Ep. 44: Protecting Peace or Protecting Privilege? Pt. 1 with Elizabeth DiAlto
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Show Notes :
In this episode, I chat with Elizabeth DiAlto, known for her nuanced, inclusive, and humor-infused approach to spirituality and the healing arts. She is an Embodiment Specialist and a Spiritual Futurist.
We explore what it means to focus on living a value’s centered, peaceful and soft life, while honoring and dancing the line between protecting our peace and protecting our privilege; oscillating on this line, while honoring community and reciprocal relationships.
We also discuss Elizabeth’s recent book release, “Dark Healing: Order of Secret Priestesses, Book 1”, and how her book touches on themes of healing, self-love, and liberation, and the importance of breaking open and connecting with one's sacredness.
Tune in to hear all about:
Transitioning work focus from online to in-person teaching and a new book
Solo polyamory, dating experiences, and healing toxic masculinity
Exploring controversial topics through fiction writing
Midlife women's personal growth and freedom from resentment
Perpetuating systemic racism through social media algorithms and censorship
Weaponizing the phrase "protecting your peace"
About the Guest:
In 2013 she founded the School of Sacred Embodiment, where she’s developed a range of healing and liberatory frameworks and modalities that blend together movement, energy work, and mystical wisdom. Her specialty is helping people live through what she calls the highest part of all of us – our Wild Soul.
A native New Yorker with Boricua and mixed-European roots, Elizabeth is touring the US and Europe in 2024, teaching Wild Soul Movement. She’s also an avid salsa dancer, loves the ocean, and has a laugh that has been described as “a sound bath of sunshine and joy.
Resources:
For the Love of Men W/ Weeze Doran
Connect & Support :
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Ep. 44 - Elizbeth DiAlto
Weeze (00:00)
Welcome to this episode of According to Weeze I feel like I'm not gonna spend time introducing you only because you've been here before and Your bio is going to be in the show notes
But what I am gonna do is just give you a moment because you are in a new season of, you know, shifts and changes of, you know, how are you referencing yourself in the world these days?
elizabeth (00:30)
It's the same. It's just that, you know, I'm an embodiment specialist and a spiritual futurist. And my two big creations are my School of Sacred Embodiment and Wild Soul Movement, you know? And I'm just shifting kind of like the ecosystem of the work, like how I do things. I'm just spending less time online and more time getting back out in the world, which is really something, you know, before the pandemic, from 2015 to January of 2020,
I was out literally in the world, like all over the US and Canada. And usually I would go to one or two other countries throughout the course of the year to teach a workshop or something. So I would get to be out in the world, like in rooms with people doing things. And then obviously the pandemic came and I stopped doing that. And when I first got to Miami, I dabbled in like teaching some classes locally. This is a funny city to try to like get people to come and stuff. And I didn't feel like dealing with that.
Weeze (01:28)
Yeah.
elizabeth (01:29)
But when I was in Egypt a couple months ago, I got to teach for the women I was traveling with twice. And I was like, this is like what my heart wants. And also like the soul of Wild Soul Movement, like our creations have their own souls was like, hey girl, like I need more attention again. And I'm like, cool. Like I spent a decade building this like online body of work, school, classes, courses, programs, all this stuff. But it's like, just get out in the world. Just be in rooms with people again.
And once I made that choice to prioritize that, all these other things that had become like a little sticky funky, were like bothering me. All that stuff started to clear out.
Weeze (02:08)
I think, you know, the magic of you is that or the magic of the conversation we're having today is that it's such a reflection of what we talk about all the time and what you just named, right? Like this this transition.
if you will. Before we get to that conversation though, because I'm gonna tease it for the people, you'll find out what we're talking about in a minute. I wanna talk about this, what? I love you too. I wanna talk about some of the things that have happened in this transition for you, right? So for those that have not listened to Embodiment is for Everybody, which was Elizabeth's last episode on ATW, you should, A?
elizabeth (02:36)
I love you. That's it.
Weeze (02:52)
but B, they don't have the context. So briefly, right. You, you had, you had a, and I say had because you've now stepped away and closed them, right. Very significant podcast and body of work, very significant online, virtual and in-person, right. Like school retreats, like you were doing the thing, grinding it out. Obviously the pandemic changed a lot of things for all of us, really pushing us online and in your exploration. One of the things that I got to, you know, bear witness to was this idea initially that was like, I'm going to start writing. Like I need another creative outlet. Like I'm going to do this thing. And I'll never forget, like there wasn't a lot of context. One day it was just a text message and it was like, which pen name sounds better? And I was like, I don't know what we're doing, but I like that one.
elizabeth (03:45)
I sent that to like 20 people. Thank you for being on the list.
