Why? Because others will see you do them, and it will make it easier for them to take their own (slightly less lonely but equally beautiful) action by your side
I was at the airport this weekend and someone had put two yellow post-its on the inside of the door of each stall (I checked four stalls, but I assume all of them had notes). The first one said "Musk has your bank account information" and the second one listed the Congress switchboard number. Simple. Effective. I made the call before I caught my flight.
I made a very good-faith effort to cut out Amazon in early 2020 and then, well, we know what happened. A step I took today towards making a sustainable break was to make a list of all of my subscribe & save items so that I can start chipping away at buying them elsewhere. Another thing I'm trying to do (which I think is important in general) is to try to batch my online shopping to 1) reduce impulse buys and 2) break my dependence on next-day shipping. If I really need it and haven't been able to find it elsewhere, it will still be in my cart at the end of the week.
Love these steps, Elizabeth. I think narrating for each other what we're trying to do and what's hard about it is super important. Any way any of the rest of us can be useful to you?
I've realized recently that Amazon often isn't actually the cheapest option. If I'm looking for something, sometimes I will start on Amazon, then see who is selling it, and either go straight to that company or eBay. I recently bought silk long underwear and silk/cashmere leggings that I found on Amazon, but then went to the company website where they were cheaper and just ordered direct. They have been doing so much shady stuff lately like changing shipping dates and defaulting to the worst options and making us read all the fine print that they're pissing me off so much it's making it really easy to quit.
I've discovered this too! And it's so interesting how deeply the assumption is nudged in our brain that Amazon is cheaper (when really what it has going for is our muscle memory and search engine optimization)
My wife and I stopped subscribing. We currently still buy things from Amazon on occasion, but at least we're not guaranteeing them a paycheck. If we do like you do and batch our shopping, we get free shipping anyway, and though we do still sometimes rent movies and buy series from them, again, we're not guaranteeing them a paycheck. Plus, we're saving money--we weren't streaming enough to justify the monthly expense. We're actually saving money by buying the things we really want to watch.
Continuing to think out loud here, I'm trying to shift my mental model for using Amazon away from "this is where I buy stuff" to "this is where I look for things I want to buy". I am definitely guilty of doing the opposite - browsing in store and then buying online - and so part of what I'm trying to do is not just divest from problematic retailers but also invest elsewhere, especially in my community.
I am however feeling stuck about stores like Target because I live in a geographically segregated city and having even a small version of a big box store accessible feels like a net benefit when many adjacent neighborhoods have minimal grocery (etc) options.
I quit Amazon Prime about a month ago and haven't ordered anything from there since. Today at lunch I discussed the Target boycott with a co-worker and we strategized where to get most of the things we usually bought from both places locally. Initiate those conversations. Help each other think about the practical logistics.
Another thing to add to the list: LOVE OUT LOUD, especially if the people or person you love is in a group currently targeted by this administration and generally marginalized in this country. When my son came out as trans a handful of years ago I started writing very publicly about it-- what was happening in terms of the stages of his transition, all of the emotional complications for me in grieving who I thought he was going to be while still loving who I now knew he was, all the times I had to challenge people who thought they could come for him, how much I am learning from him about how to show up with deep integrity in the world, and finally, how much he just freakin' delights me.
I wasn't trying to model anything for anybody. I was just writing about my life and my family. But so many times since I started I've been approached-- online or in my face-to-face life-- by someone unexpected saying, Hey, my kid is trans/non-binary. Can you tell me about providers/resources? Can I talk through with you how I'm feeling about it? Or they just say, Hey, the way you love Otto means so much to me. It really matters. Thank you.
LOVE UNAPOLOGETICALLY OUT LOUD, PEOPLE. FEARLESSLY. RELENTLESSLY. TENDERLY. VULNERABLY. Show them how it's done.
Just a shout out to all of Garrett’s wonderful followers, taking action is scary, but worth it. I’m not cool. I’m not eloquent. I have no idea WTF I’m doing most of the time. But I found people who knew how to organize a protest and together we did it. I went to city council to preemptively take a stand against the white supremacist materials being left at my bookstore.
