A review by sondershelf
Pleasure Activism: The Politics of Feeling Good by adrienne maree brown

informative slow-paced

2.5

though the premise of the book was promising, the idea of making a social movements accessible and inviting everyone is an ideal to aspire for, the book did not answer or provide any tactile directions towards this. it kept emphasizing on the need to foster pleasure in the act of activism, which is something personally should be taken into consideration to sustain movements, however the context of pleasure emphasized here is mainly towards sex positivity. which of course in the women's and lgbtq+ movement is important to develop, but if it only operates within the context of emphasizing sexuality and not taking into account the other issues of these minority groups then its not inclusive anymore. 

the essays i enjoyed however was the author's conversations with her friends and how that led to each of them not only finding solace amongst one another but also becoming involved in the communities they associate with and finding those connections through each other. i think social movements should indeed utilize or foster relationships further as a foundation to move forward. to quote once more the statement i add in every meeting i have with one of my collectives

"friendship is the soil from which a new politics will emerge"

and perhaps the real pleasure we can apply in social movements is the acknowledgement that we still have each other.