Weeze (03:45)
Right? And yeah, of course. Did everybody was like the consensus Marisol Divina? Like, is that how it came to be? Just as an aside? Okay. Yeah. It was so good. So for people that don't know, I'll let me not forget the X. Marisol X Divina. So in the process of your exploration, dark healing and Marisol X Divina was born. And before we talk about anything else, I want you...
elizabeth (03:53)
Yeah, yeah.
Thank you.
Weeze (04:16)
to talk about the order of the sacred priestess. Because I read this book in what was like a day and a half and I was like live texting you. No, but also it's short, but it's also like such an easy read. Like not only is it an easy read, but it's a, it just grabs you from the very beginning and you cannot put it down. Like I was annoyed when people would like, I did this on a, like started on a Thursday and I'm like, ugh.
elizabeth (04:23)
It's short.
Weeze (04:43)
I have to like go to work. Like I have to talk to people. How annoying that I have a schedule and have to pay bills. Like I wanted to just finish it. And, and you know me, like I will tell you when I'll be like, oh my God, I love the attempt, boo. But like that wasn't it. Maybe we should keep working. You know, like I'll give you a positive criticism, but like I genuinely love this book. It was so good. So I want you to talk a little bit about like, first of all, how were people… so rewind.
elizabeth (04:59)
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
so glad. Thank you.
Weeze (05:13)
For people that do not know, this book, I would call it a combination of like spirituality, wild soul movement, the entire belief system of the wild soul movement, infused with healing, infused with erotica, infused with just like spice and the like witty kind of comedic undertones that just is you, like is you as a person.
And like that is what this book is. So first of all, were people surprised? Like were people like, wait a minute, I didn't see this coming. I wasn't. I was like, this is very on brand. Like.
elizabeth (05:48)
No. No.
Correct. Listen, many years ago when, before I created the School of Sacred Embodiment and it was just Wild Soul Movement, one of the reasons I loved that name and that being like the brand was because the reach was so wide. So many things. Like I know we say on brand, like literally, but also as kind of like a colloquial descriptor, both, you know, because I had come out of, I had worked in fitness. And when you work in fitness, like health fitness, wellness stuff, that's...
Weeze (06:03)
Mm -hmm.
elizabeth (06:22)
That's what you do. And as my interest started broadening, I'm like, this doesn't fit my brand, like what I do. So with Wild Soul Movement, with that name, even School of Sacred Embodiment, there's just so much that falls under, like if it has to do with self -love, healing, wholeness, and liberation, it's on brand, you know? So writing a book, and some people may or may not know, but I am not a partnered person. I call myself delightfully child -free.
and delightfully without consort, which I'm not without any consorts at this moment in time, but I'm delightfully with consorts, none of whom are a serious life partner, if we want to put it that way.. I'm no longer in a ho phase, so, it's different. There's layers to this, people. But I also, a friend of mine jokingly calls me a manthropologist, which that's a whole other series of books I want to write. But.
I love dating and for the last, since like 2018, I was on kind of like this solo polyamorous journey and I find human behavior, I'm also like an armchair sociologist, like you're a real one, I'm like an armchair, but especially dating, because I'm like, I'm not into all this like gender war stuff, you know, and even if you read the description of the book, it's like for women who are tired of men's toxic nonsense, and I specifically, and say toxic men.
I said, men's toxic nonsense because I don't believe people are toxic. I believe behavior is and we all get that ingrained. So what you were saying about how the book, it's like what's the genre here? It was so hard to pick categories because it is. It's a combination of all these things. So no, people were not surprised. It was fun. And the unsurprising thing about it is I'm always going to take my life experiences and use them to create something, right?
And so it was really fun to take so many of these stories. Like some of those dudes, like everyone in the book is a composite, you know?
Weeze (08:28)
There were definitely moments I was like, wait a minute, this sounds real. I remember this guy. I think for me, it was also really beautiful to see, to actually see the things that you believe in real life woven into this book. So specifically like that whole like men are toxic gender war. We did a whole episode on it, which we will link in the show notes because it was on Elizabeth's podcast, right?
elizabeth (08:30)
I remember that one.
Weeze (08:57)
Because a lot of folks are not standing 10 toes down on what they believe, right? Like we have this conversation all the time. You either have people that are writing amazing things and then you know them in real life or then you meet them in real life and you're like, you actually are full of shit. Like you wrote the thing or said the thing that you knew would get you the audience or what have you. But you don't actually live by the things that you claim to believe and espouse.
And so for me, especially now in 2024, where the internet has made everybody a quote unquote expert just because they can record something and you know what I mean? But like loud and wrong for likes is a new genre and it has taken over the internet. And so when I see people, it's obviously no surprise to me that, you know, we are so close and like, I'm going to keep you close, right? You didn't get the Dr. Dre energy 2024 axe like many others as you.
elizabeth (09:34)
Oh my god.
girl.