I don’t say this because I’m special or brave or even particularly worthy of praise. But if I can do it, you can too! I love reading about everyone’s actions. Standing in solidarity with all awkward people who are anxious about taking a stand. You 🙌 have 🙌 got 🙌 this 🙌. My new project is organizing a Potluck of Awesomeness 😎.
I want you to have Potluck of Awesomeness banner. Or, like, one of those things that people bust through at the end of a race. Maybe a curtain that they pass through as they enter the space? Just something that clearly communicates that you (yes, you!) are awesome, and everyone here is awesome, and us all being together is AWESOME.
Yes! The Potluck of Awesomeness fully understood and appreciated! These are perfect ideas. I wonder what it would take to pull off a banner that people run through 😂. That sounds truly awesome.
I woke up this morning feeling completely overwhelmed by the sense that no one is doing anything--or we are not doing enough of anything. So, this was very timely and helpful. So many good recommendations. One I did last week was join my union. Meeting with the union organizer and getting my union card were some of the most hopeful things I've done in the past few weeks.
Also, in terms of divesting from various companies: our household has almost completely transitioned away from Amazon, I am currently in the processing of moving from Meta to the Fediverse, and my husband is moving our household computing from Microsoft to Linux. (These changes are partly due to avoiding certain companies but also avoiding AI as much as possible, which I admit is perhaps tangential to the purpose of this post.) If anyone in this community is interested in any resources for making these changes, I'd be happy to put together something to share with the group.
Well, I'm sorry you were feeling it too but glad that we were at least connected in that sudden wave of "is anybody else doing something?" Jeez it's so real.
Also: congrats on joining your union!!
Also: I've learned so much from your household about how it's possible to divest from big tech (in addition to the one's you've mentioned, also the music streaming sites, even with a tween!).
SO MUCH of my social life/network since becoming a parent has been networked through Meta and I'm really finding it hard to quit. One of my big mental barriers is finding the time to prioritize those connections if I can't, in 5 minutes, swipe through a day's worth of photos/posts/etc from people and causes I care about. Is that really connecting? No. But it feels like /terrifyingly/ lonely to cut the cord.
I'm struggling with that too (Meta) on the professional side (Instagram IS a useful place to share my work still, and I don't think I'm making that up but I might also be overstating the impact of losing it).
I too am trying to cut the the cord with Meta. My first step.was to remove the apps from my phone. I can still log onto the accounts from my laptop but that little bit of friction is enough to have me only checking every couple of days or else logging in to a group because I am looking for specific information.
I totally feel the loss of those connections, too, Elizabeth. I haven't quite felt the full force of it, since I technically still have an Instagram account (my spouse and I have a shared FB for groups only, because for the life of me I cannot find a suitable alternative that all of the people in the groups will also find suitable). I am not sure I would have been able to extricate myself at other points in my life, such as right after a move. Also, my livelihood doesn't depend on promoting my work on social media, which is huge. The level of anger and resentment that I began to feel about the whole enterprise started to outweigh any benefits I was getting. But it is definitely tricky and not straightforward.
This was just what I needed. Thank you for seeing those of us who get all caught up in whether something will work or is enough (just me? No?) and responding with love! I aspire to be someone whose actions come from her core values as often and as joyfully as this/yours.
Oh jeez I'm right there with you (re: getting all caught up in whether something will work or is enough). Part of me writing this was taming the part of me that LOVES critiquing other people's activism as a projection for everything I'm not doing.
Thank you for this!! I will be sharing with everyone I know. It's hard when you are doing some of these things already and not feeling any immediate impacts, but this is such a long game. I keep thinking about how, if my human lifespan goes as expected, I'll still be alive in 30 years and there will still be a world, and maybe things will be better or worse or most likely a combination of both. And even after I'm gone, the game is not over! These 3 weeks are only 3 weeks in the history of the entire world. That's all to say, contextualizing these small things within larger scales and larger fights has been really valuable to me.
First off, thank you so much for doing so many of these things already. It's so hard, isn't it? To keep up with it when it feels like the needle isn't moving. I hope it helps for all of us to do a better job (even when it seems cheesy or performative) of saying "I'm still out here, doing this thing, want to do it too?"
