Fierce Vulnerability: Healing from Trauma, Emerging through Collapse

by Kazu Haga

Move beyond tactics of shaming and blaming in call-outs and cancel culture with a powerful new approach to difficult political conversations from Healing Resistance author Kazu Haga.Seasoned campaigner and political organizer Kazu Haga reveals an unexpected yet effective way to defuse potentially explosive situations, whether at a protest or at an uncomfortable family to act courageously with "fierce vulnerability."  Activists and concerned citizens on the frontlines of change will learn to engage in social movements with a different spirit, one that aligns with our deepest values around the healing and dignity of all people. Escalated forms of harm require an equally escalated response. Yet social justice activists often have a tendency to fall into an “us vs. them,” “right vs. wrong” worldview as their tactics escalate, which can derail true social transformation and healing. In Fierce Vulnerability, author Kazu Haga argues that this binary worldview is at the heart of what is destroying our relationships and our planet, and offers a new way to create healing at all levels of society by combining the time-honored lineage of nonviolent action with the sciences of trauma healing. In answering the question, "How do I engage in efforts for change that match the intensity of the destruction of all I love--my family, my community, the planet?" Fierce Vulnerability helps us meet today's challenges with the transformational power of taking a stand without demonizing our opponents and causing further harm. 

Genres: Nonfiction, Activism, Social Justice, Psychology, Spirituality, Self Help

256 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 25, 2025

Reviews

[David Belden · Rating 5 out of 5]

How do you combine individual healing with social change activism? Frederick Douglas said "Power concedes nothing without a demand." But how do you make demands without the kinds of ego, blame, self-righteousness, and violence that can stiffen resistance, alienate onlookers, and may lead to angry splits within your own ranks? The Left has a long history of that kind of dysfunction. In both his books Kazu is wrestling with these questions like nobody else. I am a friend of his, which may disqualify me from writing a review, but the reason I am friends is that I am drawn to this same area of innovation, without which I believe the human species has no future.

[Anika · Rating 5 out of 5]

great book to start the year off with. was so refreshing + had me rethinking what advocacy + direct action could look when it feels like the current "structure" of direct action might not be effective anymore. this wasn't meant to be a self help book but in a lot of ways it was!! so many life perspectives shared in this that were integrated w/ Taoism philosophy that im going to take with me

[Momo · Rating 5 out of 5]

my favorite book of the year