It’s more important than ever that we stay connected as a community. That’s why TED and multiple TEDx organizations, including ours, have introduced TED Circles, an open platform of small groups that engage in conversations around ideas. Hosted by volunteers, Circles watch and then discuss a TED talk. Circles participants share takeaways online to consider each other’s perspectives and create a global conversation. Our first TEDxJacksonville Circle of 2021 will take place February 25 and is limited to 24 participants. Learn more below!

Radical Self-Care in the Beloved Community

When Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. envisioned a Beloved Community, he painted a picture of a socially just, equal, and loving society. For many of us, it has been a life-long journey of pursuing this dream. For others, this may be a new or renewed consciousness for pursuing King’s vision. Wherever you may fall on the continuum of advocating for a just society, you have no doubt hit the wall of exhaustion. Poets and writers like Audre Lorde, James Baldwin, and Toni Morrison have made us see how our responsibility is to speak truth to power. They have also told us to be radical in our self-care as actors and agents leading the way toward a Beloved Community. Are you, like me, drowning in the high volume on part one of these writers’ wisdom and falling short on the second charge of radical self-care? As activists, organizers, cultural agents, and courageous citizens who speak up against racism, sexism, homophobia, and transphobia at family dinner tables or business meetings—good people, we need to reach the Beloved destination! Being on the path of well-being requires loving care-taking during, before, and after engaging in our activism and advocacy work. Practicing radical self-care must be part of our truth-telling and liberation agenda. In this TEDx circle, participants will view short videos from two leading activists who offer insight into what it means to engage in activism AND radical self-care. We will then participate in storytelling circles to explore tools and practices supporting our well-being as seekers of a Beloved Community. Join Circle leader Yvette Angelique for this event, which will take place Thursday, February 25, 2021 at 6 p.m. Participants will get a separate email about how to access the video chat room. The event is free. [This event has concluded.]