I especially loved the reminders here to kindly invite other people into the work. I think that's the part that is easy to forget. None of this is our individual burden to bear alone!
I’ve done both lonely and unlonely activist work since 2017- trekking down snowy rural roads in Iowa - and crowded streets in Brooklyn NY - canvassing, passing out info on universal healthcare, civil disobedience and arrests, so many protests, testifying for immigrant rights at my NYC city council hearings..so many organizing meetings….so many calls to Electeds…I’m so tired.
But baking bread for a young Ecuadorian family is replenishing … and I so value that friendship.
We get to keep finding new and different ways to assert our values and what we cherish. Thanks for your list, and for your newsletters, and your heart-full diligence, Garrett.
I think that's an important distinction-- we can keep the lonely work going thanks in part to work that is still rooted in care but is also replenishing.
Garrett!! This list was so so helpful, just as an accountability check, as is reading all these comments.
I had to fess up to myself re: my bullshit reasons for not calling my congresspeople ( I absolutely loath making phone calls, so any excuse I can come up with... lately it's the stupid rationalizing that because Becca Balint and Bernie are relatively out in front and being very vocal, that I don't need to call...and that's just not true. )
I am also rethinking Amazon thanks to you beautiful people here! We live in the middle of nowhere, so it's been hard to kick, there's so much we can't go out and buy easily. But there's a general store nearby whose actual motto is "If we don't have it you don't need it!" Which is feeling like a new challenge to the idea that we can't stop ordering from Amazon.
Thank you for all of this. I am going to start carrying markers around with me again and probably need to learn the new photocopy scams that I used to be good at.
For the first few months after Fallow came out I was sad that he left Propagandhi but that grudge didn't last long. I've been coming back to every one of those albums regularly ever since (and Propagandhi, especially recently :/).
I am an elementary school teacher at a Title I school. Our community is diverse, with some families who are strong Trump supporters and openly express their disdain for teachers, while others are immigrants living in fear. Can teaching serve as my form of activism? By the end of the day, I feel completely exhausted. It’s mentally draining to realize that every aspect of my life seems to be on the front lines. Lately, I feel like I’m constantly fighting in this challenging environment, just like my coworkers. I appreciate the simple poster signs, but I feel that I should be doing more. I’m looking for validation that putting up posters and teaching can be enough for now, along with attending my teachers' union meetings.
I work at a bicycle shop, so I’m going to lead Celebration/Affirmation Group Rides for folks impacted by the awful and overwhelming EO’s that are coming down from Trump/Musk.
Starting with LGBTQIA+, we’re going to decorate our bikes with pride flags and stickers and ride around town LOUDLY to show how much the community loves and supports the people most impacted by the decisions in Washington.
At each ride, I’m printing out a QR code for participants to make a donation to a local organization serving the affected community.
Immigrants and refugees are the next celebration ride after that, then Veterans experiencing homelessness…I’ve got a whole list of folks who need a celebratory bike ride with people who care. Its a little thing i can do.
Ask your local community bike shop if they’d help you organize a group ride too!
I was at the airport this weekend and someone had put two yellow post-its on the inside of the door of each stall (I checked four stalls, but I assume all of them had notes). The first one said "Musk has your bank account information" and the second one listed the Congress switchboard number. Simple. Effective. I made the call before I caught my flight.
THAT RULES!
Can you share that phone number? Also here are the links again to find contact info for your House Representatives and Senators:
http://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative
https://www.senate.gov/senators/senators-contact.htm
Here is the number to call (202) 224-3121. They will connect you to your senator or representatives office.
Thank you!
Shit, that's really good.
I will be flying on Monday... going to get my post its ready :)
oh hell yeah
I made a very good-faith effort to cut out Amazon in early 2020 and then, well, we know what happened. A step I took today towards making a sustainable break was to make a list of all of my subscribe & save items so that I can start chipping away at buying them elsewhere. Another thing I'm trying to do (which I think is important in general) is to try to batch my online shopping to 1) reduce impulse buys and 2) break my dependence on next-day shipping. If I really need it and haven't been able to find it elsewhere, it will still be in my cart at the end of the week.
