"An activist is one who is actively involved in creating community, whether that is locally in their neighborhood or internationally. It is an admirable quality"
About this Quote
Activism, in Jasmine Guy's framing, isn’t a costume you put on for a march and then hang back up. It’s a verb with a neighborhood address. By defining an activist as someone “actively involved in creating community,” she nudges the word away from its most media-friendly imagery - megaphones, viral posts, righteous outrage - and toward something slower: sustained participation, the kind that looks like meetings, mutual aid, coalition-building, and showing up when it’s not glamorous.
That choice matters coming from an actress, a public figure whose profession is often dismissed as symbolic rather than civic. Guy implicitly rebuts the idea that influence is only speech or visibility. “Creating community” suggests labor, intimacy, and responsibility; it’s about building the social infrastructure that makes protest legible and change durable. The international-local span (“whether... locally... or internationally”) also widens the tent without flattening the work. It acknowledges that community isn’t just geographic; it can be diasporic, issue-based, or cultural - especially relevant for Black artists whose audiences and obligations have long crossed borders.
The closing line, “It is an admirable quality,” reads simple, almost parental, but that’s the point: a deliberate moral re-centering. In a culture that treats activism as either branding or nuisance, Guy offers a counter-script where civic engagement is basic decency, not performative virtue. The subtext is gentle pressure: if activism is community-making, opting out isn’t neutrality - it’s leaving the building to someone else.
That choice matters coming from an actress, a public figure whose profession is often dismissed as symbolic rather than civic. Guy implicitly rebuts the idea that influence is only speech or visibility. “Creating community” suggests labor, intimacy, and responsibility; it’s about building the social infrastructure that makes protest legible and change durable. The international-local span (“whether... locally... or internationally”) also widens the tent without flattening the work. It acknowledges that community isn’t just geographic; it can be diasporic, issue-based, or cultural - especially relevant for Black artists whose audiences and obligations have long crossed borders.
The closing line, “It is an admirable quality,” reads simple, almost parental, but that’s the point: a deliberate moral re-centering. In a culture that treats activism as either branding or nuisance, Guy offers a counter-script where civic engagement is basic decency, not performative virtue. The subtext is gentle pressure: if activism is community-making, opting out isn’t neutrality - it’s leaving the building to someone else.
Quote Details
| Topic | Human Rights |
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