Photo by Liz Poor from Unsplash

I was open & honest, yet reactive, to a comment I received on social media yesterday- which lets me know it’s past time to talk about this.

Let’s talk about Advocacy Fatigue, Crisis Fatigue, & Protest Fatigue. For my purposes here I’m going to kind of lump them all into one thing I’ll call “Trending Woke Fatigue” or “TWF”.

I’m not trying to coin a term, but trying to describe something that I’ve experienced, been experiencing, and that I have seen happening to a lot of other people lately- especially those invested in the important yet difficult work of social justice, advocacy, and those living within marginalized or oppressed contexts. This is nothing new, it has been happening! However, right now- it is happening en mass.

Have you seen some of the BIPOC you followed on social media to keep up with news or protests or how to get involved with a cause, suddenly pivot?

Have you seen anyone talking or posting less about the issues you followed them for? Or just in general?

Are they mentioning very little about the important issues you see happening in he world?

Have you noticed them talking more about mental health or art or something just off topic and different entirely?

They might be facing TWF.

TWF is something I’ve been dealing with for the past year or so. Basically, it’s what happens when an advocate, protestor, or someone who has spent a lot of time as energy responding to / sounding the alarm on a crisis, has become overburdened and weighed down by the work. This can be compounded for those who live in marginalized bodies and are dealing with micro aggressions on a frequent basis in conjunction with the difficult work they constantly do.

Articles breaking this down further:

•The Phenomenon of Advocacy Fatigue: https://udreview.com/the-phenomenon-of-advocacy-fatigue/amp/

• The Rising Threat of Protest Fatigue: https://theowp.org/the-rising-threat-of-protest-fatigue/

• Coping with Crisis Fatigue: https://utswmed.org/medblog/crisis-fatigue-tips/

• Young, Woke, & Tired: https://www.essence.com/videos/the-overexplainer-woke/?amp=1

This Trending Woke Fatigue can be spurred on by any number of things, from becoming overwhelmed by the cause itself to a loss of hope through challenging and accusatory interaction after interaction. Symptoms include a deep seated tiredness, not just of body but of mind and soul.

For some, this leads to a much needed break that includes self care & mental respite- many though, cannot afford (or feel they cannot afford) that luxury. Some will return ready to fight another day! This can be a few days, a few weeks, or even year’s later. Others are on pause- they still believe in their cause but are hesitant to pick it up again. Some look into alternate ways of engaging the cause or societal movements that they were a part of before. I’ve personally seen many people turn to various forms of art and music, delving deeper into a sense of self and inner passion before addressing their cause again.

The past few years we’ve had a lot of crisis & causes trend due to social media. This has led to a lot of folks expecting a kind of celebrity presence from protestors, organizers, advocates, etc… From ayone involved with trending causes but especially those that utilized their social media platforms to try and help away perspectives and appeal for some good.

The cycle usually repeats itself over and over. Within a healthy organization or community dedicated to the same work, others will fill in the gap and carry the batons while a member is ‘down for the count’- and they will make space to prioritize caring for one another well so everyone can get closer to the goal. Without those healthy organizations & community spaces though, burnout and TWF reign supreme.

The past ____ amount of years have been filled with civil unrest, social injustice, and the trauma of natural disasters, all coupled with Covid strains and Monkey Pox. A lot of people have been carrying a lot of weight / trauma / baggage- especially those who have been dedicated to some pretty intense causes.

I am (personally) very, very tired. I am tired of constantly pursuing the hard work of advocating and meeting resistance all the time because of that (or because of how I live and am perceived in this world as a WOC), becoming burnt out over the hard work and then feeling like I cannot enjoy or participate in the “fluff stuff” of life because it’s not completely centered on the heavy things I carry either just for existing or while advocating on behalf of myself and others.

I can’t put down the baggage (all that comes with) being a woman in the contexts I live in, or being a person of color in the contexts I live in…

What I can put down is carrying, informing, and pushing causes constantly. I can let others involved in the work continue to carry those burdens while I tap out of the causes I have the ability to tap out of from time to time. For me, tapping out looks like not engaging as much personally, and sharing / amplifying what others atound me are doing & saying. And when I do finally put some things down, it’s frustrating to be approached with “Hey, why aren’t you carrying that?!”

I’m aware of my limitations- whether trending on the internet or not, I don’t have the capacity to constantly inform or even be self informed about every single cause there is. What I can do is make sure I’m open to learning and actively engaging in soul care so I can eventually come back.