In this moment when I feel a certain degree of helplessness, I’m trying to think of things that I actually can do to help. They are small things, but they do change the shape of the world. They’re outward facing things but mostly they’re for me to think about and remember. They might not be for you, although I got casual and decided to use the generic you. I don’t think it’s reasonable to expect myself to do all of these things at once, or all the time. But they’re things I’m trying to remember that I can do, and sometimes actually am doing without realizing it, when I feel that there is no hope.

• Wear a mask
• Wash your hands
• Get vaccinated when a vaccine becomes available
• Get a flu shot
• Donate blood
• Stay home when you can to decrease population density in public
• Don’t say things in the comments section of a social media post that you wouldn’t say to someone’s face.
• Recycle
• Compost
• Volunteer at food distribution events
• Eat vegetarian, even if you only eat vegetarian some of the time. One of the most effective ways to decrease greenhouse gas emissions.
• Source meat products conscientiously if you can afford it for animal rights reasons
• Make microdonations to organizations who are taking action on things you believe in
• Carpool (safely)
• Donate used clothing, books
• Thrift shop
• Check on the endorsements or social perspectives of the businesses you support consistently and be mindful of where your money is going.
• Shop locally. Support that one coffee shop or bookstore or diner or performance venue you would hate to see go out if business.
• Consider alternatives to big businesses like Amazon
• Recognize the humanity in the folks working in food service, retail, etc., especially in those moments where you feel the need to be critical of the service you have recieved.
• Support the arts. Performance based industries have been hit hard this year. Consider attending virtual performances, or supporting specific artists or venues on crowdfunding platforms like Patreon.
• Exchange pronouns.
• Hell, especially if you’re a cisgender ally – wear your own pronouns out on your sleeve. Wear ’em on your nametag at work, throw ’em in your email signature, etc.. It’s a small way to help make this conversation more familiar, standard, and safe in mainstream circles.
• Listen more than you talk, sometimes
• Other times, fucking preach. Speaking your mind is an act of revolution.
• Tell a stranger how much you like their hair, or their shoes, or their outfit.
• Take care of yourself. Unclench your jaw, relax your shoulders away from your ears. Take a breath. Drink water. Rest. Take a break. Put taking care of yourself first.
• If somebody in your life is putting themselves first, don’t take it personally. If taking it personally is constantly your first impulse, notice that. Consider the possibility that this might not be all about you.
• Learn something new, from outside of your comfort zone.
• Learn about the history you weren’t taught about in school.
• Sign a petition regarding a specific example of something in society that bothers you. If you are righteously passed about the criminal justice system, sign a petition for the innocent man on death row.
• Regardless of whether a protest for something you believe in is happening in your city or on the other side of the world, donate to local organizations who organize for safety supplies for protesters. Or a bail fund.
• Add your voice to the conversation when you amplify someone’s voice on social media.
• Consider consuming your news about the state of the world from a medium which you consider to be relatively reputable.
• Think critically and ask questions.
• If an old perspective no longer seems right, in light of new information, think about letting it go. Or revising it a bit, at least.
• One alternative to participating in a long string of potentially draining arguments or lectures that escalate and don’t get you anywhere over and over again is to just – concisely – say what you believe about the topic, and leave it at that. Repeat this statement whenever you need to. Allow it to evolve as your feelings about a topic change or become more specific. At some point, you can start asking people to repeat back to you what you’ve said. You’re not letting down the principles of nuance just because you don’t have the energy to present a research paper on what you believe in every single time.
• i.e., I don’t always have the energy to get into a nuanced discussion about reproductive rights, so my go-to statement is “I think people should have agency over what happens to their own bodies, and I think this kind of medical care should be covered by insurance.”
• Ask questions.
• Question cancel culture.
• Question the “born this way” narrative about things like gender and orientation
• Don’t fall in love with politicians. Think strategically.
• Protest. Change happens from the ground up, and the political landscape is shaped by what the majority of people believe to be important. A real life example of this is the youth climate justice movement in the E.U. over the last couple of years.
• Protest peacefully and creatively.
• Don’t tone-police protesters.
• Take action in response to peaceful protest.
• Learn about why people are protesting.
• Don’t negate the validity of the message that protesters are trying to draw attention to by emphasizing only the actions of the most violent and radical among them.
• Don’t fall out of love with healthy skepticism rational argument
• Remember that just because something makes you uncomfortable that doesn’t make it evil and wrong and bad.
• Hear the voice in your head that says “if you don’t do this one small thing, you won’t be able to live with yourself.” Hear that voice. And then recognize that the legitimate reason you have for being unable to take a specific action in a givin moment is not some “excuse,” it’s part of a genuine set of parameters that you’re working within. It’s human. It’s normal. The idea that if you really cared or wanted to take an action then you could just choose to take that action is abelist as fuck.
• Take care of yourself. Again. Always.

Love you.