Joy is my favorite act of resistance.

Joy is my favorite act of resistance.

Joy is something that I think a lot about. Something I seek out and value deeply. Last week the topic of joy came up in a community space that I am a part of. My face lit up at the mention of it! This was a community space for anti-racist folks of mixed races and identities, but all committed to taking antiracist action. A space for community and support. Folks are often hurting and frustrated from working against a system. While we celebrate lots of wins there, we also hold each other through the hard stuff. So hearing joy centered on that call caught my ear!

I quickly commented, "what is liberation without joy?" half question, half declaration. I also shared that everything I have learned about joy has been from Black women and trans folks. To see folks who experience so much violence and harm, interpersonally and systemically, celebrate their humanity and center joy unapologetically has always awed me.

It's also helped me appreciate how revolutionary joy can be. And it’s made me realize just how available it is to each of us if we're willing to claim it.

But it's also prompted a lot of self-reflection.

For all of the ways that I experience profound privilege, joy has always been something that I've had to chase. White supremacy facilitates so much power and dominance, but it also requires participation to uphold my position and the house of cards that it stands on. Whether consciously or not, there is a lot of work in upholding the myth of dominance.

There isn't joy in perfectionism and people-pleasing. There's no joy in gripping tightly to the masks we wear, asserting our faux confidence and niceness. There's no joy in endlessly fighting to keep up appearances and have the right things and be in the right places. Whiteness and white supremacy don't center or celebrate joy, they celebrate and center power and dehumanization.

Joy is my favorite act of resistance. A member of our group on the call last week asserted that as a Black woman her joy "is an act of political warfare"!! And yet, joy seems to evade so many white folks.

I wonder when we'll collectively recognize that trading a house of cards and white supremacy for profound joy and connection is a hell of a trade and worth every damn bit of "privilege" that we'd lose.

But claiming joy has also required me to let go -- of perfectionism, people-pleasing, and a desire for control. Joy is deeply vulnerable. Leaning into joy requires us to lean into vulnerability. To surrender to presence and connection. And none of that is celebrated by white supremacy.

Joy is not easily cultivated within our system of labor and productivity, power, and domination. Joy requires humanity. This is why I claim that joy is resistance.

In fact, joy is my favorite form of resistance! It simply cannot exist on large scales without impacting the systems that aim to keep us small and complacent.

So as we move through this time of reckoning (hello, great resignation!) and healing. As we continue to commit to racial justice and antiracist action, I hope we'll remember the importance of joy. Not as our only act of resistance, but as the most enjoyable one!

How are you finding joy these days? And how does it motivate your antiracist commitments?

reflection questions for cultivating more joy:

1. Think about times when you've witnessed raw, unapologetic joy. What did it look like and sound like? And how did it feel to witness?

2. When was the last time that you experienced deep joy?

3. Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths. Try to quiet your mind and connect into your body. Ask yourself, "what's one thing that would bring me profound joy right now?" feel all of the sensations and notice what comes up. Write down what you experienced.

4. What comes up for you immediately after you reflect on what would bring you profound joy. Notice if there is resistance or explanations about why it's not possible, or at least not possible right now. And then gently move through that resistance.

This can help you build awareness about what brings you joy and what gets in the way of you experiencing it. I'd love to hear your reflections and noticings! And I'd love to support you in cultivating more joy in your own life. Schedule a call if you'd like to talk through options of how we can do that!