I made the cut everybody.
Weeze (09:55)
as you know. But yeah, it's no surprise to me that this is actually a reflection of the things that you believe and the way that you date and the way you interact with men and the world. And holding that duality and that space for like, okay, yeah, sir, you have definitely embodied all of the quote unquote toxic nonsense that you have been taught to embody. And I'm gonna hold the space for you to be better and do better and heal and change.
and hold the possibility for that to be true, yep.
elizabeth (10:24)
Healing is possible. And listen, there's an unconventional slash controversial approach to healing. And I wrote an author's note. I got a couple notes from people about it. But that was why I wanted to write fiction, because there's also something that was really building up and starting to get to me about being like an online public persona kind of person of.
Weeze (10:38)
I kind of want to read it. Yeah.
elizabeth (10:52)
You know, I aspire to be a person that never feels like I have to edit myself, but I also am fine doing that to meet the platform. To me, that's a way of protecting my peace. I don't need to be out here like, take it or leave it. This is who I, like. No, I actually get to be in choice about what I explore, like in a public free form where people can say and do whatever they want. But then in a different genre,
Weeze (10:56)
Mm -hmm.
Right.
elizabeth (11:21)
I can explore more like controversial stuff that might be triggering for some, but there's just such a big difference between putting something in a fictional context to just explore it and air it out and like let it be a story and not be a real thing. You know, like I got a letter, an email from one lady who is essentially being like, you shouldn't publish this, because I had sent out like early copies. You shouldn't publish this, blah, blah, blah. We don't need to be promoting. I'm like, I'm not promoting it.
Weeze (11:34)
Mm -hmm. Yeah.
Mm -hmm.
elizabeth (11:49)
I wrote a whole author. It's like the first paragraph of the author's note that's like.
Weeze (11:52)
Well, not only that, go ahead, go ahead.
elizabeth (11:56)
But I'm like, but also look at all the fiction that's out. Is everyone who makes a horror movie promoting murder?
Weeze (12:02)
Murder, right. There's, I'm gonna read quickly and then you named it. We're talking about some critiques of soft life and protecting your peace today. Right, so Elizabeth just named it. But I wanna read this real quick because here's, there's like quick sentences that I'm like, if you take nothing else from this author's note.
Some people's sacredness is buried under a lot of shit, which we explore through the three men that the priestesses get their hands on, Daniel, Alex, and Michael. That, even just that sentence is, I think, so powerful to keep in mind in the world that we're in, that everybody is fundamentally sacred. And it's all of the world's shit and the way that the world has treated them and the experiences that they've had and their socialization based on their identities that...
either blocks them from connecting to their sacredness or blocks other people from connecting to their sacredness. And then the next piece these are just two sentences. This book is meant to be fun and thoughtful, a turn on, a turn in, a turn out, and a turn around. I, like that to me, I was like that, it's the cutest way to be like, lead with fucking curiosity. Look inward, look outward, look all the way around.
elizabeth (13:22)
Just like have fun, just like let it be.
Weeze (13:23)
flip it inside out and make it exactly and make it playful. Make it fun because life is lifing and shit is hard. Like my new tagline is like, I'm all about the playfulness. Take the important things seriously and everything else should be fun. Everything else should be fun. But so that being said, this is one of the ways right that you protected your peace. So we started talking about protecting your peace through and I'm gonna read
elizabeth (13:33)
Seriously.
Yeah.
Weeze (13:53)
your post. So this is conversations that we had been having, right? And then one day, actually, by one day, I mean, June 1st, you popped up on the internet and you said it really, it really.
elizabeth (14:08)
You can always count on Weeze to have a time stamped receipt. I love this about you.
Weeze (14:12)
Listen, people need to stop playing with me. Just because I don't release them publicly doesn't mean I don't have them.
elizabeth (14:19)
They are timestamping catalogs, everybody.
Weeze (14:23)
I have folders in my phone. What was that meme? I think, I don't know if I sent it to you or you sent it to me, but it was like people threatening to expose the thing I said, me with a microphone being like, I could say it again. I got the receipts, like with my whole chest. Don't, you can't expose me. You can't expose me because I've already done it. Like I don't care. Right. Okay. So.
elizabeth (14:37)
it again.
I'm not the one for that.
was for that. Yeah, man.
Weeze (14:50)
It says, it really does feel like there's this upswell of midlife women who are tired of suffering and have healed too much to be bitter or resentful and are now just loving the fuck out of ourselves and each other. And I do believe something about this is so important for the world. Amen. Ah motherfucking she. So.
