It’s okay to feel fear, anxiety, or overwhelm when participating in advocacy work of any kind. This is far from easy, which is why most people choose silence. Silence is comfortable. Silence is safe. Advocacy work is rarely comfortable. And, sometimes, advocacy work is not safe. There are real threats to this work that must be taken seriously, and protecting your mental well-being is crucial. You should never push yourself to the brink of burnout or sacrifice your mental state in your advocacy work. Breaks are key. Self-care is non-negotiable.

America has defined itself as a country based on a race-based hierarchy that, through almost every structure, law, ordinance, and standard set by elite white men, is reinforced by class, education, land ownership, gender, and even beauty. Desperate to maintain the supremacy of whiteness, (specifically male-dominated whiteness), America provided handouts to white men, restricted access to everyone else, and told the lie that the success the white men experienced was solely based on meritocracy.

It is okay to live in the tension of the both/and. It is okay to feel the heartache, the guilt, the desperation and recognize that ignoring your needs and your life is not what will save the lives of those who are fighting for theirs. Yes, it is so unfair that thousands of beautiful, innocent people can no longer live their lives as they were once able to, just as we are now. That truth also applies to many other similar circumstances that are unrelated to an unprecedented present-day massacre.