Recommended Reading: The Every Day Advocate by Ross Murray
Ross Murray, vice president of GLAAD Media Institute and the founding director of The Naming Project (a faith-based youth ministry and summer camp for LGBTQ youth and their allies) has recently published The Everyday Advocate: Living Out Your Calling To Social Justice.
I think a lot of us are intimidated by advocacy. We wonder whether our voice matters or will be heard. We’re tired by the daily grind of life or perhaps lack hope that things can change.
Ross’s book is, for this reason, an inspiring read. He’s eminently practical and hopeful. He’s written a super practical guide that will offer you immediate take-aways for how to up your advocacy game. I can guarantee if you read this book with your congregation or small group or family, you’ll come away with plans to live advocacy better.
Ross writes,
Remember how at the beginning of this book, I said that I never intended to be an activist? To be honest, I still feel like I'm figuring it all out. Our world is broken and sinful in so many ways, and there are so many people and organizations trying to solve our problems. I continue to be in awe of those activists who are making real-world impacts through their actions. My focus has been on the intersection between LGBTQ advocacy and faith, but that is only one area of focus. The interconnections of the LGBTQ community overlap with every other aspect of our human life on earth. That means I need to care about everything else.
At a minimum, I need to avoid inadvertently harming partner movements by my actions.
As I grow and become more aware of the complexity of the issues surrounding us, I'm learning that I cannot think of advocacy as something that I add to the demands of my daily routine; rather, I must think of it as something I live out through every aspect of my daily life. It becomes naturally integrated into every decision I make, every action I take, every relationship I form. Our values are reflected in every choice we make. They show up in our purchases, our messages, and our interactions.
Ross achieves his goal in this book of facilitating a move toward activism as a daily practice or habit. Because he speaks to the majority of the issues most of us struggle with in advocacy: how to understand our audience’s values, how to work with institutions while maintaining our integrity, how to be creative, and more, he offers a wealth of resources for shifting our lives toward advocacy.
This is a great book. I recommend it highly.