Justice Walks January 2026

Author

Abby Anderson
January 22, 2026

Welcome to The Justice Walk newsletter!

Multiple destabilizing events happened before this year was three weeks old. How do we move forward with grounded hope and sustainable persistence?

That’s the theme this month as I share lots of resources I’ve gathered to help answer those questions for myself.

Thanks for being here.

If you’d like to connect, you can always reach me at [email protected] 

I have a two more openings for one-on-one coaching this winter and am designing new workshops with some colleagues, so reach out if I can support you and/or your org!

A drawing of a white egret on a blue background with yellow stars. White lettering reads: “Trying to radiate hope and joy despite knowing facts and information.

“Trying to radiate hope and joy despite knowing facts and information.” Shoutout to Callie Garp’s Fabulously Feminist art and products - definitely bringing me joy these days. Click on the photo to get the sticker and see all the other great stuff!

People in the greater Minneapolis area are suffering. ICE’s deployment there is casting a wide net of intimidation and fear throughout the entire community. The raids are not strategic or targeted as they would be if ICE’s goal was to find specific, undocumented folks. (Not that I’d condone these tactics for that purpose either).

ICE’s actions clarify the real goal: an ongoing demonstration that Federal agents can and will use unregulated force to impose their will.

Fear and intimidation are explicitly driving current American domestic and foreign policy across multiple fronts. The number of groups tagged as “the other” regularly expands.

That’s the playbook.

At first we can trick ourselves into believing that we are safe; we are not “them.” But the “in” group is always narrowing its definition, knowing that once they’ve gotten folks to agree that not everyone is worthy of care, protection, and rights, their work is done.

After all, if everyone isn’t seen as fully human, no one is.

What do we do now? When things are scary, overwhelming, and moving so quickly? When we aren’t sure if our opposition or actions matter? When we’re outraged and heartbroken?

I don’t have the answers.

I don’t think there is one right answer.

I do know that:

This month I’m mostly sharing others’ words and images. Things that are motivating me, keeping me learning, reminding me to act AND rest, to avoid worrying about being all things to all people, and rooting into my role in our collective liberation, and bringing me joy.

If one of your roles is providing monetary support, this is a really helpful compilation of organizations, grassroots groups, and Go Fund Me links to provide direct support to folks in Minneapolis. There are so many groups and efforts on this list, which is heartening! Scroll through to find a link to donate to efforts to make sure folks have legal aid, food, shelter, mental health supports, help reunifying, etc.

Take care of each other,

Abby

Learning Resource

A still from ALOK’s comedy special, bi-ol-o-gy! ALOK wears white lace-up, calf-high boots, a black leather mini-skirt, and a red, collared shirt with gold trim and puffy black, long sleeves with gold stripes. They have short dark heart and caramel skin. They are walking onto a stage with blue and purple curtains behind them.

ALOK filmed this one-hour special about a year ago. It combines comedy with spoken word, hilarity with heartbreak, and raw vulnerability with bad-ass confidence. ALOK presents perspectives and experiences wholly unfamiliar to me and helps me see how ALOK and my shared humanity connect us across those differences. I learned AND I laughed out loud. ALOK is a featured guest on lots of talk shows and podcasts, so if you love this, you have a wonderful rabbit hole to journey through next!

Thoughtful Steps

“If you’ve been connected with me for more than five minutes, you know that I am a big proponent of kindness. But right now, in this moment, when my anger is a white-hot rage, I want to say this. There are moments in history when kindness is not what the moment requires. This is not a call to abandon our humanity. It is a call to stop confusing kindness with compliance. Kindness that demands silence in the face of harm is not kindness at all. It is avoidance. It is fear. It is a desire for comfort masquerading as virtue. Sometimes what love requires in anger. Sometimes what care requires is refusal, .Sometimes what justice requires is resistance. Sometimes the most humane act is to tell the trust so loudly that it cannot be ignored. Kindness without courage does not heal systems. It protects them. We must never allow those on the wrong side of history to weaponize kindness in an attempt to neutralize our righteous anger.”

So many of us have been taught not to rock the boat. To avoid conflict or making people uncomfortable. To value “a negative peace which is the absence of tension,” vs “a positive peace which is the presence of justice.” (Martin Luther King Jr’s Letter from a Birmingham Jail)

Ignoring and avoiding tension is not kind. In fact, it almost always protects the most powerful at the expense of those with less. Tension and conflict don’t have to be bad. Naming conflict and feeling discomfort is not the same as being harmed or unsafe. Leaning in to conflict with curiosity is where my most critical learning comes from, and has led to some of my most treasured relationships.

The next time you are asked (internally or externally) to “be kind,” consider what type of kindness is being promoted before you decided whether or not to comply.

Taking Care of Our Feet

A snowy path is in front of us with footsteps from one or two people. The path is lined by marsh grasses and a deep blue sky is above and in the distance.

A snowy path with the footprints of one or two footprints is before us. The path is lined by marsh grasses and the sky is deep blue above. Photo credit: me

I love a fresh snow fall. Yes, this shows a clear path, but I get to choose where my feet land. I can follow in someone else’s steps or create my own new ones. What path are you choosing this month?

Feedback on a recent workshop:

We are sincerely grateful for all your efforts, time, knowledge, brilliance, warmth, and caring that you shared with the group. You helped folks look at and understand the complexities of race and whiteness…You did it all with an openness, honesty, a warmth, an availability, and a directness that are all wonderful traits for a facilitator. And you have amazing platform skills, can demand attention and you hold the space that allows for questions, contemplation and hard-core facts!!

Cynthia Martin, Trainer, CT Mental Health and Addiction Services, Office of Multicultural Health Equity

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