Reinventing Activism, Part 1: Marching in Circles Mickey Z. [View all]

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Photo credit: Mickey Z.

Mickey Z. -- World News Trust

June 24, 2020

As many of you know by now, I’ve been running a one-man project called Helping Homeless Women-NYC for nearly four years. In that time, I’ve been given a unique perspective on “activism” from the view of some of the most vulnerable people I have ever met.

Recently, for example, a homeless woman told me how she had to stop panhandling because of the volatile protests near her regular spot. Translation: A woman already in the midst of a desperate struggle due to homelessness and the pandemic lockdown ended up losing out on much-needed donations thanks to window-smashing activists and head-smashing cops.

This reminded me of another homeless woman whose regular spot happened to be smack dab in the middle of the Women’s March route a couple of years ago. Not a single marcher gave her a donation or even a smile. Eventually, the cops forced the homeless woman to relinquish her spot for “security reasons.”

And don’t get me started on how many homeless women I’ve known who’ve needed restraining orders against violent men. Even with how terrible some cops can be, I can only imagine how these women feel when they hear un-nuanced calls to “abolish” or “dismantle” the police.

Why am I telling you all this? Well, I once was a very active, popular street activist. I marched and chanted and carried signs and gave keynote speeches for the full gamut of un-nuanced social justice issues… until I finally #woke up to how counterproductive such tactics and mindsets can be. It wasn’t until I re-allocated my time and energy to direct relief that I finally started to make an impact.

Now, as I witness a whole new group of people coming to awareness and demanding change, I feel compelled to share some of the lessons it took forever for me to learn. For the first installment of this series, the topic will be marching.

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https://worldnewstrust.com/reinventing-activism-part-1-marching-in-circles-mickey-z