Say more about this, like what prompted this? What were you seeing? What conversations were you having?
elizabeth (15:16)
Well, I'm at my big age of 40 years old now, and I have a lot of friends who are later on in their 40s and even into their 50s. And one of my favorite parts about that is we've healed too much to be bitter or resentful. And I'm not a person who's experienced bitterness, but I had some big resentment I had to work through for a while. And while I was in that, because it was starting to come out sideways, I wouldn't have thought I was resentful. But in seeing how I was showing up,
feeling, engaging with certain people, I'm like, no, Dan, I actually am. And it came out, it actually did come out with a couple of men last year who I just told them about themselves in a way that normally, like, listen, even if you're behaving in a messy way and I wanna like let you know, I'm still kind about it. And I was not kind. So for me, that's my indicator. Like if I can't find a way to be kind about it, I'm over the edge.
And listen, I'm from Staten Island. I'm Italian and Puerto Rican. There's a little bit of Irish, like I have an edge. You know, I love, there's that, there's that meme. We live in the world of memes now, right? We're constantly referencing memes. Like they're just part of everything because they are. And it's like, it's something like, don't think because I'm spiritual that I won't like cuss a bitch out, you know? And he's holding a sign that says, try me beloved. That's how I feel.
Weeze (16:29)
Yeah, they're part of our zeitgeist in our vernacular.
I've seen it, I love it so much. I love it so much.
elizabeth (16:45)
Try me, beloved. And so, but to be free of that, and I went through, I did some intense, incredible ancestral and family healing over the course of the last year. And what has become possible in my family with our connections and relationships because of that healing is that that freed me, that was like the tether to any resentment or.
Weeze (17:11)
Mm.
elizabeth (17:12)
Because for me, resentment and disappointment kind of always go hand in hand. And so I feel like so many women I know who I've watched go on all these various journeys in different relationships, having kids, separating from partners, like business stuff, all kinds of things, we're just, we're over it. It's integrated, and that's a big part of it. People have done their work, the shit is integrated, and we're like, cool.
We got a lot of love to give and we're doing that. And things can still be messed up. And I honestly also think that the heartbreak of the world, everything going on with Palestine and Israel, everything, all the other genocides and other things going on in the world, that so many of us did not have our eyes on, right? Until it was up, the absolute heartbreak, like,
Weeze (17:43)
Mm -hmm.
Sudan, Congo, Armenia, Tigray, like we could keep naming.
Yeah.
elizabeth (18:09)
watching live stream genocide the way we have been and then being gaslit constantly that it's not happened, that's not what it is. I think for a lot of us broke us in a way into tenderness. Like one of my favorite quotes that get attributed to Rumi is, you have to keep breaking your heart until it opens. And I really feel like that's actually what we're witnessing and what I'm talking about. We finally got pulverized to the point that now we're just tender and we're here for the love because what else are we gonna do with all of this?
Weeze (18:16)
That's not what we're saying.
Mm -hmm.
Yeah.
Yeah, I think there's, I think all of that is very true, but I think there's also what I'm seeing is through that, people are almost getting back to basics in the sense of like connecting with their people, connecting with nature, spending time in solitude, spending time in community, spending time in quiet, right? Like divesting from a lot of these, from the hustle culture, the grind culture, right? Which is all liberation work. And unfortunately, sometimes, not sometimes, all the time.
I've said this over and over again in all of my years of guiding people through their liberatory work. You have to break. You can't just bend. You have to break. You got to break. You have to break open. And when you break open, then that allows release, right? It's like a vase full of sand. Once that breaks, all of that sand can go, right? Like release, and then you can build it back and you can put it back together, right? You can take the pieces.
that you want and like and leave the pieces that no longer suit you. And what I'm noticing, and I know this is true for myself, is like, I also fundamentally refuse to participate in like struggle culture or the glorification of the struggle culture or stress culture. I'm like, it is neither cute nor like a marker of or indicator of success to be stressed or to be overworked or, you know what I mean? Like I want no parts of it at all.
elizabeth (19:49)
Exactly.
The opposite of that is not like spiritual bypass or just escaping or retreating into privilege. But I think a lot of people position it that way. Like even just this past week, there's this woman, a spiritual white woman who's just like off the rails. Palestine has clearly broken her, but you know who I'm talking about. But she's like, she's using all of the master's tools to...
Weeze (20:08)
No.
Mm -hmm.
I know exactly who you are talking about.
Hold on, I'll say it very clearly. And this woman in particular, and I'm not gonna say her name because you didn't, so, cause I'll put her name out there, I don't care.
elizabeth (20:42)
Well, I just don't even feel like bringing the energy of it. That's why am I saying the name.
