lqb2weekly #207 (13 may 2025)

May 13, 2025

hey,

team! i am over a week on this one! which, in the grand scheme of this newsletter, is not so bad. but there are multiple things i said i was going to get into this newsletter in a timely way that i most definitely did not. my apologies to anyone who shared something with me that i’ve missed the timeline for. i’m going to include your stuff here because the things are dope but obvi the window has passed.

also, this newsletter is packed. skip around; take the best; let the rest go!

first quick commentary hit, this brill quote from abolitionist organizer mariame kaba (emphasis mine): “… I think that when you think about the question of cowardice, most of us aren’t brave as human beings. Most of us are not brave. Any strategy that relies primarily on people’s bravery is going to fail. And that is the point of the organizing on the ground, which is strength in numbers. Because when there are many more of us, it doesn’t just rely on single people taking brave stances…” if the quote resonates, i highly recommend the whole article.

next: when i started drafting this newsletter, i was SO excited to share that democracy now! (on spotify) had started to have clickable, timestamped headlines. but since starting this draft, they’ve stopped doing that. which is a bigger bummer to me than i expected. it was so nice to be able to jump right to the palestine sections and then pick and choose whatever else i wanted and then move on. now i’m just back to listening to the headlines and that’s it. womp.

speaking of palestine, just a couple articles:

these aren’t news (as in there’s nothing new or truly surprising here) but i found engaging with them grounding. and though i still feel wildly underpowered, i do feel like the continued witnessing is important. if there’s anything my thursday fasting practice has brought it’s increased capacity to stay in/on what’s happening.

ok, some things coming up:

my beloved sibling, emet, poet and creator of a newsletter i recommend, the bird, has a show opening this week in latvia! check out this interview with them!
rockwood leadership institute has an upcoming training may 19-23 outside of NYC. i’m sharing here with short notice because there’s an excellent 50% off discount available. discount code: PartnerDiscountA25. lmk if you sign up! i’ll be there!
IDHA Decarcerating Care panel on May 5. this is passed but there’s a recording!
this one is a month out but the 12th Annual Celebration of Grassroots Organizing in Boston is happening june 28! it’s a lobster picnic and collaborative fundraiser for 15 organizations on the frontlines of Boston’s movements for justice and liberation.
- also, in case you’re a mural artist or know one in the boston area, check this out (apps due may 19):

Local Artists and Advocates,
Sharing this opportunity for new murals in the JP/Roxbury area below:
Calling local artists with ties to The Brewery! 2025 kicks off Phase One!
This is a new opportunity to propose the first of several new murals planned for The Brewery business complex! Three blocks from the Stony Brook MBTA, this vibrant neighborhood gathering space is an incubator for local small businesses and home to Sam Adams brewery. In collaboration with JPNDC, a non-profit community development corporation, we aim to create opportunities for artists who have meaningful ties to this Place, its Stories, and its People.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1M3kQRivZBIa9eZku4XoBGsDRgpJMhYA4/view?usp=drive_link

ok. slowing it down for a sec to drop a big blurb here: one of my new rockwood homies, romeo jackson, is looking for a key collaborator in their work. below is a lil excerpt from what they’re looking for.

The Vision Calling Me Forward
As a Black, Queer, Non-Binary Femme channeling ancestral wisdom into transformative healing spaces, I'm ready to amplify my gifts through powerful systems that honor my full capacity. My spiritual resources are precious and meant for the deep healing work I'm called to do. The ancestors have guided me to this moment of expansion, and now I'm creating sacred space for my vision to flourish beyond the constraints of day-to-day operations.
I Need an Operational Powerhouse
I'm not looking for an assistant - I need a strategic agent who becomes the operational backbone of my vision in the world. This person will:
Run the engine behind my vision while I focus on creating transformative content
Stand in my place when I'm in deep work or focused on healing spaces
Handle 80% of decisions independently, bringing only what truly needs my attention
Guard the integrity of my voice and perspective with fierce protection
Create systems that allow my gifts to flow uninterrupted to my community

is this you? if not, is it someone you know? either way, more details over here and here. if you’re interested, def reach out and tell romeo you found out about this from my newsletter (and if you need a few days extension, tell them i said it’s my fault).

ok, some other things:

two of my friends from coaching for healing, justice, and liberation are launching their new consulting practice!: Movement Ecosystem Coaching & Consulting. Najla and Adlemy are incredible coaches and consultants offering healing-centered support for movement leaders and organizations. If you or your community could use coaching, organizational consulting, or space to deepen sustainability and liberation work, check them out: mecconsulting.org. and feel free to pass the word along if you like what you see!
i am really digging this song rn: anees —rise UP. fav lyric: “no one ever grows stronger escaping pain.”
this article about the DOGE takeover of the US institute of peace is a month old but has a bunch of really important specific details in it. the only one i want to highlight right now is this: the private security force switched sides in the middle of the takeover. in this case, this is awful. but the hope i see here?: people can switch sides. and, from the little bit of dictatorship takedown i’ve studied, that’s a key part of turning the tide. remembering bonhoeffer: “Evil always carries the seeds of its own destruction.”
a new men’s work friend, mario, shared these two recaps/videos of some recent men’s work that seems compelling to me:

Helping Men Resist Radicalization
Worried about the men in your life, workplace, or across the country being drawn into harmful ideologies?
Equimundo’s José Campi-Portaluppi (Director of Communications and Advocacy), and Caroline Hayes (Senior Strategic Initiatives Officer) help you understand where these ideologies are coming from, and how better engagement (including through sex ed!) can help men resist radicalization, so we can all build safer, more connected communities together.

Boys and Men in Greater Boston: Recap (click to see the video)
On March 6 at the Boston Foundation, President and CEO Lee Pelton welcomed an in-person and online audience to the release of a report called Boys and Men in Massachusetts: Challenges in Education, Employment and Health. He did so acknowledging that it may strike some as strange to take this on at a time when powerful people at the national level seem intent on clawing back gains made by women over the last century. But, he noted, “Equity is not a zero-sum game. Work to help boys and men to thrive will not detract from efforts tackling disparities for women. We really have to investigate all variables in the data to see the full picture and work toward equity.”

finally, a BIG CONGRATS TO rümeysa öztürk and everyone who organized and mobilized to support her and her release. it’s not all good out here but it’s also not all bad. some things we do win!

on to the things!

(!!) pick of the pack

writing

some things i’ve written since the last newsletter:

quotes

there is nothing new under the sun. also, full transparency, many of these quotes come from james clear’s 3-2-1 newsletter (which i love).

It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body. — English teacher Elizabeth Stone on how becoming a parent changes you

Remain playful as your responsibilities increase. It’s easy to become serious when people and results depend on you, but nearly everyone’s performance improves when they proceed lightly through the world. — James Clear

If you think you’re running 10 minutes late, text to say you’ll be 15 minutes late. That way the other person gets one disappointment and one pleasant surprise. Most people do the opposite: they say they’re 5 minutes late when it’s 10 and end up annoying the other and looking like total fools. — Jacob Falkovich

Don’t let the hope of finding a better way prevent you from starting down the best path you know of right now. This day won’t come again. — James Clear

Focus on the things you are for, not the things you are against.
Many people spend large chunks of their day thinking about what they hate. They are always telling you about something they dislike: this food, that subject, this political party, that coworker.
You are more than your frustrations. Build your identity around what you love.
— James Clear

Sooner or later we all sit down to a banquet of consequences. — Robert Louis Stevenson

If you’re 37… Instead of regretting that you can’t wake up age 18 again, pretend to yourself that you’re 90 and you’ve woken up age 37 again, and that you get to magically, wonderfully have the next 50 years again. — Unknown

In some areas of life, your reputation is defined by your wins.
- Creative pursuits. One bestseller or hit song can erase the memory of the ones that didn’t work.
- Entrepreneurship. People rarely remember your failed business ideas, only your winning ones.
In areas like these, your mistakes fade away and the breakthroughs last. But in other areas of life, your reputation is defined by your losses.
- Crime. You can drive safely 364 days a year, but one DUI changes everything
- Ethics and morals. One unethical decision can ruin a reputation and destroy trust
In areas like these, your mistakes linger and consistency is rewarded.
Some areas of life reward your best day. Others punish your worst day. Know which situation you’re in, and you can better decide when to be risky and when to play it safe.
— James Clear

reads

some things i’ve read since the last newsletter:

listens

watches

jams

some things i’ve been (aurally) enjoying since the last newsletter:

jobs

co-hosted by my dear friend, nadav david! (he’s on vacay so might not have been updated this month)

here’s the jobs list for this month. enjoy!

upcoming events

fun-raising

kibilio’s well-being campaign (two days left to help them meet their $25k match)

newsletters

bad environmentalist: ugh, fix it!
- highlight here: this one features my dear friend, jonathan!
the bird: Stand in the Place Where it Was
building belonging: We need to talk about what it means to "fight"
future ancestors: Surviving and Not Surviving
solstice newsletter: a time's digest
rectangle | square: "We," Kei, Coverage
Prisons, Prose & Protest: #27
The Felt Sense: April Sensory Roundup

right now i’m learning…

how to write the blurb for the back of my book. and also i started learning how to weave gullah geeche sweetgrass baskets.

mood

(getting ready for spring/summer travel vibes after having been mostly home).

lqb2weekly