Love these steps, Elizabeth. I think narrating for each other what we're trying to do and what's hard about it is super important. Any way any of the rest of us can be useful to you?
I've realized recently that Amazon often isn't actually the cheapest option. If I'm looking for something, sometimes I will start on Amazon, then see who is selling it, and either go straight to that company or eBay. I recently bought silk long underwear and silk/cashmere leggings that I found on Amazon, but then went to the company website where they were cheaper and just ordered direct. They have been doing so much shady stuff lately like changing shipping dates and defaulting to the worst options and making us read all the fine print that they're pissing me off so much it's making it really easy to quit.
I've discovered this too! And it's so interesting how deeply the assumption is nudged in our brain that Amazon is cheaper (when really what it has going for is our muscle memory and search engine optimization)
My wife and I stopped subscribing. We currently still buy things from Amazon on occasion, but at least we're not guaranteeing them a paycheck. If we do like you do and batch our shopping, we get free shipping anyway, and though we do still sometimes rent movies and buy series from them, again, we're not guaranteeing them a paycheck. Plus, we're saving money--we weren't streaming enough to justify the monthly expense. We're actually saving money by buying the things we really want to watch.
Stepping away from Prime was our first step too. And then I made sure I was logged out and that I needed to find my password again each time.
Continuing to think out loud here, I'm trying to shift my mental model for using Amazon away from "this is where I buy stuff" to "this is where I look for things I want to buy". I am definitely guilty of doing the opposite - browsing in store and then buying online - and so part of what I'm trying to do is not just divest from problematic retailers but also invest elsewhere, especially in my community.
I am however feeling stuck about stores like Target because I live in a geographically segregated city and having even a small version of a big box store accessible feels like a net benefit when many adjacent neighborhoods have minimal grocery (etc) options.
I think that's real (the Target stuff). As for Amazon (which I personally think is an even more meaningful divestment-- I love that approach!!)
I quit Amazon Prime about a month ago and haven't ordered anything from there since. Today at lunch I discussed the Target boycott with a co-worker and we strategized where to get most of the things we usually bought from both places locally. Initiate those conversations. Help each other think about the practical logistics.
Another thing to add to the list: LOVE OUT LOUD, especially if the people or person you love is in a group currently targeted by this administration and generally marginalized in this country. When my son came out as trans a handful of years ago I started writing very publicly about it-- what was happening in terms of the stages of his transition, all of the emotional complications for me in grieving who I thought he was going to be while still loving who I now knew he was, all the times I had to challenge people who thought they could come for him, how much I am learning from him about how to show up with deep integrity in the world, and finally, how much he just freakin' delights me.
I wasn't trying to model anything for anybody. I was just writing about my life and my family. But so many times since I started I've been approached-- online or in my face-to-face life-- by someone unexpected saying, Hey, my kid is trans/non-binary. Can you tell me about providers/resources? Can I talk through with you how I'm feeling about it? Or they just say, Hey, the way you love Otto means so much to me. It really matters. Thank you.
LOVE UNAPOLOGETICALLY OUT LOUD, PEOPLE. FEARLESSLY. RELENTLESSLY. TENDERLY. VULNERABLY. Show them how it's done.
Oh Asha this is so beautiful. YES!
Just a shout out to all of Garrett’s wonderful followers, taking action is scary, but worth it. I’m not cool. I’m not eloquent. I have no idea WTF I’m doing most of the time. But I found people who knew how to organize a protest and together we did it. I went to city council to preemptively take a stand against the white supremacist materials being left at my bookstore.
I don’t say this because I’m special or brave or even particularly worthy of praise. But if I can do it, you can too! I love reading about everyone’s actions. Standing in solidarity with all awkward people who are anxious about taking a stand. You 🙌 have 🙌 got 🙌 this 🙌. My new project is organizing a Potluck of Awesomeness 😎.
Love this message and how it speaks to all of our self doubt and also, just in my book... you sound pretty cool to me, Marti!