Weeze (20:44)
But I will say this, this woman has and has always been a white woman who uses the master's tools, who has learned specifically from black and brown educators, as well as the bell hooks is and the Audrey Lordes of the world, and has just regurgitated exactly what she said. She is actually all those times that I've talked about, like, hey, white women, this is what you're doing. She's she was my inspiration for like, white women who think they are.
Woker than thou, they are a Wokemon, they are policing other white people and specifically white women. And then they have the audacity to start coming for people of color, for melanated folks. Have a fucking seat because all you do is reproduce whiteness. I can't stand this woman. And if I ever do a solo episode, I'll put her whole name in it. Come for me. Leave, leave who you came for alone. Come for me. Come see me. Come see me.
elizabeth (21:23)
Yo, that's the fucking thing. She started commenting for people who have followed.
Unbelievable.
see me. And listen, I actually I actually used to know her. And and and again, like these are a lot of things and this is what I'm talking about referencing back to what you read. I have compassion. No, don't apologize because it's fucked up. And it's also it's what's interesting to me is like the self gaslighting that happens, right? Actually, one of my favorite lines that I wrote in the book about one of these men.
Weeze (21:43)
I don't know her at all. I only know her on the internet.
Sorry, you got me upset. I feel it in my soul.
elizabeth (22:06)
was something along the lines of a person who's lying to themself has no truth to tell anybody else. So if you're deluding yourself, if you're gaslighting yourself about what you're actually out here doing, and it's all white centering, that's like the white and self centering. So many have reposted about how Palestine has affected her and this and that, like I even saw someone interviewed her on a podcast and the description talks about how Palestine has changed her life. I'm like.
Weeze (22:23)
every bit of it.
elizabeth (22:34)
Does that not feel gross to some people? What about the people who are dead, gone, amputee, like?
Weeze (22:39)
who's actually, the Palestinians who've actually been impacted. And also the Jews who have actually been impacted, like, who have, like, no, no, go ahead.
elizabeth (22:45)
I'm like, are you kidding me right now? You put a podcast episode about how this has affected you?
I have a Jewish friend whose grandmother's grave was desecrated here in the US. Shit is directly impacting people. You just want to win White Lady Who Cares the Most Award.
Weeze (22:59)
Right, like, right.
Exactly. I'm like, you're not sitting with friends who have are having this experience. I have clients who are, you know, are either have Israeli family, are Jewish, but live here. Like, there's very real life impacts that are happening to people. This is not about you. And the second that you make it about you is an indicator that you have not done any of your liberation work at all. The. No, no.
elizabeth (23:29)
What about you?
Listen, and nor is it about the wellness industry or spiritual people. Like she's literally trying to like call people out, call out these people, cancel, like send in people. I'm like, point your arrows in the right place, but we're going on this tangent, but here's what it comes to. That's an example of a woman who's the bitterness, the resentment, whatever it is, is driving her. It's not the love, right?
Weeze (23:46)
Stop it! Yes.
Yeah, yeah. I do have compassion for her because that's what I see. I see a person who needs to do whatever several, again, I don't know her personally, so whatever healing and liberatory work that she needs to do to get to a place where she no longer is holding on to the bitterness and the resentment and the anger.
elizabeth (24:21)
Totally.
Weeze (24:21)
Because righteous rage is one thing. I've got it. I'll be the first one. Like righteous rage is valid. Righteous rage is actually a reflection of love. Right? But so when I see people like that, I'm like, man, I don't have capacity to hold you for free, but I hope you have friends.
elizabeth (24:25)
Yeah.
Yes.
Well, and clearly not because who could go on for this long at like this with, you know what I mean? Like, but that, so it's rough out there and it's interesting because what I'm, what I'm feeling the upswell I'm seeing is people who are kind of locking arms and being like, yo, we're not doing, like you said, we're not doing the struggle shit. We're not glamorizing this. And listen, we're also not glamorizing the fight because what I've, what I, what I've come to see,
Weeze (24:59)
No. Mm -mm.
Say that. Cause I'll tell you from the front lines, from the front lines, y 'all think this shit is sweet. Like.
elizabeth (25:13)
We are not hammerizing the fight.
Because I've watched people not only burn out, but astutely land in an assessment place of, this shit doesn't work, it's not working. We've been trying this method, right? And...
Weeze (25:36)
And not only that, I can always tell folks who are in it for the glamor or the going viral moment or the look at me versus the folks that are really with the shit who, because we all have our roles to play, right? Y 'all know my whole, all the world to stage, all the men and women merely players, find your role, my whole thing on that, right? And you can tell who's,
is there because they're like, all I have is my body to put on the line. That's all I have, right? Or all I have is my ability to create an encampment and barricade a school building or whatever it is versus the like, I think this shit makes me look cool. Look at me.
elizabeth (26:19)
Yep.
