think accountability and transformation is in the best interest of an individual and for us to make collective progress toward healing and justice. I can provide feedback to someone, I can be vulnerable and share how thoughts, words, and actions impact me. But I can’t make someone accountable to me if they don’t want to be. When we try to force accountability, we risk not being seen as genuine, we risk not being committed, because we are demanding rather than offering, and that is only a one-way street. As Alicia Garza has suggested, we can mutually decide we are entering into an accountable relationship, but if there’s not a previously existing relationship, accountability is forced.

If I’m transforming myself, then people I’m in relationship with are necessarily pulled along in changing, too. If I am becoming more generous over time, healing from capitalist greed and the idea of hoarding resources and opportunities for myself, then my communities are becoming more generous, as well. As I live in greater integrity to my commitments, then some relationships inevitably fall away, and some are bolstered. As we demonstrate and speak about our own growth, those around us take note.

It’s an act of violence to demand someone be what we want them to be, to expect that they’re going to respond in the same way that we would. And, so, equanimity can show up as an act of love as we give folks space to simply be themselves.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Grace.
71 reviews
September 21, 2024
DID NOT FINISH. I didn’t connect with this book at all. The authors are a bit all over the place and threw the words systemic issues, injustices, and trauma too much but then tried to insinuate that burn out is similar. It is not.
Profile Image for Ailey | Bisexual Bookshelf.
307 reviews90 followers
June 4, 2024
"Practicing Liberation: Transformative Strategies for Collective Healing & Systems Change," edited by Tessa Hicks Peterson and Hala Khouri, is a powerful collection of abolitionist and transformative justice essays that delve into themes of healing justice, decolonialism, community care, and collective liberation. This anthology is a clarion call to those involved in social justice movements, offering a comprehensive guide to addressing burnout and fostering sustainable activism.

One of the most striking aspects of this collection is its unwavering commitment to the principle that "we keep each other safe." The essays collectively emphasize that self-care is not a selfish act but a crucial component of community care. By taking care of ourselves, we are better equipped to support and nurture our communities. This concept is especially important for leaders of organizations and collectives, who are provided with practical advice on structuring their communities in a manner that prioritizes healing justice.

These authors fiercely argue against the capitalist and productivity-driven mindset that often pervades social justice work. Instead, they advocate for rest as a form of resistance, challenging the notion that constant productivity is necessary for meaningful change. This perspective is refreshing and necessary, especially in a society that often glorifies overwork and burnout.

A significant strength of this collection is its trauma-informed approach. Each essay underscores the importance of recognizing and addressing personal trauma to prevent its perpetuation in activist spaces. The contributors highlight the need for imagination and creativity in enacting change, viewing these as essential skills for building a more just and equitable world.

Several essays explore the somatic impact of trauma and stress, making the case that the personal is indeed political. By bringing somatics and embodiment into activist conversations, the anthology sheds light on the intersection of oppression and chronic stress. This approach not only enriches the discourse but also provides practical tools for activists to care for their bodies and minds amidst the rigors of social justice work.

Harm reduction and transformative justice are central themes in many of the essays. The contributors draw on the work of bell hooks and adrienne maree brown to discuss the differences between calling in and calling out, and how harm can be transformed rather than exacerbated. The essays explore the benefits of affinity spaces versus integrated spaces in harm reduction processes, underscoring the necessity of collective accountability in achieving collective liberation.

One standout essay, "Breath. Fugitivity. Wild Horses: Black Feminist Strategies for Healing in a Predatory Empire" by Valerie Thomas, offers an insightful exploration of anti-Black racism, feminism, and the neurophysiology of trauma. Thomas expertly dissects the phenomenon of Complex Racial Trauma within education, providing a compelling analysis that is both informative and deeply moving.

Overall, "Practicing Liberation" is a must-read for fans of bell hooks and adrienne maree brown, as well as anyone committed to social justice and transformative change. The essays offer actionable strategies for practicing transformative justice and harm reduction in various contexts, making this collection a valuable resource for activists, organizers, and community leaders. With its rich insights and practical advice, "Practicing Liberation" earns a solid four out of five stars.

📖 Recommended For: Advocates of Transformative Justice, Readers Engaged in Social Justice Movements, Admirers of Healing Justice and Community Care Practices, Fans of bell hooks and adrienne maree brown.

