This is a powerful piece. So many highlightable quotes. Resisting the immediate kneejerk reaction to be defensive is something I struggle with every day, even as a queer woman of colour with a mental illness. I am, apparently, "oppressed" in many aspects but I also hold other privileges (like not being a child of divorce, or access to universal healthcare) that often make me feel guilty. I need to constantly remind myself that being defensive and feeling guilty helps no one, and that other than on rare specific occasions, activists aren't lashing out at ME specifically. They are attempting to dismantle a SYSTEM of oppression.

I once attended a climate justice protest where an Indigenous speaker proclaimed that "we are all colonized." It blew my mind. Even as a settler, I am hurt by colonization. Men are hurt by patriarchy. White people are hurt by racism. Able-bodied people are hurt by ablism. So on and so forth. It's all our business and our collective responsibility.