Or like, if you're not posting on the internet, it's like, listen, that's not, for me, that's not my lane. I just...
Weeze (26:34)
When's the last time I posted on the internet? Y 'all gonna tell me I'm not with the shit? Because here's the other thing, I had a conversation with Meta. They called me. Did I tell you this? They called me. First they reached out to me via Instagram and I got a banner at the top of my page. And at first I was like, that's it. They're about to, I'm done. They're taking it. Cause they took my Facebook. So I was like, Instagram is over. And then I read it.
elizabeth (26:39)
And that's what we've been...
Really? No.
Weeze (27:02)
And it was like, you are one of the top creators that we would like to talk to, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Long story short, they had been tracking my like posting, my frequency of posting and my engagement rates. And I had apparently according, cause you know, I don't give a shit about their algorithms and their numbers and whatever, but based on my number size and the fact that I don't pay for anything and I don't follow any of their rules, I had like really high, I guess, percentile engagement.
And then one day, I just kind of stopped. And they wanted to know why.
elizabeth (27:40)
Interesting.
Weeze (27:42)
And you know me, I'm telling the truth. No, I was like, I was like, is this really a conversation you want to have? And they were like, yes, we do. They framed it as well. We do because we want to know if there's anything we can do to help you or inspire you to like get back. And I said, fuck you. The first thing that you could do was actually remove censorship and allow people to engage with the content.
elizabeth (27:44)
You're like, and I didn't hold back. What'd you say?
Weeze (28:12)
that they actually follow and want to see as opposed to the the hierarchical system you have in place. But so what I said was I said I chose to stop posting because there was a point there was a period where we actually could post whatever we wanted to post and there was no immediate block. There was no immediate quote unquote shadow ban that people were just naturally going to see it. And now under the guise of free speech or I'm sorry under the guise of like not being political.
elizabeth (28:14)
Mm -hmm.
Weeze (28:41)
y 'all ding political or fringe political or social movement content that is liberal content, but you don't ding the oppressive side. You don't ding the, you know, the MAGA hat wearing Zionist KKK tiki torch community. And you don't ding them because those are the folks that created your algorithm, which means that oppression is coded directly into the platform. And I chose to divest from trying to
spend my time and energy to figure out how to get around your bullshit. I said, you know how much time and energy it takes to try to find a way to actually say what you want to say without having to say it, but then being told that you can only stick to a minute, but if I want to find a way to circumvent your nonsense, I have to do a five minute video. I went in, I went all the way in and you know what she said? She said, you're not wrong. She was like, there's nothing I can say. She was like, we do take the stance of we are not political.
And that is what ends up happening. So if you'd like to see your engagement go up, maybe stop posting political content. I said, did you look at my page? She goes, yeah. I said, I don't consider anything I post political except unless I'm actually talking about directly like the, the politics, right? Policy presidential. I said, I'm talking about humanity. I'm talking about liberation. I'm talking about people. Y 'all consider that political and that's your problem.
I said, but please do tell what could I do? She was like, well, you know, I was like, so you're telling me post bullshit and like my dog and tips and tricks on like, you know, how to like find your peace She was like, yeah, you have to post four reels a week, three static posts. It would be better if you posted four. I said, yeah, that's not gonna happen. So I will no longer be on your platform.
elizabeth (30:30)
Yo, what I think is unbelievable is that with the volume of creators they have, that they'd be like, we stopped posting. That's blowing my mind right now.
Weeze (30:44)
Yeah, so and it said like this is an invite that we have sent out to like select creators. So I asked some of my other like America hates. I asked all those folks like, did y 'all get this? And they were like, no, but they've also still continued to post. And like, that's cool. Like that's, that's the hill that they want to climb. Climb that hill. I'm going to climb a different one.
elizabeth (30:53)
Yeah.
Yeah, I mean, I think you know this. My Instagram, I don't do a strategy. My thing is I'm gonna post what I feel like, whatever I feel when spirit moves me, which is usually like, I've gotten into like kind of a daily rhythm. It's like, what's the timeline? What am I blessing the timeline with today? And I don't care.
Weeze (31:05)
Yeah.
Mm -hmm.
Right.
Yeah, yeah, I just don't even I mean and again like we'll post podcast stuff on there to let people know that they're you know, new episode whatever podcast related things Ted talk related things but my like Yeah, it's it is because at this point the education I need to do is not going to be there I'm not giving y 'all that I'm also no longer working for free kick rocks. Y 'all don't appreciate it So you can find it in the patreon you can find it
elizabeth (31:29)
Yeah.
It's just like a website. It's just like another website now. It's a place where... yeah.
No.
That's it. That's it.
