Tibay ng Loob: Building movements through imperfect solidarity
What does creative activism mean in your life right now? What might practicing imperfect solidarity look like to you these days?
Hello, ka-Ugnayan!
It’s time for another monthly pause. As we end the third quarter of the year, we close our Loob newsletter series with “Tibay ng Loob”, and share some insights from our recent Loob, Likha, Laya tambay.
Loob, as we previously wrote, is shaped in relation with our kapwa.
We began in July with Kagandahang Loob, acknowledging the shared humanity that deepens our connection with one another. “Kung ang pagkilala ng kapwa ang simula ng ugnayan, ang kagandahang loob naman ang naglilinang at nagpapatibay ng ugnayan.”1
We followed that up in August with Lakas ng Loob, acknowledging the courage it takes to create and to connect: “May pagtataya sa paglikha. May pagtataya sa pakikipag-ugnayan.”2
We end September with Tibay ng Loob.
Tibay ng Loob
(Tagalog) ang kakayahan at katangiang harapin at malampasan ang mga pagsubok at problema sa buhay nang may tapang, matatag, at positibong pananaw.
(English)
n. fortitude; inner strength; resilience; strength of will
adj. matibay ang loob: steadfast; unwavering; unfaltering
[Related read] Tibay ng Loob: On Trying Failing, Learning and Resilience
The difference between Lakas ng Loob and Tibay ng Loob
Since we’ve come out with Ugnayan Cards, we’ve often been asked: “What’s the difference between Lakas ng Loob and Tibay ng Loob”?
The distinction I make with these themes comes from a more intuitive and feeling place, rather than an analytical and semantics-oriented place. While the below distinction is not intended to create binaries, since the two concepts overlap, it can help illustrate the difference.
Lakas ng Loob
• Courage; guts; bravado
• Finding the motivation to start
• Braving through uncertainty
Tibay ng Loob
• Inner strength; resilience; fortitude
• Sustaining the motivation to continue
• Persisting in the face of certain difficulty
To me, lakas ng loob is the courage to come out of one’s cocoon of comfort, while tibay ng loob is continuing in spite of challenges; composting our mistakes, loss, grief, in order to grow stronger.
Creative Activism and Tibay ng Loob
At our Loob, Likha, Laya gathering last September 21, we gathered people who inspired us with different expressions of creative activism.
We asked what got them to this point or current expression, and what helps them continue in their advocacy in spite of compassion fatigue, burnout, the seemingly insurmountable challenges, and the slowness of change.
One of our featured storytellers was Jovie Galit, an artist and community organizer living in Toronto, Canada, and founder of Pinay Collection, a feminist merchandise line dedicated to reclaiming Filipino words that have been weaponized against our culture. She shared how the act of creating and being able to shape the future differently was a strong motivator in itself.
“Our creations aren’t just personal expressions; they are acts of resistance that break the silence imposed on our community”.
- Jovie Galit
(in Ugnayan’s Loob, Likha, Laya zine)
As writer, activist and facilitator adrienne maree brown would also say: “All organizing is science fiction - that we are shaping the future we long for and have not yet experienced.”
To keep creating is to keep resisting, to continue imagining and shaping a different world into existence.
Imperfect Solidarity and Tibay ng Loob
Prior to the gathering, AM Valdez and Karina Abola also shared some reservations about being referred to as “activists” alongside the folks from Mako Micro-press and Jovie, whose expressions seemed more “out there”. Some of us may have meander-y roads to find the truest expressions of our activism, and it may take different forms at different points in our lives.
One of the most impactful insights on participants was this idea of Imperfect Solidarity, shared by Mako Micro-press. “We need all forms of collective resistance…big and small, slow and fast, analog and digital, and so on,” they say. There is no “one way” to be a activist or to advocate for your cause.
“Everyone has a creative power and a spirit to act against injustices.”
- Mako Micro-press
(in Imperfect Solidarities zine)
It can feel like the little things we do hardly make a difference when we see the small things in isolation — instead of the longer timelines, intersectional advocacies, and community-powered movements.
We need to remind ourselves that one bamboo stalk alone will not build a house or raft. When we connect our actions with the actions of others, we can see constellations of possibility, and webs of greater strength and integrity.
As I come to the end of this letter, I leave you with some questions for reflection:
What does creative activism mean for me in my life right now?
What might practicing imperfect solidarity look like to me these days?
What needs to shift in my mindset / behavior in order for me to practice imperfect solidarity? What do I need to strengthen?
What possibilities might shifting some things and strengthening other things open?
Hanggang sa susunod na liham,
Jen Horn | @pagbubuo
Tagapagpadaloy, Ugnayan Cards
