Anyone that tries to encourage me to take political action (from signing a petition to donating to protesting to going vegan etc) by exposing me to horrific images without my consent can fuck right off.

The amount of injustice out there (and for many, in our own lives) is extremely difficult to bear. It takes so much strength for us all just to keep fighting. Because we care. And your shock tactics just make it harder for us to act, precisely because we care so fucking much.

How dare you prioritize one more signature over our mental health? What sort of fucking solidarity is that?

I addition: constant exposure to recording and stories about harm isn’t activism and you are allowed to refuse to participate in it even if you do not personally experience the form or violence being shared.

For example, if you are cis: no, you do not need to watch that video of a trans woman being beaten up just because trans people are sharing it.

The way we constantly expose each other to all the harm happening around the world is really destructive. 99.9% of the time there is nothing we can do in response to those videos. It doesn’t create ‘awareness’, it definitely doesn’t create change, just exhaustion and despair. It prevents action.

You are allowed to prioritize your mental health. You are allowed to focus on combating violence that is actually within your reach, happening in places where you can have a impact. You don’t have to carry the weight of all the violence in the world.

You and your comrades can find and use so much more of your power if you focus on what is close to you and what you can change.