Also: Oh my God I can't wait for the Potluck of Awesomeness
I want you to have Potluck of Awesomeness banner. Or, like, one of those things that people bust through at the end of a race. Maybe a curtain that they pass through as they enter the space? Just something that clearly communicates that you (yes, you!) are awesome, and everyone here is awesome, and us all being together is AWESOME.
Asha you get it
Yes! The Potluck of Awesomeness fully understood and appreciated! These are perfect ideas. I wonder what it would take to pull off a banner that people run through 😂. That sounds truly awesome.
I woke up this morning feeling completely overwhelmed by the sense that no one is doing anything--or we are not doing enough of anything. So, this was very timely and helpful. So many good recommendations. One I did last week was join my union. Meeting with the union organizer and getting my union card were some of the most hopeful things I've done in the past few weeks.
Also, in terms of divesting from various companies: our household has almost completely transitioned away from Amazon, I am currently in the processing of moving from Meta to the Fediverse, and my husband is moving our household computing from Microsoft to Linux. (These changes are partly due to avoiding certain companies but also avoiding AI as much as possible, which I admit is perhaps tangential to the purpose of this post.) If anyone in this community is interested in any resources for making these changes, I'd be happy to put together something to share with the group.
Well, I'm sorry you were feeling it too but glad that we were at least connected in that sudden wave of "is anybody else doing something?" Jeez it's so real.
Also: congrats on joining your union!!
Also: I've learned so much from your household about how it's possible to divest from big tech (in addition to the one's you've mentioned, also the music streaming sites, even with a tween!).
SO MUCH of my social life/network since becoming a parent has been networked through Meta and I'm really finding it hard to quit. One of my big mental barriers is finding the time to prioritize those connections if I can't, in 5 minutes, swipe through a day's worth of photos/posts/etc from people and causes I care about. Is that really connecting? No. But it feels like /terrifyingly/ lonely to cut the cord.
I'm struggling with that too (Meta) on the professional side (Instagram IS a useful place to share my work still, and I don't think I'm making that up but I might also be overstating the impact of losing it).
I too am trying to cut the the cord with Meta. My first step.was to remove the apps from my phone. I can still log onto the accounts from my laptop but that little bit of friction is enough to have me only checking every couple of days or else logging in to a group because I am looking for specific information.
Sounds like a smart first step
I totally feel the loss of those connections, too, Elizabeth. I haven't quite felt the full force of it, since I technically still have an Instagram account (my spouse and I have a shared FB for groups only, because for the life of me I cannot find a suitable alternative that all of the people in the groups will also find suitable). I am not sure I would have been able to extricate myself at other points in my life, such as right after a move. Also, my livelihood doesn't depend on promoting my work on social media, which is huge. The level of anger and resentment that I began to feel about the whole enterprise started to outweigh any benefits I was getting. But it is definitely tricky and not straightforward.
Garrett, I love you so much for always showing up. Thanks for this fantastic list.
Love you too Anna!
This was just what I needed. Thank you for seeing those of us who get all caught up in whether something will work or is enough (just me? No?) and responding with love! I aspire to be someone whose actions come from her core values as often and as joyfully as this/yours.
Oh jeez I'm right there with you (re: getting all caught up in whether something will work or is enough). Part of me writing this was taming the part of me that LOVES critiquing other people's activism as a projection for everything I'm not doing.
wow/ouch! That is so it.
Thank you for this!! I will be sharing with everyone I know. It's hard when you are doing some of these things already and not feeling any immediate impacts, but this is such a long game. I keep thinking about how, if my human lifespan goes as expected, I'll still be alive in 30 years and there will still be a world, and maybe things will be better or worse or most likely a combination of both. And even after I'm gone, the game is not over! These 3 weeks are only 3 weeks in the history of the entire world. That's all to say, contextualizing these small things within larger scales and larger fights has been really valuable to me.
First off, thank you so much for doing so many of these things already. It's so hard, isn't it? To keep up with it when it feels like the needle isn't moving. I hope it helps for all of us to do a better job (even when it seems cheesy or performative) of saying "I'm still out here, doing this thing, want to do it too?"
I especially loved the reminders here to kindly invite other people into the work. I think that's the part that is easy to forget. None of this is our individual burden to bear alone!
