ABSTRACT
Though feminists are often stereotyped as angry, anger has a critical place in justice work because it is a natural response to injustice. The question is how we work with it. Some people are denied anger while others are stereotyped as always angry; these cultural constructs impact our relationship to our own anger and that of others.
This chapter differentiates between anger as a natural human emotion in the present moment, and rage, which is an accumulation of pent up energies. It looks at how anger can be catalyzed into productive action or how it can fester until it implodes or explodes in harmful ways. “On Anger and Love” offers practices to help readers become familiar with our anger and to understand what it is shielding us from.
This chapter also explores how love can be a wellspring of care and compassion from which to work toward justice. It differentiates between an artificial, greetings-card-type love that is too often about preserving the status quo, and a fierce love that is willing to do the messy work of justice for the betterment of all sentient beings. Drawing on Valerie Kaur’s theory of Revolutionary Love, this chapter explores how love can guide our justice work.