🔑 Key Themes: Collective Liberation and Trauma-Informed Approaches, Self-Care as Community Care, Somatic Healing and Embodiment, Harm Reduction and Collective Accountability.

Content / Trigger Warnings: Sexual assault (minor), Racism (minor).
Profile Image for Maileen Hamto.
282 reviews17 followers
May 11, 2024
Working toward systems change to realize social justice requires a deep personal commitment and resolve toward community healing and well-being. "Practicing Liberation" is an anthology of essays penned by changemakers, advocates, educators, healers, activists, and leaders who challenge their peers to evaluate their practices. Editors Tessa Hicks Peterson and Hala Khouri curated essays that share approaches to confronting and transforming systems of harm. The book starts with a discussion of a transformative framework that prioritizes self-renewal, developing communities of support, and centering healing practices. Reflective questions guide readers to assess their experiences and observations about the internal culture of their organizations.

Social change is only possible when institutions change from within. As a diversity, equity, and inclusion practitioner, I was drawn to the book because I was familiar with the editors’ work in justice movements. It is a timely read for fellow practitioners who are facing resistance and burnout, and allies who are feeling the mental and emotional toll of perpetuating white supremacy in their day-to-day work. The interdisciplinary collection of diverse voices did not disappoint. The book highlights the authors' lived experiences of recognizing privilege, addressing racism and classism, unlearning harmful behaviors, and embodying community thriving. Writers draw from personal, professional, and spiritual practices to model a radical vision of building a beloved community anchored in anti-oppression.
3 reviews
September 4, 2024
What stood out about this book was how inclusive and community-driven it was. Each section was filled with background research to clarify each topic presented, examples, workshop activities, and space to write reflections, all contributing to an experience unlike anything else. I was mainly fond of the "Breathing and Moving as a Collective" section, as this reminded me of Feldenkrais Methodology and how breathwork can be monitored and applied to community building and self-identity.

As a whole, each section can be taken as a well-detailed introduction to different kinds of strategies for systemic change. Having access to the work cited and the general themes of each strategy makes it easy to guide one to pursue similar works and resources in this field. It is the key component to why this book is a success; the accessibility and the attention to detail truly stand out. I learned a great deal from this book, and I give full props to the authors who put everything into making this book a success. I hope this work will add another installment, continuing the passionate and eye-opening work the world would benefit from.
Profile Image for Dora Okeyo.
Author 25 books202 followers
February 26, 2024
There is a part in this book that speaks to my lived experience, and it states "changemakers are also grief stricken by the hypocrisy of organizations or movements that do not live the values they preach."
I read this book, taking notes, agreeing and disagreeing with some of the insights from various changemakers and activists. One thing is certain that you cannot detach yourself from any initiative you partake. There is no way, your interaction with those in and out of your community doesn't fail to affect your mental or physical health and even both. I love that this book spoke to that truth, and the authors explore key elements of transformative movements.
I would recommend this book to anyone in the field of advocacy, change making, an activist, seeking social justice- not as a one size fits all, but more as a book to read and become aware of some of the struggles you may face, and more so the internal work needed to overcome most of them.
Thanks Netgalley for the eARC. I am definitely glad I got to read this, it's a keeper in my library.
Profile Image for pitbulls_and_prose.
165 reviews1 follower
Read
September 18, 2024
This was such a fascinating read about how we operate in spaces that push for social change. It laid a framework for keeping this work sustainable, because we're in it for the long haul, ya'll. This anthology touches on burnout, trauma-informed healing, how to call in instead of call out, and the importance of harm reduction. 

A few quotes that really spoke to me:
“The lie of individualism is not just that we are separate, exceptional selves. But that we can heal ourselves, by ourselves."

"It's not so much about being 'good' as it is about doing less harm."

"We're not trying to 'become' something. We're trying to 'unbecome'. We're trying to undo ourselves."

The book really enforces the need for community, which is something that I have been yearning for recently and am starting to find in this bookish space!
Profile Image for Rebecca Montague.
37 reviews1 follower
May 1, 2024
This book is really geared towards those working in the nonprofit and social justice space, but has takeaways many can appreciate.

Taking the time to focus on self care, wellness, and healing and centering that in ourselves and our work allows us to make an even greater impact.
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