Where Do We Go From Here?

Welcome to the first episode of Children Deserve Better. The world feels heavy right now—children’s rights are under attack, policies are being designed to harm marginalized communities, and the sheer amount of injustice can make it feel impossible to know where to start. 

That feeling of overwhelm? It’s by design. The people in power want us too tired to fight back. But here’s the truth: we are not powerless. We are not alone. And we can't back down.

In this episode, Dr. Jasmine Moses breaks down what’s happening, why it matters, and how we can take meaningful action. Drawing from the wisdom of Black feminist thinkers, she reminds us that justice is love in action, that small steps still create impact, and that sustaining ourselves in this work is just as important as the work itself. This is more than a conversation—it’s a call to action.

Key Takeaways:

• The systems harming us are intentional, but so is our resistance.
• Justice is an act of love—fighting for children’s rights is a form of deep care.
• We don’t have to do everything, but we must do something—focus on 2-3 areas where you can make an impact.
• Self-preservation is part of the work; we cannot pour from an empty cup.
• Revolution is ongoing—it’s not a one-time event, but a commitment to sustained action.

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Transcript

 Welcome to the Children Deserve Better Podcast, where we unpack the big issues shaping our children and communities. I'm your host, Dr. Jasmine Moses, a toddler mama, anti bias, anti racist educator, and advocate for building a better, more equitable world for all. Here, we dive into social justice. community challenges, and those taboo conversations, breaking them down into real talk that makes sense for children or even actionable steps for the adults guiding them.

Children are ready. You can do this. So let's dive in together.

Hello. Welcome in to the very first episode of Children Deserve Better. And I, I can't even like, this feels so surreal. I am your host, Dr. Jasmine Moses. I am your partner in progress. Your co conspirator in this work and someone who just like you knows that what is happening is wild and refuses to accept the world as it is.

So here we go. Before we dive into today's episode, I just want to take a moment to thank you. I've never done a podcast before. I've never promoted a podcast before. But this show has already received so much love and support and warmth even before it launched, and that is only because of all of you. So thank you for being committed, for showing up, and for caring, and for even believing like I do that children deserve better than what we and the world are offering them.

Phew, all right. I had to take a breath to settle myself because the world feels I, the best word I can come up with is heavy. Right now, we are witnessing a hostile government takeover in real time. Honestly, every time I hear hostile takeover, I just want to say, hostile government takeover. But really we are like, we're literally witnessing that.

And every day there's another policy, there's another law, there's another attack. Our rights, our communities, and our children, their futures are all on the line, and it's easy to feel like none of this is fixable, and like we can't fight back if there's nothing that we can do, but I really need you to tune in and listen to me.

We know that that feeling is by design, the chaos, the destruction. It's, it's all by design. They want us to be tired. They want us to be overwhelmed and they want us to believe that we've already lost the fight. So we don't get up and show how powerful we actually are. I started this podcast and many of you know, um, not just to name what's happening in our world, but to actually give you something tangible and something that you can carry with you.

Something that maybe helps you move. through the heaviness with clarity and purpose. And to be honest, I'm just tired of spaces that are only talking about how terrible all of this is. Like, hell, I know that it's horrible out here, but we need actionable steps to give us ways to try to change things. So that's my goal for you for every single episode and to give you a way to approach this with your children as well.

I do believe that awareness has its place, of course, because we have to be knowledgeable about what is happening before we even are able to move forward and create any types of change. But Action has a place too. And so we're focusing in on action right now. In honor of Women's History Month, I honestly saying that I can't even believe it's March already, but in honor of Women's History Month, I want to share the words of a few black feminist thinkers.

These women who have given me and the rest of us the tools to resist, the tools to love and to keep going. Even when everything feels hard and impossible and also for far too long, I feel like these voices have not been given the recognition that they deserve. And I feel like we should listen to black women more.

So this is my love letter to you. These are of course, the voices that I always turn to when I need a way forward. And I hope that they can offer you something too. All right. Here's the question of the hour. Where do we go from here? I can't tell you the amount of times that I've gotten this same question in my inbox.

So, If you are wondering where do we go from here, let me give you a couple of steps. First and foremost, we keep fighting for justice. Of course, bell hooks tells us that without justice, there can be no love. I think we were taught different things about love, but I'm here to remind you that especially in this case, real love.

