i’m in the middle of delivering a training so am keeping my social commentary this newsletter to 0 and just gonna get yall some goings on! i’m gonna highlight some things up top here but please make sure you make it the events and listens section down below. lots going on there.
clover closed. and then it didn’t! yay people power.
BIJAN fundraising success
Dear friends,
Whether you were there in person or in spirit at our Open Mic fundraiser for BIJAN/Beyond, we wanted to share the good news with you. This year, we raised $10,104. We are so grateful and moved to be sending this donation to the Beyond Bond & Legal Defense Fund.Here are some words from Beyond’s website to describe how this donation will be used. “Bonds can range anywhere from $2,000 to more than $20,000 per person. Our Bond Fund works with families and other bond funds across the country to get our people out of ICE prisons. Together we will continue to free people from immigration prison, reunite families, and keep our communities together in the face of white supremacist and xenophobic state violence. Our Bond Fund envisions a day when we never pay another immigration bond because we have abolished ICE detention, ICE enforcement, prisons and jails and all people can migrate with freedom, safety and dignity.”Just like Beyond, we too envision a day when we don’t have to raise money for immigration bonds. Until then, we will continue to gather in the name of solidarity, community, and art. Thank you to the clowns, mouth trumpeteers, storytime leaders, musicians, writers, and audience members who helped create such a vibrant evening. And the thrift shop was a hit, once again! If you have any photos or videos from the evening, please reply to this email. Hope to see you at the next Open Mic, and we encourage you to continue giving mutual aid to BIJAN/Beyond.
With love, Ali, Miles, Eric, and Lisa
dear baby queer: write a letter to your younger queer self sharing the wisdom you have know and needed back then.
a call for artists: an invitation to submit for the Haymarket People’s Fund 2027 Calendar
Applications Open for Barr Fellowship Class of 2026
support the Berry family (boston-based family who lost a daughter two weeks ago)
on to the things!
(!!) pick of the pack
some things i’ve written since the last newsletter:
Jun 6, 2026 | baby brunch
Jun 1, 2026 | learning from the rings of saturn
there is nothing new under the sun. also, full transparency, many of these quotes come from james clear’s 3-2-1 newsletter (which i love).
Comparison is useful as a point and destructive as a loop.
When you compare for a point in time, you can identify a gap in your approach and then shift your attention back to what you can control.
When you compare on a repeated a loop, you can get locked into a cycle of envy and disappointment. — James Clear
One of my hopes is to age into a better mindset.
The general trend seems to become less open minded, less resilient, less capable of handling change with ease and flexibility as the years roll by.
I hope to grow in the opposite direction. How can my mindset be better today than it was yesterday? — James Clear
When we engage in what we are naturally suited to do, our work takes on the quality of play and it is play that stimulates creativity. — Linda Naiman
Your response to a challenge defines you more than the challenge itself. — James Clear
I believe that if, at the end of it all, according to our abilities, we have done something to make others a little happier, and something to make ourselves a little happier, that is about the best we can do…
We must try to contribute joy to the world. That is true no matter what our problems, our health, our circumstances. We must try. I didn’t always know this, and am happy I lived long enough to find it out. — Roger Ebert
some things i’ve read since the last newsletter:
How to Plant and Grow Rose of Jericho | Better Homes & Gardens
Cesar Chavez, a Civil Rights Icon, Is Accused of Abusing Girls for Years | The New York Times
Shame About Being Abused Silenced Me. Now, I’m Speaking Up. | Word in Black
India scorched by heat wave, power demand driven to new record | AccuWeather
Northeast’s temperatures to crash 25-50 degrees ahead of Memorial Day weekend | AccuWeather
The Science of Unlearning And Why Organizers Need It | Movement Memos
Rupture and Repair Under Fascist Conditions | Movement Memos
Breathing in, breathing out - A Basket Of Plums | Wake Up songs
Mini-Episode: Traitors to Patriarchy | Becoming the People Podcast with Prentis Hemphill
“Joy.” - RAYE feat. Amma & Absolutely (LIVE on The Late Show)
The ‘trad wives’ leaving high-control Christian nationalist communities
Has the manosphere ruined dating? | The Global Dating Crisis: episode 1
“I realized that God is the air that I breathe” - #krsone #shorts #god
here’s the jobs list for this month. enjoy! ty to nadav and zac for this increasingly juicy offering!
also one other job that i want to highlight because the outgoing person is awesome and the work is critical and deserves to be lead into its next stage! also the team is amazing (speaking as a former board member).
Compassionate Communication Immersion Weekend | June 13th & 14th | Boston
Reclaim the Wisdom of Your Lineage in Tough Times
“Dragging Tech”: Fight for the Future’s Pride Happy Hour | June 10 from 7-10 | Dani’s Queer Bar
Barr Fellowship Information Sessions
Bent Birch Retreats
Resource and Resilience: A Weekend Retreat/Reset | June 26 – June 28
A two-day introduction to politicized somatics for organizers, coaches, and healers. Practice, song, and grounding theory woven together over a long weekend. No prior experience needed, a good entry point to this kind of work. Held by Dara Silverman, Bhav Nancherla, and Rachel Plattus.Power in the Pause | July 2 – July 5
Three nights with Yera Gomes over the long weekend. The retreat will weave together connection, somatic awareness, rest as an active practice, and gentle re-entry with tools to protect your space and boundaries once you’re back home. Member points accepted. Need a minimum of eight registrants by June 15th.Embodied Leadership: Four Day Intensive | July 16 – July 19
A deeper-dive intensive. Four days for organizers and movement workers to build your somatic toolbox, grow your capacity to confront racial capitalism, and find a community of practice that will hold you after. Taught by a four-person teaching team: Dara Silverman, Bhav Nancherla, Rachel Plattus, and Misty Perez.Sister’s Labor Day Weekend Retreat | September 4 – September 6
A somatic healing retreat for BIPOC women and femmes led by Farai Williams. Before the pace of fall returns, before schedules fill, before the demands of the season resume, join Songa Somatics for a restorative Labor Day weekend retreat designed to support rest, reconnection, grounding, and renewal. Member points accepted.
Relational Culture Residential | August 27-30, 2026 | Millerton, NY
bad environmentalist: my declassified deep winter survival guide
the bird: Bound with the Living: Gathering in Venice
building belonging: We need to talk about the Devil
future ancestors: Fortitude, Hardship & Grief
rectangle | square: 13 | Questions, Defeat, Larking
The Felt Sense: On Warm Welcomes and Building a Life
just how hard it is to actually say yes to my biggest, wildest dreams.
sending you this newsletter from a native-owned hotel in new mexico
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