Let’s Have The Conversation

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com What if conflict wasn’t something to fear, but an invitation to grow? That’s what we explored in Day 46 of 100 Days of Community . Conflict isn’t inherently harmful—it’s how we respond to it that determines whether it leads to harm or healing. Too often, we’ve been conditioned to avoid conflict at all costs...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com Community Agreements: Setting Shared Values Supremacy culture is built on unspoken agreements—agreements that prioritize hierarchy, individualism, and disconnection. But what if we chose to rewrite those agreements? What if we built communities where our values were intentional, collective, and rooted in li...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com Vulnerability is often misunderstood. Supremacy culture conditions us to see it as weakness—something to be avoided, feared, or exploited. But in reality, vulnerability is one of the most powerful tools we have for building authentic relationships, fostering trust, and creating communities rooted in liberat...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com The Complexity of Forgiveness in Liberation Work Forgiveness is one of the most misunderstood aspects of healing and liberation. Too often, it is weaponized—used to pressure marginalized people into reconciliation without accountability or moving on before they’re ready. But in its truest form, forgiveness...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com If you’ve been doing this work for any amount of time, you know that liberation is not just about external systems—it’s also about the deep emotional processing that comes with unlearning, healing, and rebuilding. Today, we’re talking about grief and joy in collective healing. Grief is not just personal; it...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com The Work Beneath the Work: Shadow Work in Relationships If you've been doing liberation work for any amount of time, you've likely confronted external systems of oppression—white supremacy, patriarchy, capitalism. But what happens when you realize those systems don’t just exist out there, but also inside of...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com Introduction: The Fragility and Power of Trust Trust is the foundation of every relationship, every community, every movement. But what happens when that trust is broken? We don’t talk enough about what comes after harm. We live in a world that teaches us to either punish or ignore, to sever ties or sweep t...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com We are now 39 days into this series, and today we are confronting a critical truth: Marginalized is not synonymous with Black. There’s a tendency in social justice spaces to use "marginalized" as a catchall, but what often happens is that whiteness remains centered, even in conversations about oppression. W...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com Mutual aid is not charity. It is the foundation of liberation. It is how we create systems that allow us to thrive outside of capitalism. Yesterday, we discussed why mutual aid must be seen as a long-term commitment to collective survival, not a one-time act of generosity. Today, we are moving beyond theory...

Mutual Aid Is Liberation: Moving Beyond Charity to Collective Power If we refuse to rely on capitalism, what will we build instead? We’ve been talking a lot about mutual aid in the 100 Days of Community series—what it is, how it works, and why it’s necessary. But today, I want to take it a step further. Because mutual aid is not charity. It is not about handing down scraps from the table. It is no...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com In a world constantly shifting beneath us, where oppression and resistance shape our daily realities, the work of activism can often feel like an uphill battle. But amidst the chaos, rituals offer us grounding—a sacred thread tying us to our purpose, our communities, and the wisdom of those who came before...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com We’re on Day 35 , and today we’re disrupting the narrative around privilege. The word itself often brings up resistance—because, in reality, what we’ve been calling “privilege” isn’t a neutral advantage; it’s an active system that only exists because others are being subjugated. If privilege is dependent on...

Today was meant to be a deep dive into Using Privilege as Leverage , but sometimes, our bodies remind us that rest is non-negotiable. The cold I’ve been pushing through finally took over, and instead of forcing myself through the motions, I chose to honor what my body needed. But I still showed up. Because in community, showing up is not just about labor—it’s about reciprocity, trust, and presence...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com Welcome back! We made it to Day 33, and today we’re talking about one of the most powerful tools in liberation work: storytelling. Facts inform, but stories move people. They hold memory, preserve history, and connect us in ways data never can. Storytelling is one of the oldest methods of knowledge-sharing...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com One of the biggest lies we’ve been told is that accountability is about punishment. That to be accountable means to be shamed, exiled, or stripped of dignity. That to hold someone accountable means to make an example out of them. But true accountability is not about blame—it’s about transformation. Supremac...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com We made it to Day 31 , and I want you to pause for a moment and take a deep breath. Because if we’re being honest, this work is heavy —and sometimes, it takes more from us than we realize. Burnout isn’t just exhaustion. It’s the slow erosion of passion, joy, and connection. It’s the creeping detachment that...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com Woohoo We made it to Day 30! That’s a full month of deep conversations, reflections, and collective learning. If you’ve been following along, you deserve to celebrate yourself —because showing up consistently for this work is no small thing. Activism is often framed as an all-or-nothing pursuit, where rest...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com Welcome to Day 29 of 100 Days of Community ! Today, we’re unpacking decolonized communication —what it means, why it matters, and how we can actively practice it in our communities. Let’s be real— if you speak English, you speak the language of colonization. This isn’t about guilt or shame; it’s about recog...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com Welcome to day 28! I want you to celebrate yourselves for showing up and being so eager to unlearn and build something new. So let’s get into today’s micro lesson on values-based systems. We talk about values all the time—what we believe in, what we stand for, what we reject. But talking about values and li...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com Conflict Isn’t the Problem—Avoiding It Is For too long, we’ve been conditioned to fear conflict. We’re taught that it disrupts peace, fractures relationships, and should be avoided at all costs. But the truth is, conflict is natural, necessary, and transformative—if we know how to engage with it. Many of us...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com Welcome to Day 26 of 100 Days of Community! Today’s conversation was all about collective healing —what it truly means, how we cultivate it, and why it is essential for sustainable liberation. Healing is often framed as an individual journey, but true healing happens in community . It requires vulnerability...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com Day 25: What Does Safety Mean for Everyone? Welcome to Day 25 of 100 Days of Community ! We are officially a quarter of the way through this journey, and today’s discussion was one of the most necessary yet uncomfortable ones: What does safety actually mean—and who gets to define it? Too often, safety is fr...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com Welcome to Day 24 of 100 Days of Community ! Today, we’re moving from learning to living —because understanding a concept means nothing if we aren’t applying it in real-time. We’ve all met that person who has read every book on anti-racism, attended every workshop, and can recite all the right words—but whe...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com Welcome to Day 23 of 100 Days of Community ! Today, we’re diving into one of the most crucial yet misunderstood elements of sustainable activism and community care— boundaries . Too often, we associate boundaries with separation or selfishness, but in reality, boundaries are the foundation of sustainability...

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit desireebstephens.substack.com Welcome to Day 22 of 100 Days of Community ! Today, we’re diving into the concept of brave and inclusive spaces —what they are, how to cultivate them, and why they are necessary for true liberation work. We often hear about “safe spaces,” but brave spaces are where real transformation happens. These spaces...