Rest as a Form of Resistance

In my growth as an activist, I’ve learned the concept of “rest as a form of resistance” — That understanding that self care is “a part of” and not separate from our sustained advocacy. I just wanted to place words of support for self care in this space today.

I’m on 6 weeks sabbatical in Ghana, working hard to replenish all the parts of me that were expended into the American struggle for accessibility and inclusion over the last 3 years.

Ghana is a place where familial bonds and communal infrastructure abound. There is so much time and human resource to slow down and be cared for and to think clearly about why standing still and self care really are so rare in American society….

In 1957, Ghana was also the first sub-Saharan country to gain independence from British colonization. It became a beacon that inspired the American civil rights movement in the 1960s which soon paved the way for disability activism in the states as well.

What Ghanaian society has retained, even in winning independence, is its fundamental undergirding in community. Even as Ghana is rapidly developing structural infrastructure (eg, hotels, highways, a thriving real estate market), it has not relinquished its belief in the fundamental importance of relationships even in it’s institutions.

For an American special needs mom still fighting “the good fight,” I find myself again inspired, by Ghana, even while I am resting.