Love that is rooted in dignity, love is rooted in humanity, and love is rooted in freedom, it demands justice and it refuses to accept harm as the inevitable. So when we do things like fighting for black children to be safe in schools, or we are demanding that trans children and adults be seen and protected.

When we even try to push back against policies that are designed to harm us and these systems that are designed to harm us, we are acting out of love. And that is what love looks like in a world that tries to make us forget who and what is worth fighting for. Angela Davis, of course, said it best, you have to act as if it were possible to radically transform the world.

And you have to do it all the time. Hmm. I, I. Think about this quote all the time because it is so Important there will be people along your journey who try to tell you it's nothing you can do Who try to tell you that it's hopeless. There's no hope You have to act as if it were possible for you to create change and you have to believe it and you have to not Only do it once you have to do it all the time.

That's a word. So here are some action steps that you can do To continue on your journey, to start your journey for wherever you are. First and foremost, I want you to find local or national advocacy groups, political groups, people who are focused on issues that are impacting everything around us, right?

Find your niche, find your groups and sign up for their newsletters and their action alerts. There are people who are already doing this work. Get connected with them. Another one that I, um, have been telling a lot of people about, and Hopefully helping people to, uh, get this information is make sure that you are calling and emailing your representatives.

Do y'all know that those people work for us? Do you know that these elected officials are supposed to be held accountable to the things that we need? I want you to let them know where you stand on policies that affect children. families and whatever else you're passionate about. How can you find out who your reps are?

You can visit your state's legislator website and figure out who represents you that way. But when you find out, call them, communicate with them, figure out what they're already doing to better your communities and tell them that you think that they're doing a great job if you actually think so and tell them where they need critique and where they should be putting their focus.

We need to begin or continue to have these conversations. I also get a lot of people who are overwhelmed at the thought of the fight. It seems just like a huge beast. Every five minutes there's a new Executive order that has been put out and it's overwhelming and I've been telling people choose two to three things to focus on and go hard for those issues.

What does that look like for me? A lot of my energy is being poured into making sure that my hometown folks know who their reps are. begin to understand the legislative process, not just knowing those things, but also putting action behind it, that they're calling, that they're getting out, that they're organized, that they're doing the things that we need in order to move forward.

I'll also, of course, continue to support families and educators on their goals to raise and teach socially conscious children. That's why we're here right now. And there's a ton of other things that I'm so passionate about and want to make sure that I'm creating change for, but it's helpful if you're focusing on a couple things at a time.

Focusing on a few things that you can do right now makes it clearer for you to find ways to take action. And that leads us to our next point. Put some action behind that care. Love is a combination of care, commitment, knowledge, responsibility, respect, and trust. And that is from Bell hooks. We know that care is not just a feeling, it's action.

It is refusing to look away when the harm is happening. It is making sure that we're pushing for systems that nurture instead of punish. It is recognizing that justice is not just about what we believe is what we do. A care that disrupts, that refuses to accept harm as normal, that insists on something better is the care that we need to have.

And then something else. I want to be clear about is that care is not a one time event. We said before you have to act as if it was possible to change the world and you have to do it all the time. This, this is no different. Audre Lorde even reminds us that revolution is not a one time event. It's not just showing up when there's a crisis.

It's not just sharing one post or donating once. It is sustained, ongoing, intentional. What does that look like right now? It means that you are practicing everyday activism. Talk to your children in your life about fairness. Talk to them about justice in ways that are developmentally appropriate in ways that make sense for them, right?

Read books together. that reflect the world that we're fighting for. Talk with them in appropriate ways about current events, about what's going on. Take them with you when you go to protest and when you go out to community spaces and things like that, let them see you doing this work. Also continuing to support those grassroot organizations, finding mutual aid options and initiatives that are led and operated by people of color.

By LGBTQ plus folks, by any diverse, marginalized voice and get involved with them. Donate what you can, whether that's money, whether that's time, whether that's skills, start getting in the habit of that. And also while we're on the topic of care, you know who needs some care from you right now today.

Let's chat a little bit about caring for yourself in times of turmoil. Have you heard the quote from Audre Lorde that caring for myself is not self indulgence, it is self preservation, and that is an act of political warfare. And I know for so many of us, rest and care can feel like a luxury we can't afford, but if we don't care for ourselves, we will not.

