Inside This Issue
I wish that love was sexy.
I wish it was something alluring that drew us in, the way that our anger propels us downward into crypts of despair, places where we get stuck and stew with other aggrieved souls.
I wish that love was desired, lusted for, wanted, and dreamt about every night as well fall into soft delicate slumbers.
But instead, we are called into the wiles of anger, hatred, and fear. All of us – on the left, right, and in-between. Me too sometimes...
Resources for Changemakers
Several new titles have been added to the virtual shelves at the Fruition Coalition Bookshop. We earn a commission for books sold at the bookshop which helps to sustain our work.
Visit the bookshop and explore books for feminist leaders including:
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The Possibility of Tenderness: A Jamaican Memoir of Plants and Dreams, Jason Allen-Paisant
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Making Time: A New Vision for Life Beyond Productivity, Maria Bowler
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The Friendship Bench: How Fourteen Grandmothers Inspired a Mental Health Revolution, Dixon Chibanda MD
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We Grow the World Together: Parenting toward Abolition, Maya Schenwar and Kim Wilson
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Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times, Katherine May
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Divergent Mind: Thriving in a World that Wasn't Designed for You, Jenara Nerenberg
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Beautiful Solutions: A Toolbox for Liberation, Elanoria Wiliams et al.
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Budding Lotus in the West: Buddhism from an Immigrant's Feminist Perspective, Nhi Yến Đỗ Trần
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Outshining Trauma: A New Vision of Radical Self-Compassion, Ralph De La Rosa
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Hospicing Modernity: Facing Humanity's Wrongs and the Implications for Social Activism, Vanessa Machado de Oliviera
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Inflamed: Deep Medicine and the Anatomy of Injustice, Rupa Marya and Raj Patel
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A More Perfect Party: The Night Shirley Chisholm and Diahann Carroll Reshaped Politics, Juanita Tolliver
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It’s Not You, It’s Capitalism: Why It's Time to Break up and How to Move on, Malaika Jabali
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The Portable Feminist Reader, Roxane Gay
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When No Thing Works: A Zen and Indigenous Perspective on Resilience, Shared Purpose, and Leadership int he Timeplace of Collapse, Norma Wong
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Recognizing the Stranger: On Palestine and Narrative, Isabella Hammad
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The Tears of Things: Prophetic Wisdom for an Age of Outrage
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The Bright Side: How Optimists Change the World, and How You Can Be One, Sumit Paul-Choudhury
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How We Heal: A Journey toward Truth, Racial Healing, and Community Transformation from the Inside Out, La June Montgomery Tabron
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Liturgies for Resisting Empire: Seeking Community, Belonging, and Peace in a Dehumanizing World, Kat Armas
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Democracy as Creative Practice: Weaving a Culture of Civic Life, Tom Borrop and Andrew Zitcer
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Enemy Feminisms: TERFs, Policewomen, and Girlbosses against Liberation, Sophie Lewis
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Just Earth: How a Fairer World Will Save the Planet, Tony Juniper
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Abolition. Feminism. Now., Angela Y. Davis, Gina Dent, Erica R. Meiners, and Beth E. Richie
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Soul School: Taking Kids on a Joy-Filled Journey through the Heart of Black American Culture, Amber O'Neal Johnston
Gatherings
June 5 to 7, 2025
Get Free: A Black Feminist Reunion
Black Feminist Future
New Orleans, LA, USA
June 11 to 13, 2025
Embrace and Elevate Systems of Change: Transformative Thinking on Women and Leadership
International Leadership Association
Claremont, CA, USA
April 27 to 30, 2026
Narrm (Melbourne), Australia
Join us at Club Fruition for virtual tea parties, circles of celebration, book clubs, co-working, and more!
Liberatory joy is the experience of resisting the trauma and oppression we have experienced as we fully return to who we are as individuals and communities.
Our unique, deeply held desires.
The vivid visions for a more beautiful and loving world that we viscerally and intuitively know.
Our ancestors’ dreams....
Research
A cross-national study that included 62 countries found that sexism results in poor national outcomes, harming everyone regardless of gender.
Only 6% of Chief Executive Officers around the world are women.
Two-thirds of UN member states have never had a woman leader.
More than a third of women in Afghanistan have experienced intimate partner violence.
Researchers have found that misogyny is a "gateway drug" to violent extremism.
In my forthcoming book The Joy of Feminist Leadership, I propose – using both the Pareto Principle and a sports analogy – that feminist leaders and changemakers shift from 80% defense and 20% offense to 80% offense and 20% defense.
In a defensive position, we brace ourselves to fight back the opponent. Our energy is focused on calling out their moves and stopping them from proceeding.
In an offensive position, we are focused on and working for our goals, or the world we dream is possible. We embody our vision for a more beautiful and loving world as we collaboratively move toward our collective flourishing and liberation....
We deserve to experience joy, pleasure and rest every single day. These experiences make life meaningful and fun, while demonstrating appreciation for the preciousness of every moment.
Sometimes we defer joy, pleasure, and rest until we have the time or money, complete a task or project, or get permission from someone else. Other times, we feel guilty when we enjoy joy, pleasure, and rest – particularly when others are relying on us to be productive while others are deterred from these opportunities due to personal or political circumstances.
But without joy, pleasure, and rest...
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