What the Hell is a Liberation Mindset?

I want to start this letter with a truth I hope you and I can agree on.

Every person on the planet should have access to certain human rights, including but not limited to: 

Freedom from oppression… sovereignty over our bodies… the right to establish and maintain personal boundaries… and access to safe drinking water and equitable healthcare…

But the truth is, the current systems don’t allow everyone to have equal and just access to these freedoms.

It’s up to those of us who DO have more access to these freedoms to build new systems focused on liberating all people. And as we build new systems, we can elevate the voices of those who have less privilege.

So, how can we create a world where everyone has access to their basic human rights?

We start by cultivating a Liberation Mindset.

Here’s my definition I’ve developed through years of research, observation, and guidance from folks who have been doing Liberation work much longer than I have.

A Liberation Mindset is a set of attitudes focused on setting ALL people free from oppression, unlawful imprisonment, and harmful systems of social, environmental, and economic injustice.

We can use this mindset to hold ourselves accountable for creating the change we wish to see. It will show us where we’ve made past errors in judgment… how we’ve caused harm… and what we can do better in the future.

Essentially, if we’re going to dismantle oppressive systems and build new ones that actually serve the people and the planet, we need to adopt a Liberation Mindset.

Now that we know what a Liberation Mindset is, how can we put it into action?

For starters, we can ask ourselves some really important questions.

Here are a few that I regularly ask my clients to help them get clear on how they can be a part of the movement for change. I invite you to bring these into your own reflections.

-What privileges have I been afforded by my socially assigned identities?
-How can I support folks in my community who are less privileged than I am?
-Is my work in alignment with my vision for a more liberatory society?
–What systems am I upholding that contribute to the oppression of the masses and how can I dismantle my dependence on said systems?
-What assumptions am I making that contribute to the marginalization of different communities?

When you ask yourself these questions you may feel a little discomfort, fear, and resistance.

That’s totally ok. You’ll definitely feel growing pains as you come face to face with your privilege and the harmful systems that our society has been built on.

I invite you to sit with the discomfort and resistance, notice where it comes up in your body, observe where your own sense of freedom is being questioned, and then take action.

Cultivating a Liberation Mindset won’t magically give you all the answers to the world’s problems, but it will allow you to see the problems with more clarity, and help you ask the right questions, so you can be a part of the solution.

As a visionary thought leader and radical business owner, you can use your platforms, your offerings, and your voice to help build a better system for all of us.

Love + Liberation
Lauren Elizabeth