Last in this fight. And also let's just put this out here. The idea that you cannot rest is rooted in racist systems. Anyway, white supremacy and capitalism have convinced us that our worth is tied to how much we produce, how much we suffer, how much we sacrifice, and the systems want us running on. Empty, believing that exhaustion is just part of the struggle.

And if you're not tired, if you're not exhausted, you're not doing it right. And also we know that white supremacist culture thrives on burnout. It depends on us being too exhausted to be able to think critically, to overwhelm, to organize, to get connected, to drain, to imagine something better. It also keeps us in survival mode because when we are trying to just.

get through the day, we don't have enough energy to put towards dismantling systems that are literally harming us. And that's the point. So rest disrupts that a little bit. It reminds us that we are not machines and that our worth is not tied to productivity and that we are not meant to spend our lives being tired and discarded.

So rest is not a luxury. It is necessary. And I don't want you to just be surviving. I want you to be here and whole because we have work to do. So here's some things that I want you to do. I want you to set a boundary around your energy. When social media or news becomes overwhelming, take some time to limit your intake and maybe It's that you're choosing one or two trusted sources or people and you're checking on those things intentionally to get your news instead of just doom scrolling.

Now, if you know me in real life, you're probably laughing at me about this one. Don't send me no texts because I am working on this too, but I promise it's so important. And like I said, I'm your partner in progress. I'm working on this with you too. You could also take some time to try a small daily ritual that brings you peace.

So that could be drinking some tea, like I'm doing right now. Um, that could be stretching in the morning. Or writing for a few minutes. Or just Washing your face, like taking some extra time for your skin care routine. Take your vitamins, take care of your body, drink your water, move your body, spend some time outside, get connected with nature, get connected with people around you.

Start figuring out some things that bring you peace. And like I said, I'm not just saying this to you, I'm also saying this to myself. Prioritizing rest never came easy for me and now that I'm a mom. and working full time and then also running a small business on Instagram pages and YouTube channels and all different types of stuff.

I've honestly internalized this grind, like I drank the Kool Aid and I feel like I have to. Always be doing something and I also feel like there's never enough time in a day But I'm working on that because I know especially now that if I don't take care of myself I won't be able to continue to show up in the ways that matter So if you are struggling with this, you just know you are not alone We are all I'm learning together and I want you to also lean into the fact that we have to be able to sustain because We have to take action.

Speaking up and taking these steps that we're talking about is a non negotiable. And that leads us to our next point of silence actually being violence. Bell Hooks tells us that all our silences in the face of racist assault are acts of complicity. I want to just say this too, there's no neutral ground here.

Every time we choose silence, every time we let Things go unchecked. Every time we look away because it's too hard, we are being complicit. I'm also thinking about the quote from Audre Lorde where she clearly states that your silence will not protect you. It won't protect any of us. Violence isn't just about the headlines.

It's not just written in police brutality. It's not just the policies that steal resources from our communities. It's criminalize survival. Violence is also the silence that allows these things to continue to go unchecked. It's in the racist, transphobic jokes you overhear or you see online. It's that one family member who just says wild shit that people just ignore.

It's those communities who are choosing not to stand with their neighbors or with the most vulnerable. It's trying not to be too political. It's literally how All of these systems function because too many people choose comfort over confrontation, but silence is a choice, y'all. A choice that Protects these systems and powers to be and I also want you to think about the fact that the same systems that harm one of us will eventually Come for the rest of us because that's exactly what they are designed to do So your question shouldn't be If we should speak up, it should be why you ever thought you had the option not to.

So here's some action steps. Speak up in your own circles. That's a great place to start. When harmful conversations happen in your workplace, your family, or your community, challenge them, even if it makes you feel uncomfortable. If it makes you feel uncomfortable, you're doing it right. I want you to use your platform, whatever it is.

You don't have to have a large social media following or spend your whole day on social media to be able to. Think that your platform is powerful. You can talk to your friends. You can post on your social media page and post to your community pages. You can have tough conversations with children or in your school communities.

Do not underestimate your influence. I also want you to think about the fact that a lot of times change is happening at the local levels. You can create change by going to your school board meetings and connecting with people who are doing that work. Do you know how many Decisions the school board and your community actually gets to make, get active, get there, have conversations, use that platform there.

Whatever you can find, do it. I also don't think that people understand that our liberation is tied together. Like of course, Audre Lorde said it the best when she says, I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own. I don't know for us to only care about something when it directly impacts you because by the time it gets.

