Activism Doesn't Need to Be a Sacrifice: These Small Acts Can Create Big Change
I hope you’re staying home if you can, wearing a mask when you have to go out, and aren’t putting yourself and others at unnecessary risk (you shouldn’t be going to restaurants! You shouldn’t be going on vacation! Your Instagram is very concerning!). The world is changing very fast, and not just because of the pandemic, we’re also facing what I hope is a historic reckoning with how racist the US has been, and continues to be. We have more access to information, but that means we also have more access to conspiracy theories, misinformation, and hate speech. We all have a lot of responsibility, not just to our own families and loved ones, but to society as a whole. it can be overwhelming, particularly if you have limited resources. But you can be an activist and a force for good by taking very small steps. So small you may think they’re insignificant, but believe me, they are not. Not only can you create change by doing small things every day, you will create change in yourself if you start interacting with the world differently. Here are a few ways you can put in a small amount of effort, but still be a force for good in the world.
Diversify Everything You Engage With, and Speak Up
I already mentioned diversifying your feed, and reading books by black women authors, but I’d also like to highlight some other areas where make conscious changes. EatOkra is an app that you can use to find black owned restaurants in your area. I’m not entirely sure what cities are covered, but it’s free, so download it and find out! You could use it when you’re on vacation in a city that is covered, or you can recommend businesses in your area to be added. Maybe it’s your business! Tell them to add you!
This next one sounds easy, but it’s not. You need to get comfortable with telling people they are being harmful/insensitive/careless/flat out bigoted. When your friend makes a joke about a fat person. When your grandma says something racist at family dinner. When you’re in a car full of people and someone announces that you have all entered a “bad neighborhood.” Say something! It can be as simple as, “That’s not cool.” This is the part that makes it difficult: You will make people upset. The worst thing you can call a white person is racist. They lose their minds, even though they did something racist. Stand your ground. Get used to knowing that you are right, and you are creating change in yourself, even if it’s not spreading to those around you. Get comfortable being an active participant in social change. It will be hard, but then it will be SO easy.
Be Aware of Size Inclusivity (and Exclusivity)
I’ve been a straight sized person my whole life, and it wasn’t until I started reading, following, and listening to people in larger bodies that I realized how just about everything is made for a very particular body type (that isn’t even average). If you don’t already, follow Your Fat Friend and read her work (there are many great people doing this work, this is just a jumping off point). I’ll admit that before reading her article about flying, I had never thought about air travel and how it’s exponentially more difficult for fat people. Oh you think not having leg room is tough? It’s nothing! I don’t know when I’ll get on a plane again, but I’ve started telling seat mates that we can lift up the arm rest if that would be helpful, and it’s okay if our bodies happen to touch (because those seats are TINY). I’m also prepared to switch seats with a scene-making passenger who adoesn’t want to sit next to a larger body. These are small (minuscule!) gestures, but I can’t change the size of the seats or the length of seatbelts or how some stranger is going to look at you. i can, however, signal that I’m not going to bug you during what is already a rough experience.
Another thing that takes oh, no effort at all, is to see what sizes are offered by a brand before you buy their clothes. Are you wearing the largest size they offer, but you are a 12? The average American woman is a size 16. Brands come up with a LOT of weak excuses for why they can only make certain sizes, but it’s all bullshit. The truth, which they will never admit, is that they don’t want to be associated with fat people. They don’t want their brand “tarnished.” You should be disgusted by this! It’s not always easy - if you want something, you want it - but if you can slowly start to think more critically about who you’re supporting with your own purchases, you can open your own mind and hopefully be a part of changing fashion for good.
Be Aware of Diversity, and When It Started
Another easy way to be a better consumer is to check out how brands address diversity. Not just in sizing, but in the racial diversity of their models, and even visible disability in their models. I get a lot of fashion ads on my Instagram feed, and when something piques my interest I’ve started going to that brand’s feed, and scrolling to see when (or if) they started using non-white models. Was it June of 2020? That’s a red flag.
There is always space to do better and improve, and we should allow people - and brands - to do that. But simply pivoting to a more diverse advertising strategy without acknowledging past mistakes does not sit right with me. It’s like apologizing by saying, “I’m sorry your feelings were hurt.” To properly atone for harm done, you first need to recognize that you did something harmful.
I love Peloton (as mentioned many MANY times before) but I look forward to more, different diversity in their instructions. I think they do a great job of being inclusive: They have racial diversity, LGBTQIA+ representation, and they have a nonbinary option on the gender tab for user profiles. But where are the nonbinary instructors? Where are the visibly disabled instructors? I would love to see instructors with larger bodies! I predict the response to a request for larger bodied instructors would be something like, “Christine is a size 6!” To that I would ask that you reread everything written here so far, while I roll my eyes right out of my skull. I want larger bodies, and I want disabled bodies. Where is my instructor with joint mobility issues?! Cycling is one of the top exercises for arthritis, and there are no rides (that I’ve found) that mention arthritis. There are low impact rides, and I get that they want to appeal to the largest audience possible, but if Cody Rigsby can do a whole ride talking about the Backstreet Boys (a must-do, if you haven’t already) then I can ask for a ride where chronic illness and mobility issues are explicitly mentioned. You may also think that people with disabilities aren’t the type to get into fitness in the first place, which is completely incorrect.
Now that I’ve realized I love exercise (still shocked, tbh) I’ve been making an effort to immerse myself in body positive, adaptive, and diverse fitness media. If you go Googling for workout routines or clothes or inspiration, you’re going to find a lot of body shaming, diet advice, and fitness spaces where the goal is to visibly change your body. I’m actively trying to only follow accounts that agree with my values: Exercise isn’t punishment. You don’t need to change your body to make it worthy. Fuck diet culture. Some of my faves that I’ve found are @disabledgirlswholift (featured above), @fatgirlshiking, and @decolonizing_fitness. I’m always looking for more, and this has been a great resource that is so extensive, I haven’t made it all the way through the list yet.
