Radical Rest Notes on Burnout, Healing and Hopeful Futures

Through a black feminist, abolitionist and nature-allied lens, Evie Muir takes us on a journey of regeneration that reimagines what a world of true rest–radical rest–would look like, how that would feel. As they look to activists and cultural influences past and present for guidance, Evie explores the core emotions associated with burnout: moving from rage, grief and anxiety to the hope, joy and plenty that deep change can bring. Along the way, Evie speaks with those who have been disproportionately impacted by, and working in resistance to, burnout–Black, queer, disabled activists of color. And what becomes clear as we hear about these lived experiences is that a world of radical rest must exist in community–with one another, with our bodies, and with the natural world. Bold, vulnerable and deeply honest, Radical Rest is a blueprint for change and a salve for the soul. Step in and open the door to a hopeful and healed future.

Evie Muir is both a domestic abuse survivor and qualified domestic abuse specialist, writer and the founder of Peaks of Colour–a Peak District based nature-for-healing community group, by and for people of color. Having worked in the VAWG sector for over 10 years, specializing in Black and queer survivors’ intersectional experiences of gendered and racialized trauma, she left the sector when she became burnt out, disenfranchised and disillusioned. As a freelance writer, she’s passionate about the liberating form of writing as healing and resistance.

Contents Notes on Language ix Introduction xv On Radical Exhaustion 1 Case Study #1: The Home 25 On Radical Grief 37 On Radical Rage 63 Case Study #2: Education 83 On Radical Anxiety 97 On Radical Abundance 119 Case Study #3: The Charity Industrial Complex 153 On Radical Joy 165 On Radical Hope 187 Case Study #4: The Health Sector 207 On Radical Rest 225 Glossary of Re-definitions 243 Gratitudes 257 Notes 261 RR.