Liberating ourselves means breaking free from the limitations of injustice in our daily lives in the ways we can. Persistence in seeking justice for ourselves and our communities requires a sustaining source of guidance and motivation. For me, my sustaining sources are my values, and a commitment to improving the mental health of individuals and communities of color. This has led to advocacy and activism in various forms.
As I was becoming a young adult and grew into my professional life, I had opportunities to speak with state and national legislators, join community protests, support voter drives, share educational content on social media, and set personal boundaries to protect my well-being. These efforts have strengthened my sense of personal empowerment and commitment to collective action.
The Importance of Balance in Justice-related Efforts
Each step I took in my justice-seeking journey taught me an important lesson: Pursuing justice, while empowering, can also take a toll on mental health and emotional well-being. As a young person of color, seeking justice can be a part of your path to healing. However, it’s crucial to approach this work mindfully.
One particular challenge can be activism burnout, which has been described as a chronic condition developed as activism-related stress overwhelms a person’s abilities to contribute to justice-related efforts. Finding balance means tuning into your needs and responding to them, so you can protect your health and sustain your commitment and growth over time.
3 Tips to Sustaining Justice and Well-being
- You belong to a global community of young people who care about justice. Across the globe in 2021, 70% of young people participating in a survey reported being engaged in social and political activities focused around social justice, climate change, and the COVID-19 pandemic.
- You will face challenges to your mental health and emotional wellbeing. A study of activists focused on racial justice determined that causes of burnout include internal factors (personality, past experiences), external factors (how society responds to your efforts), and community factors (how those you work alongside interact with you). Consequences of involvement in racial justice efforts included emotional exhaustion, physical exhaustion, and cynicism or hopelessness.
- You can find balance and support for your well-being. Antidotes to potential consequences of involvement in self-focused or community-based justice efforts include a mindful focus on your soul care needs, which cross emotional, physical, and spiritual parts of yourself. Soul care involves practices that
- Restore your emotional energy
- Nurture your physical health
- Reconnect you to your deeper sense of purpose and meaning
- Focus on collective-self care strategies that involve others in your community
The Takeaway
As you advocate for change, nurture the parts of yourself that make this work sustainable. Balance is not about doing it all — it’s about finding what keeps you whole, connected, and empowered. By caring for your emotional, physical, and spiritual needs, you ensure that your commitment to justice not only transforms the world but liberates and heals you in the process.
References
Edelman. (2022). The Power of Gen Z: Trust & The Future Consumer. Retrieved from https://www.edelman.com/sites/g/files/aatuss191/files/2022-04/Edelman%20The%20Power%20of%20Gen%20Z%20Report.pdf
Gorski, P. C. (2019). Fighting racism, battling burnout: Causes of activist burnout in US racial justice activists. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 42(5), 667–687. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2018.1439981
Therapy for Activists (2020). Therapy for racial justice activists: A guide for therapists.
https://sites.google.com/view/therapyforactivists/
Ortega-Williams, A. (2021). Organizing as “Collective-self” care among african american youth in precarious times. Journal of African American Studies, 25(1), 3-21. doi:https://doi.org/10.1007/s12111-020-09506-2