Weeze (31:51)
Well, everything is actually gonna move to the Patreon. There's a whole reorg going on that you know of. But it's like, y 'all can pay for it. It's behind a paywall. You want my 20 minute breakdowns and synthesis of liberation and political XYZ and global movements? You can pay $5 a month, kick rock.
elizabeth (32:08)
it's also insane saying that you were ever doing that for free, by the way.
Weeze (32:12)
I have over 200 videos, IG lives alone, that are all 75 minutes or longer that I have all taken, yes, free education. Because I just wanted to do the thing. And then I was like, my God. And there was still a period where people were like, wow, this is labor. I'm gonna Venmo you four or five dollars. So I was like, okay, cool. This feels like an even exchange. Like I'm giving you a university level lecture.
elizabeth (32:17)
WHAT?!
Why did you do that? We don't need to talk about it. I know. I know.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I get it.
Listen.
Weeze (32:41)
but in a colloquial way that allows the people to really understand it and absorb it, because I'm talking to the people, over 200 videos, 200 on IG alone. I don't even know what was on Instagram or on Facebook because they killed my shit. From 2020 to 2023, 200 videos.
elizabeth (32:47)
Yeah.
That's what I will say this year.
You know, years ago, I did have a friend remind me that like the whole purpose of social media is to get people to the website or get people to the email list. And that's where the real communication should be happening. But even now, I'm like scrolling through my archives. I'm like, I've written some great shit over the last few years. And if I haven't posted it since 2021, the people could hear this again. Like, and that's part of for me, that's part of soft life, protect my peace, because that was my line with Instagram. I'm like, I'm not creating new shit for this place.
Weeze (33:05)
Mm hmm. Yeah.
Yeah.
Where you do it?
Nah. Yeah.
elizabeth (33:27)
I've spent the decade creating plenty and actually everything I do is timeless in the sense of there's not a time when this, it might have had context at the moment I posted it, but it's something that you could look back and there will be something for you in that thing, no matter what stage phase part of life you're in, if it's relevant for you, right? Like if there's relevance, it will apply regardless of what day or year it is.
Weeze (33:46)
Yeah.
Yeah.
This is a perfect segue, right? Because we just, we went on this whole like circle. We're so magical. We went on this like whole circle. It felt probably like a tangent to people, but like this is protecting your peace, right? Protecting your peace is saying, I'm no longer providing all of this expertise, emotional labor, spiritual labor, psychological labor for free. It is, I'm just going to bless the timeline with whatever I feel like doing. It is, you know what? I'm not going to let you guilt me or shame me.
because I'm not quote unquote posting about whatever current globe like global atrocity is happening on the internet as though I'm not actually addressing it in real time every single day or teaching about it in other places or checking people in real life, right? Holding people exactly holding people who are directly impacted, whether they're friends or clients.
elizabeth (34:39)
listen or talking about it with my friends or fucking crying with people and like co -regulating so we can, yeah. Yeah.
Weeze (34:53)
My favorite is also just actually living by it. I own a business and I have a foundation. I get calls every single day with people trying to solicit me and I cut them off before they get into their spiel. And I say, before you go any further, I need to know if your company in any way, ideologically or financially supports the state of Israel and the genocide happening in Palestine and or what is your policy on purchasing new electronics, recycling electronics, blah, blah, blah, blah. Those are my two big questions. If you can't answer those for me, there's no conversation for us to have.
elizabeth (35:06)
Yup.
Weeze (35:21)
Go find those answers and come back and then maybe I'll listen to what you have to sell me. Do you know how many people don't come back? Most of them.
elizabeth (35:25)
Yeah, most of that. Same, I've been doing that for years when people pitch me for the podcast or want to invite me to do stuff. I'm like, cool. What's your company do about these three things? How are you integrating? What's your equitable policy for this, this, and this? The number of people that come back to me with some word salad that's very clear that they don't even understand the question. I even had someone be like, I don't understand the question. I'm like, that's the answer.
Weeze (35:36)
Yep. Yep.
Yeah!
Yeah, yeah, yeah, right. And I mean, then the answer is that is the answer. Yeah. I mean, and I've had some really amazing interactions with folks who will be like, you know, I got to be honest, I'll just say this because you know, the line is recorded as an individual. Like, I'm rocking with you as an employee of this company, we are probably not in alignment. And I'll just leave it at that. And I'm like, great. Thank you for your honesty.
elizabeth (35:54)
We're good here then. If I have to explain to you what this means, then the answer is there's nothing happening here. That is the answer.
Great, thank you very much. No, you have bills to pay. I actually remember years ago, I was canceling a gym membership and they were like, why? And I'm like, because one of your biggest investors is also one of the biggest Donald Trump campaign supporters, that's why. And the person on the phone with me had an accent, I think they were Filipino, and I could hear.