I was hoping that would stand out! None of these actions are all that novel, it's the discipline of invitation that I think makes a difference.
This weekend I baked focaccia for a migrant family that I know. My son taught me how to bake it.
That sounds lovely! Is it a good recipe?
Thank you, Garrett. It’s a good and easy recipe.
I’ve done both lonely and unlonely activist work since 2017- trekking down snowy rural roads in Iowa - and crowded streets in Brooklyn NY - canvassing, passing out info on universal healthcare, civil disobedience and arrests, so many protests, testifying for immigrant rights at my NYC city council hearings..so many organizing meetings….so many calls to Electeds…I’m so tired.
But baking bread for a young Ecuadorian family is replenishing … and I so value that friendship.
We get to keep finding new and different ways to assert our values and what we cherish. Thanks for your list, and for your newsletters, and your heart-full diligence, Garrett.
I think that's an important distinction-- we can keep the lonely work going thanks in part to work that is still rooted in care but is also replenishing.
Garrett!! This list was so so helpful, just as an accountability check, as is reading all these comments.
I had to fess up to myself re: my bullshit reasons for not calling my congresspeople ( I absolutely loath making phone calls, so any excuse I can come up with... lately it's the stupid rationalizing that because Becca Balint and Bernie are relatively out in front and being very vocal, that I don't need to call...and that's just not true. )
I am also rethinking Amazon thanks to you beautiful people here! We live in the middle of nowhere, so it's been hard to kick, there's so much we can't go out and buy easily. But there's a general store nearby whose actual motto is "If we don't have it you don't need it!" Which is feeling like a new challenge to the idea that we can't stop ordering from Amazon.
Oh my God of COURSE there's a general store near you!
Garrett, there are like 6!
Willie's just happens to be the one where you can buy butter, winter boots, roofing nails, crayons, and a bottle of wine.
Thank you for all of this. I am going to start carrying markers around with me again and probably need to learn the new photocopy scams that I used to be good at.
Also, John K Samson is my fucking hero but I haven't been keeping up and was unaware of this project. So thank you for that, also.
I was late to discovering this project from him too!
I just did a full Weakerthans catalogue listen on a recent 8 hour drive, and am so glad to find fellow Samson fans here (because: of course!)
For the first few months after Fallow came out I was sad that he left Propagandhi but that grudge didn't last long. I've been coming back to every one of those albums regularly ever since (and Propagandhi, especially recently :/).
I am an elementary school teacher at a Title I school. Our community is diverse, with some families who are strong Trump supporters and openly express their disdain for teachers, while others are immigrants living in fear. Can teaching serve as my form of activism? By the end of the day, I feel completely exhausted. It’s mentally draining to realize that every aspect of my life seems to be on the front lines. Lately, I feel like I’m constantly fighting in this challenging environment, just like my coworkers. I appreciate the simple poster signs, but I feel that I should be doing more. I’m looking for validation that putting up posters and teaching can be enough for now, along with attending my teachers' union meetings.
I work at a bicycle shop, so I’m going to lead Celebration/Affirmation Group Rides for folks impacted by the awful and overwhelming EO’s that are coming down from Trump/Musk.
Starting with LGBTQIA+, we’re going to decorate our bikes with pride flags and stickers and ride around town LOUDLY to show how much the community loves and supports the people most impacted by the decisions in Washington.
At each ride, I’m printing out a QR code for participants to make a donation to a local organization serving the affected community.
Immigrants and refugees are the next celebration ride after that, then Veterans experiencing homelessness…I’ve got a whole list of folks who need a celebratory bike ride with people who care. Its a little thing i can do.
Ask your local community bike shop if they’d help you organize a group ride too!
Kendsie this is so immensely cool!!!! I love this example and bet lots of other bike shops would be into it as well.
This list RULES Garrett. Excited to share this with friends at a gathering I’m planning.
Yay!
Now I know why I saved that stack of blank white stickers all these years!! Thank you for this, Garrett. You are the best!
YES!!!
Thank you so much for these excellent suggestions. The best I have seen yet, and I’ll be following them.