Report Ads
This is one of my favorite hobbies. I know I’m not the only one who lounges on the couch and stares at their phone for an indeterminate number of hours, and during that time you are getting served a lot of ads. Particularly if you are already looking at fitness content, or size-inclusive clothes, you’re going to get a LOT of diet ads. These make me furious, particularly when they’re diets that have been rebranded as “wellness.” So I report them. I say that they’re discriminatory, that they’re hate speech, that they are promoting dangerous practices. I try not to just select “I’m not interested in this,” because it really doesn’t scratch the rage-itch that I get from seeing harmful ads that only serve to make people hate themselves and spend money on a futile attempt to despise their one human body a little less. I also (I have no direct proof of this) like to think about how I’m throwing a small bit of relief to the person who has to look at the post I’ve reported. Did you read this article about how being a post-reviewer for Facebook destroys people’s souls? It’s awful. So I like to imagine them getting a little break from gruesome, graphic imagery by checking my report of hate speech and seeing a cartoon woman’s body shrinking unnaturally.
Sign Petitions and Vote in Local Elections
I used to work for a pretty well-known NGO, as a person on the street asking for signatures, making cold calls, and begging for support from strangers. It is an awful job. Truly terrible. But now that I know how this system works, I sign everything (as long as it aligns with my own values), and you should too. I think people are averse to singing a petition on the street because they’re worried about their information getting “out there” or their name being put on “a list” but it’s not nearly as nefarious as you are imagining. First of all, when you put down your name and address, that’s already public information. If you get mail at your house, your name being associated with where you live is all over the place. Also, that information is needed to confirm your identity against public records so that they know you are who you say you are. Trying to get a measure on a ballot is mostly a process of collecting a bunch of names and confirming that they are real people. It also isn’t the same as voting. Say you want to improve your cities recycling program, but you need to raise everyone’s taxes by two cents to do so. You need to have the city’s residents vote to approve it, and to get on the ballot so that they CAN vote, you need to get enough people to say that they would like it to BE on the ballot. So you have to go out and collect signatures. If you are approached to sign this initiative, all you’re really saying is, “I live in this place, I am a voter, and I would like for this to have a chance to be on the ballot in the next election.” When the time comes around to vote, you can vote however you like!
This also bring me to voting. If you have the ability to vote, you should vote in every election you possibly can. Particularly if you are not a white man, because people fought so hard and even died for you to have that right. Why would you not want to vote at every opportunity? Vote by mail is getting a lot of attention right now, but it is great and if you have the opportunity, I highly suggest you sign up for it. Vote by mail is not the same as voting absentee. I have lived in two states with vote by mail options, and it’s been a little different in both. In California, you can sign up for vote by mail, and every time there is an election you qualify to vote in, you get sent a ballot in the mail. This is great if you’e like me and want to vote at every opportunity, but sometimes the election is for like, one seat on the school board and it’s not well publicized. In California, if you are signed up for vote by mail but skip one, you are taken off the list and will either have to vote in person or re-sign up. Now I live in Washington, where vote by mail is the default. I get a ballot for every election I’m eligible for simply because I am a registered voter. There are special drop boxes for ballots, or you can use the USPS. I was already a huge proponent for vote by mail, but moving to the PNW and having it be the default made me love it even more.
By voting in local elections you are showing that you support your community, that you care about what happens where you live, and you can help make sure that your neighborhood has good schools, social programs, and elected officials that you believe in. I cannot imagine living in a city and not caring what people are in charge of the everyday workings of where I live. Also, if your state isn’t already using vote by mail, you should look into how you can help bring it to your area. It not only makes it easier to vote in every election, it also makes it easier for people with disabilities, difficult work schedules, and other obligations to be able to have their voices heard.
Send an Email When Someone Does Good
This is another thing that takes very little effort and makes me feel like I’ve done good. When you’re getting some kind of service - at a store, a restaurant, the mechanic, wherever - and the person helping you does a good job, send their supervisor an email. This could mean sending an email to their direct boss (like if it’s a small local business) or to the corporation they work for (ie Nordstrom or whatever). Most business websites have a contact page, and I just send it to whatever that email is. This can lead to a helpful employee getting a bonus, a pat on the back from their boss, or a note in their paperwork that can help them get a promotion down the line. I have gotten discounts and coupons for sending these emails, but that’s not the point! However, if that motivates you to send an email, then go for it. It’s also important to think about how you review services, especially through apps. The usual way of analyzing say, star ratings in an app, is that you are either perfect or you fail. Five stars gets you left alone, and four or less gets you reprimanded. Seem fucked up? It is! So the next time you want to tap four stars instead of five because you think “there’s always room for improvement,” think of how that will affect the person you’re reviewing. (I have given a three star rating once, in an Uber, because I felt like I was in actual danger in that car.)
These are just a few small changes to make in your life, that take very little effort and won’t cost you anything. But there are more! Shop at local and/or minority owned businesses! Don’t call the cops! Donate supplies to protesters, shelters, and community outreach organizations! Protest! Know when to speak up and when to mind your business! I’m sure you can think of others, and I welcome you to comment and tell me anything I can add to my own practices. I’m not perfect, and I had to learn all these things. I’ve said things I shouldn’t have, made jokes that were harmful, been oblivious to my own privileges. But I’m embracing change and making sure I don’t repeat past mistakes. I believe being a human on this earth is about doing the best you can, and if you have a misstep, try again tomorrow. Small acts DO make a difference, and when you start small, you’ll only grow from there.