Weeze (36:22)
And also I'm not judging you because you have bills to pay. Right? I talked about this in my last sub stack.
elizabeth (36:49)
all the things they weren't saying and how hard it was for them to be the person placing these phone calls, you know? And I was like, I feel for you, man. Like, that's what's so ridiculous to me. You know what someone told me recently, I didn't know this, Amal Clooney, George Clooney's wife, apparently people were like coming for her for not like posting about Palestine. Meanwhile, she was like consulting the IDF about, not the IDF, the what, International Court, you know me with the acronyms they got me, about how to like, yes, yes, yes, yes.
Weeze (36:55)
Yep. Yep.
Yeah.
ICJ? IJC? ICJ? International Court of Justice. Sorry, yes.
elizabeth (37:19)
See, you know what we're talking about though. Yes. She was like doing international policy stuff with them to like come for Israel for war crimes and shit. And I'm like, you guys really need to chill. If you think the be all and the end all is posting shit on Instagram when some people are out here like working in the courts for the war crimes, get a life.
Weeze (37:44)
Get a whole life, a whole life. Also, again, lead with curiosity, right? Like ask questions first.
elizabeth (37:51)
That's a fucking ask a question.
Weeze (37:56)
Because the people that I know that are 10 toes down really doing the work are like all sorts of things are very quiet about it. You know what I mean? Like even you and I with platforms and podcasts and you know that we talk about like y 'all don't know half of the shit that we do. People don't know half of the shit that I do on a daily basis or who we're supporting or what we're working with or what our hands are involved in or how we're moving the needle of equity forward. But people make so many assumptions, so many assumptions.
elizabeth (38:11)
Seriously.
So many.
Weeze (38:26)
And so protecting, protecting your peace to live a soft life is right. Having the boundary is having a boundary with yourself, right? The, the like, Hey, you know what? I don't have to do this. I'm not going to allow people to make me feel like this. And there's tons of content. Shit between Elizabeth and I on protecting your peace on co -creation, mutual consent. But what we want to talk about today is the way that protecting your peace has been weaponized and it has been.
elizabeth (38:38)
Yeah.
Weeze (38:56)
turned into this tool to spiritually bypass, to accountability bypass, to human bypass, and to completely just relinquish yourself from all responsibility to community and humanity under the guise of protecting your peace
And that's not it. It is once again a liberatory tool or a liberatory phrase that became that found its way into the popular zeitgeist. I blame myself for making sweatshirts and notebooks and having a whole podcast episode and a course on it. I do.
elizabeth (39:25)
You're like, I take partial responsibility because I created the merch.
Weeze (39:34)
I created a course, I created the merch. The first podcast called Protect Your Peace came out in 2018. I'm sorry. Tis I. Tis I. I did it. It is. Blink twice. I did it. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I gave it to pop culture. I am one of the purveyors, okay? I was the bridge. Burn me. I didn't mean to. I didn't think they'd fuck it up like this.
elizabeth (39:38)
You like, hit me.
calls coming from inside the house.
you
No, but pause here for a second because this is something that I think about all the time is due to the once we release something into the world, it's no longer ours, right? When something goes up on the internet and we literally have zero control of what becomes of it. So it's interesting too, because another thing that gets weaponized is like intent versus impact. And it's like, no one's intent, your intent always does matter on a level, but
Weeze (40:25)
Yeah.
elizabeth (40:31)
None of us can ever control impact. And so even this is such an interesting... One of the things, one of the reasons why I wanted to pull back from online is because I'm like, everything gets diluted. Everything gets diluted, distorted, bastardized, weaponized eventually. And I'm not putting pieces of myself... I'm not doing that with my soul's essence anymore.
Weeze (40:57)
Yeah, it also felt like a betrayal to like the work in general and the movement and the actual frameworks. Because it's like you want me to dilute this down to make it fit into a snapshot sound bite the like, I'm not doing it right. So all of that is protecting your peace. What is not protecting your peace is using the phrase protecting your peace and granted colonizers going colonize, right? Like whether it's land or intellectual property, like.
elizabeth (41:02)
cold and unintentional. Yeah, yeah.
Weeze (41:24)
They're going to take it. They're going to make it their own. They inevitably they fuck it up. But I feel like now what I see left and right is the way that white supremacist culture, right? Because rugged individualism is a cornerstone of supremacy culture and dominance culture. It has taken over the concept of protecting your peace to the point where it's like, I don't owe anyone anything. I get to be cold and heartless.
I get to prioritize me and only me. I cut people off quick. And it's like celebrated as though your ability to turn your back to human beings for your quote unquote peace because you're stressed or it's inconvenient, should be a fucking gold star. Like that's how we should be treating people.