None of us can truly be free until all of us are free

Rochester Business Journal by Abigail McHugh-Grifa

Back in January, I shared via this column that my New Year’s resolution for 2024 was to advance our collective liberation, even though I wasn’t entirely sure what that meant or how to move it forward. Over the course of the year, I’ve been reading books, watching videos, having conversations with a wide range of people, and reflecting on my own experience to try to figure this out. Though I still have more questions than answers, the process has been fascinating and uplifting, and as a result, my commitment to advancing our collective liberation has strengthened to such an extent that I suspect I’ll continue working toward it for the rest of my life.

Here are a few highlights from what I’ve learned so far:

The idea of collective liberation is unfamiliar to most people, so starting a conversation by directly asking someone what they think about it is likely to result in blank stares. I learned that the hard way, of course. Asking where people want more freedom in their lives and how they experience specific oppressive systems seems to be a more productive approach. Recently, I’ve been asking people what they want (1) freedom from, (2) freedom to do, and (3) freedom to be, which has yielded two very clear themes/priorities:

Many people mentioned their desire for freedom from economic insecurity and/or the fear of economic insecurity. Several people tied this to freedom from unfulfilling work, saying they would gladly quit their jobs and spend time doing other things, if they didn’t have to worry about keeping food on the table and a roof over their heads.

I also heard that people want freedom from judgment and the fear of being judged, so they can be their most authentic selves, express their true feelings, and show vulnerability. The lack of freedom that people experience in this regard seems to come largely from social pressure to “stay in the box” and “follow the script” of behaviors and beliefs that are associated with their respective demographic groups. This pressure drives people to “perform” their assigned roles, sometimes to signal status or jockey for position, in ways that can feel burdensome and inauthentic. My interviewees cited specific examples related to how they dress, speak, move, rest/relax, and experience pleasure. These conversations revealed a pattern of self-imposing limitations and restrictions, to avoid the possibility of judgement from others.

I can fully relate to this second theme, and thanks to a fantastic leadership development program that I recently participated in, I now see how my “desired and dreaded images” cause me to constantly police myself and engage in “counterproductive behaviors,” as a subconscious effort to protect my ego. For example, because my ego enjoys recognition for being productive and hard-working and would never want to be seen as lazy or irresponsible, I tend to overwork, thereby exhausting myself, compromising my health, and making it difficult for everyone around me to prioritize rest, pleasure and joy. This is one of the many, many ways that fear of judgment drives me to do foolish, unhelpful things, and my only consolation is that everyone else in the program identified similar “ego drivers” that explained their personal challenges. Questioning where this widespread, overwhelming fear of judgment comes from and how we can break free of it therefore strikes me as an important step in our quest for collective liberation.

Ironically, my fear of being seen as weird and radical makes me hesitant to pursue this line of questioning to its logical conclusion, but I’ll do it anyhow, since I don’t think it’s possible to advance our collective liberation without explicitly discussing challenging and controversial issues: The truth is that we live in a rigidly hierarchical society, where power, wealth, and influence are very unequally distributed, due to deeply entrenched systems of oppression, such as the extractive economy, structural racism, patriarchy, militarism, and colonialism. Within these systems, we are pitted against one another and socialized to compete for resources and status, so it’s no wonder why we judge each other and believe we are being constantly judged. As I see it, the work of peacefully and collaboratively dismantling these systems — and building more equitable, regenerative systems in their place — will lead to our collective liberation. No, I don’t think we’ll fully achieve this goal within my lifetime, but I still believe it’s worth pursuing.

Though the path forward is unclear and uncertain, here are a few suggestions/considerations for how we might move toward collective liberation:

It’s important to develop our capacity for systems thinking. In their Water of Systems Change report, the consultants and researchers at FSG identified six conditions of systems change, which provides a useful framework for thinking about how to tackle the problems we face. In addition to changing policies, practices, resource flows, power dynamics, and relationships/connections, they argue that truly transformative change will require us to shift our mental models, or ideas about how the world works.

From my perspective, a few mental models that we urgently need to rethink are (1) the idea that humans are separate from and superior to nature, (2) the idea that profit maximization should be the primary goal of business and economic growth is always good, (3) the idea that owning lots of stuff is cool and makes people happy, and (4) the idea that climate change is a future problem or a problem that will impact other people in other places. These mental models and other widely held beliefs are holding our current (problematic) systems in place.

Since systems-level change can feel daunting and overwhelming, seeking opportunities to increase your own freedom, joy, happiness, safety, and pleasure in ways that don’t harm anyone else is a good place to start. This will probably require you to distinguish between objects and activities that truly contribute to your wellbeing and those that you’ve been conditioned to desire via marketing or other influences. You might also consider where the products and services you currently use come from and how they are produced, and then look for more socially and environmentally responsible alternatives, or give some things up. In addition, it may also require difficult conversations and the renegotiation of important relationships. Though this process could be unpleasant in the short term, the longer-term rewards are surely worth it.

It’s important to keep in mind that people can’t be neatly divided into two categories of oppressed and oppressor, and as we work to dismantle systems of oppression, we’ll need to avoid replacing one harmful system with another. By definition, collective liberation must include all of humanity, with no group living at the expense of any other group, so shifting from one toxic power dynamic to another is simply counterproductive. We therefore need to resist the urge to blame, demonize, or punish others for our suffering and lack of freedom, which isn’t easy, since we have been socialized to enjoy straightforward victim/villain/hero narratives and all have good reasons to feel angry and resentful.

That said, those of us who have more privilege should really use it for the greater good. In my experience, it doesn’t feel great to be part of a group that has historically exploited, abused, and oppressed other groups. As such, my enthusiasm for collective liberation partially stems from a self-interested desire to free the oppressed and oppressors at the same time.

To develop more sophisticated and nuanced ideas about what freedom is and how to create the conditions for freedom (and safety), it would be helpful to have more open, honest, respectful conversations about it. I therefore invite you to exercise your freedom of speech by initiating these conversations, and if you don’t feel comfortable doing so, please examine what is holding you back. If we don’t claim and enjoy our freedoms, we aren’t really free, so please don’t leave that power on the table.

I haven’t fully developed my resolutions for 2025 yet, but I know they will contribute to advancing my personal liberation and our collective liberation. If you also want to live in a world where freedom is valued and respected, I’d encourage you to consider a similar focus for your upcoming resolutions.