A Glimmer of Hope: How Protests Can Spark Change

Activism and community service have run through my blood since my Girl Scouts days, and the reason I pursued Graphic & Web Design in college was to communicate important messages, support causes that mattered, nurture community and perhaps a bit naively, to change the world.

I still believe creativity can change the world. I stubbornly refuse to give up hope, even when things are looking pretty dire. And last weekend’s No Kings protests, with an estimated 7 million + attendees across the nation and around the world, definitely helped keep the spark of hope alive in my weary heart.

Participating in protests, community events, and political rallies is a great way to create a sense of camaraderie and remind us that we are not alone. In fact, in the case of the record breaking protests this year against the authoritarian oversteps of the current regime, we the people are the majority, and we have power.

But protesting is just the beginning. The people came together and showed up for a day, but can we continue to organize, support our communities, and fight for the things we hold most dear every day?

💕 Join or start group meet-ups centered around your hobbies and interests. Coming together to share something is a powerful way to find your people. For the past couple of years, I’ve been lucky enough to participate in monthly events for fellow women in my industry, which is a challenging space. The group is organized by my friend Leah. Her monthly events move around Northern California, and they are always free and full of fun craft projects and wellness activities. Earlier this year I wrote an article on Beard Bros Media about my experience attending these nourishing events. I highly recommend seeking something out in your area or virtually, or starting your own.

🔁 Share skills and resources in your local community. Look for hubs like Art Centers, Tool Libraries or Community Gardens to be a part of and support. Start at your local library and get a library card. Support local educational institutions like community colleges and take or teach classes. For those in rural areas, you can often find online classes. My friend Alicia at WP with Heart, who I used to work with at Lucidity Festival, has been teaching workshops on WordPress, and it’s been awesome to join her Q&A sessions and learn from her online programs as I refresh my web design skills.

🫙 Speaking of sharing skills, one of my favorite things to do is grow or wild harvest delicious food and preserve it so I can share it with family and friends. I love living in an area so full of natural abundance, where I can pick blackberries to can into jam and plan fermented food swaps with my friends where we make big batches of kraut to share and swap things we’ve made. I definitely don’t do that as often as I used to when I lived on the Mendocino Coast - thanks for the inspo, Coastal Culture Club. Sonoma locals, we started a fermented foods swap group on Facebook if you’d like to join us!

🗳️ Voting is the bare minimum, we can participate in the political process year round. In my last newsletter I shared a few ways I stay engaged, like using 5calls and ResistBot to keep in touch with my elected officials. Make sure your voter registration is up to date, and offer to help support neighbors and friends in getting to the polls on election days. It’s a struggle to be informed in such an intense political climate, but I follow some trusted journalists on social media and keep up with a few quality newsletters and podcasts on social and political topics. Curate your media carefully and don’t be afraid to take breaks from the news cycle when you need to.

🍽️ Food is definitely one of my love languages, can you tell? During the harvest season especially, I love dinner parties. I think we could all use more shared meals and harvest celebrations. Breaking bread together helps us find common ground and build community. During Covid I led a virtual Fire Cider making party on Zoom. This seasonal herbal remedy was one I often made in community in Mendo, and it’s a fall tradition worth repeating and sharing with those you love. Stay tuned for a Harvest Season event at Agricola Farm in Penngrove, (one of my clients) in the next couple weeks where we’ll be making fire cider and other herbal remedies as well as tasting the fruits of the season’s harvest together.

💪 See a problem you can help solve? Jump in and take some action! Whether it’s running for a local office or just cleaning up your local beach, a little organization and planning can turn a small group of people into a can-do action squad. Get together with local concerned citizens and build mutual aid networks, tool and resource sharing pods, or community support systems for those in need. There may already be an organization near you working on the issues you care about, find them and join in.

It takes a village, and these are only a few ideas. There are countless examples throughout history of protests and political demonstrations sparking broader changes and building movements. But the real work begins when you put down the picket signs and roll up your sleeves in your own community. I’d love to hear what causes you’re supporting and how you’re building your village.

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