What Do We Do When the World is Crumbling?
Six Easy Steps to Start Building a Better World
The Monday before last, a warm, quiet morning in L.A.’s MacArthur Park, the peace was disturbed by a dystopian site: a swarm of heavily armed police and ICE agents sweeping in for some kind of operation. While no arrests were made, this out-of-nowhere show of force and militarism shut down a children’s camp and did the job of freaking a whole lot of people out.
What is our country coming to? One might think. But the question is, has our country ever lived up to its proclamations of freedom for all? We believe not.
For that, poet Taij Kumarie Moteelall’s poem, which you can read in full on Instagram here, speaks to the direction we must head. It is not carving ourselves out a seat at the table of our crumbling empire. Rather it is building a new world altogether.
But how do we do that?
Here’s how we think we can do it now:
Identify the Humanity that Already Exists
We believe that the roots of that new and better world already exist. They are seen in the hundreds, thousands, and even millions of people who are hitting the streets to protest fascism. They are seen in the people who heed the warning of ICE’s presence and block them from taking people from our streets.
Humanity exists in the brave people who helped save other community members from the deadly floodwaters in Texas. It exists in the community-based organization serving food to houseless people every week. It exists in the mutual aid networks that continue to thrive in this post-pandemic time.
Humanity is also in the small joys and pieces of beauty we see every day. It’s in the community bike rides we’re seeing all around our neighborhoods through the summer. It’s in the summer concerts and the spontaneous picnics in the park. It’s in the greeting your local shop owner extends asking about you and your family. Humanity is everywhere and it is the reason we can build a new and better world because the roots, the foundation even, are already there.
Find a Group or Club in Your Community
Now that you’ve identified the source of good for a better world, it’s time to actively become a part of that world. One very straightforward, if not easy, way to do that is to join a group or club. Can’t figure out where to start? Think about what your interests are or something you want to learn. Find a hyper-local group–a writing group, a knitting circle, a hiking club–that helps you engage in that activity.
This suggestion is rooted in the concept touched upon in the film “Join Or Die” which is based on the research and writing of Robert Putnam. His work focuses on “social capital” which is an essential element to a vibrant, functioning democracy. Social capital is basically the connectedness we feel between one another; in other words, our social networks or sense of community. In his research, Putnam has found that the rise in American individualism thanks to cultural and capitalist influence has corresponded with the decline in a functioning democracy.
Let’s counteract that decline in social connection by deepening ours.
Host a Potluck or Block Party (or Several)
To extend upon the previous step, you can also take the more simple step of hosting a potluck with the people in your life. And take it a step further and suggest a recurring potluck. Meet and connect regularly. Over time, that sense of community between your already existing ties will grow to become your support system.
Already have a strong support system? Take it to the next level and organize a block party. Bring in the people in your community who might not already have that sense of connection. Meet your neighbors and get to know them and how you all can support each other. Carve that sense of community into your neighborhood.
Find Your Place in Social Action
The bad news is endless, we know. And because of that, it can really feel like it’s coming at us from all sides making any kind of action hard to figure out. I can’t solve everything, so where do I fit into this? One might wonder. And if you can’t answer it, you feel stuck and paralyzed.
We have a solution from the climate justice movement, specifically climate activist and author, Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson. In 2022, she gave a TED Talk called “How to Find Joy in Climate Action.” In the talk, she shows a simple graphic, a Venn Diagram. The overlapping circles include the following: What are you good at? What work needs doing? And What brings you joy? After filling all of those at, the center point of all of those is your specific piece of climate action.
While her focus is specifically on climate, you can translate this Venn to any issue you find necessary (all of which likely intersect with climate justice): mobility justice, racial justice, mass incarceration, immigration, etc. You can take it where you want.
Go make your own Venn diagram (and share with us if you want!)
Download Johnson’s Venn Diagram Here
Find an Organization or Community Group Doing the Work
Now that you’ve found your place in the movement, find the people already leading the way. Rest assured the work that needs being done is already happening and you don’t have to reinvent the wheel.
For example, we at Biking While Black are working on mobility justice (hey, hi!), so we would love to figure out how to plug you in. There are organizations working at all levels.
Share What You’re Doing with Others
Finally, share your journey with others! This will inspire people in your community to do the same. Your journey can be the impetus for someone else to help us build a better world. Put it out on social media, text a friend about it, start a Substack, and even just mention it to someone in casual conversation. And remember to share your joy because that is as revolutionary as anything else. The revolution should be joyful!
I know these don’t seem like much, but they are the steps to beginning to build a better and more connected world. It is a way to begin taking care of one another and showing others how they can do the same. We build a better world by showing what it should look like in the now. And a better world is a place where we look out for and care for one another, where we build up a good society rather than participate in breaking it down, and where we invest in humanity.
As Taij Kumarie Moteelall writes in her poem:
We come together
where the soil remembers us.
Where hands are weathered and gentle.
Where care flows fluidly— as currency,
and abundance is measured
in heart-to-heart moments,
in meals shared,
in purpose lived together.
Lovely note and sentiment! I loved the documentary “Join or Die” and am glad that you’ve shared it with your readers.