See you. It's too late. Like if you're reading this, it's too late. By the time that gets to you, it's too late. Another thing, um, that I like to remind people when they ask, where do we go from here? We are bringing our children and our babies with us. Bell Hooks tells us that children are organically predisposed to be critical thinkers.

From this, we know that children are already paying attention. They see what is happening, they hear the conversations, and if we don't talk to them, they will learn about the world from the same systems that are actively harming them and telling them that they don't matter. Or from adults who don't have a damn clue how to think critically for themselves.

We also can think about the fact that systems of domination need children to be compliant, right? We have a lot of conversations about justice, um, for childhood. They need them to accept harm as normal, to internalize. Punishment as dessert, to believe their voices don't matter, that they're too young to talk about these things, that they won't understand.

Instead of answering their questions with truth and engaging with their curiosity, children already understand. They see injustices clearly. They are asking the right questions and a lot of times it's the adults who are too freaking scared to answer or they don't feel knowledgeable enough or they don't have enough resources.

So let's put an end to that. Make justice a part of your everyday conversations. And we talked about this a little bit before. Continue to trust that your children can Talk about these things that they can engage in meaningful conversation around what is happening in their world too. Yeah, you are experiencing this and it sucks, but your child is experiencing it too.

So they have to have spaces for us to have conversations with them as well. I want you to also take your babies with you. Give them opportunities to take action that could be writing letters that could be participating in protests that can be learning about different movements. Empower them to be part of the change.

Us committing to raising and teaching the next generation of changemakers makes the people in power scared. And they're already scared. They're scared of basic human empathy. They're afraid of children who are seeing the world clearly and choosing care over control. They're afraid of people who are choosing justice over compliance and who are actually Wanting and seeking freedom instead of obedience.

They're afraid of people who talk back because if you get to having conversations with them and getting to the root, they don't actually have a place to stand on. They don't have a basis. This isn't factual evidence. They are literally running on people being quiet in fear. But I digress. We know that we will not make it through this time without hope.

I refuse to believe that there is nothing that we can do, that there is no good, that we can find, that there is Nothing here. We are reminded by bell hooks that hope is essential to any political struggle for radical change when the overall social climate promotes disillusionment and despair. But also hope is not naive, it's not passive.

Hope is a strategy. It is how we sustain. It is how we keep going. Remind yourself why you're in this fight. Make sure you know what is important to you, what is keeping you in this fight, what is radicalizing you. Literally, there is so many things right now that could radicalize you. Find joy in your communities as well.

Connect with people who share your vision. Celebrate small wins. Hope is a muscle that we have to keep using. I'll leave you with this. Our ancestors have always resisted. We have always had to fight for things to be fair. We have always had to fight for things to be equitable. We have seen these attacks before.

We've seen the attacks on making things diverse and inclusive and accessible to everyone. Racism, we have seen attacks on black and brown bodies, on LGBTQ plus folks, on immigrants, on women, on all marginalized populations. We've seen This all before. These things have always been, they are repeated cycles.

But there are people who have navigated these spaces and who have created change. We can do this. But it's going to take some work. Those of you who may be listening right now and who are wondering or even worried about their place in the world. The resistance, their place in creating change. I want you to remember that revolutions and movements have so many faces and that is what makes them strong.

There is space for all of us, each with our unique skills, our knowledge, our interest, our passions to be able to assist and create. Change, you can do this. Thank you so much for tuning in with me today, for being here and for taking the next steps to being a part of the change. There are more people who are believing that.

We are doing the right thing, then there are people who are trying to make America great again, right? There are more people in this world who believe in the power of liberation, the power of justice, the power of love, then there are people who are holding on to hate. We can do this. Stay connected. Find your people.

Of course, bell hooks tells us that there is light in darkness, you just have to find it. And I'm going to remind you that if you feel like you can't find it, then be it. I love you, I'm here for you, I'm rooting you on. I'll see you next time.

Alright, you've just finished another episode of Children Deserve Better, but this is where the real work starts. Take what spoke to you today and put it into action. Change doesn't come from staying comfortable and better starts with us. If you loved what you heard here on the podcast today, leave me a reveal.

And hey, let's not let the conversation end here. Find me over at the Anti Bias ECE and at Equity in Bloom on Instagram. I'd love to hear your thoughts and questions about how you're making moves. Let's keep learning, unlearning, and growing together. See you soon!