What cosplaying as a superhero at a climate action taught me about power

By Gabija K., Earth Quaker Action Team volunteer

November 6th, the day after the 2024 presidential election, was like any other day this fall – in the sense that I wondered where the rain went. October had come and gone, but the dry spell that started on September 30th persisted. I, like many Americans, spent that period anxious about the upcoming election, feeling like so much depended on the outcome. It was not the rain I was waiting for, but November 6th did bring a downpour – one of shock, fear, and sadness.

The votes were in and federal political power was to be handed to the side that ardently calls for fossil fuel expansion and dismisses the importance of environmental protection. Over the past few years, I felt like I watched the materialization of one climate science prediction after another – record heat, deadly increase of extreme weather events, continued loss of wildlife. Four years of right-wing policy on climate was a horrifying prospect to behold.

I ponder the absence of snow. In my lifetime, the Mid-Atlantic region has seen a near disappearance of it. Yet sometimes I find frozenness within – in my body’s preferred stress response to dread and overwhelm, which was how I was feeling that day. Out of all of the options – fight, flight, freeze, fawn – my body chose the one that makes me just sit there feeling unable to act.

When I get overwhelmed and freeze over, one thing that always helps is finding ways to experience connection to other people. Both heart-to-hearts and chitchats melt and crack the ice somewhat until it is broken up enough to give the water beneath the opening to start moving. I had several great conversations after the election – one of the most impactful ones was an impromptu meeting of the core team planning EQAT’s upcoming action, which was to happen in two weeks, on November 20th.

Our plan for the action was full of superheroes, joy, and dance. We wanted to invite Vanguard CEO Salim Ramji to be a climate hero while, at the same time, celebrating the heroism and achievements of our EQAT’s community. We planned to dress up in costumes and do a dance routine to a chant. In that meeting, sharing our own grief in the aftermath of the election, we wondered if our whole plan had suddenly become too silly and out of touch. Our plan relied on attendees bringing high energy and glee. Mournfully looking at each other, we wondered where any of us would find it.

We knew, however, that EQAT’s actions already have the ingredients to build empowerment and joy – connectedness, ritual, movement, and action. On November 20th, we would have to build empowerment and joy from these ingredients. So we wrote an action plan that we hoped did just that and, on the day of the action, 30+ people showed up in Malvern, PA to tell the CEO of world’s #1 investor in fossil fuels: we need heroic climate action NOW. While doing this, we wore superhero costumes and we danced.

One person in a cape stands outside in front of a crowd of others, many with their arms outstretched over their heads. On the side, a couple of people are holding a banner that says "CEO Ramji, be a climate hero."

However, that was not how the action started. We knew that our power would be inaccessible to us if we denied our pain. So, standing in a park near Vanguard, we put our grief front and center in a ritual held by EQAT’s Campaign Organizer, Berenice. Pouring from a bowl of water that represented tears, we shared what brought us sadness, anger, fear and other emotions. We also knew that empowerment stems from a grounded connection to our bodies and the earth, so we took part in an exercise led by a local somatics teacher, Katy Hawkins. Somatic work by Katy at this action was possible through the support of Executive Director of the Society of Environmental Journalists, Aparna Mukherjee. Then, we spoke of people who inspire us, because we know that our power is connected to those we love.

Ritual and community melted enough of the frozeness to move me. When time came to don superhero costumes and march to Vanguard’s entrance, I felt inspired and able to take action. I felt powerful as we stood firmly in a simple truth – Vanguard must shift its $444 billion of investments in fossil fuels and use its power and influence in the market to move us towards a sustainable future for our communities (that include many Vanguard customers!).

person kneeling down moving hand through water in a bowl on grass

Then, another member of the core team, Hannah, led us all in showing Mr. Ramji exactly how to do that. We took part in a cheer routine that turned EQAT’s common sense campaign demands into a set of clear instructions, each paired with a signature move. There, it all came together – movement replaced stagnation; community replaced despair; acting in accordance to our truth mattered more than sillines. We were afraid of our action being goofy – well, where is the joy in that?

After the action, I found myself thinking more about heroes. As I allowed myself to face my sadness and fear, I started to find the election less overwhelming too. I remembered that the events leading to our current climate crisis have been presided over by countless Democratic administrations – not just Republican ones. While I do find Republican policies on climate change and other issues to be uniquely devastating, I know that the election going the other way would not have resulted in a climate superhero in the White House or other halls of power.

I still believe that Salim Ramji will lead Vanguard into sustainable investment, but he won’t do it because he is the superhero we are waiting for. He will do it because there are countless dedicated activists in the Vanguard S.O.S. campaign who will keep doing the work to pressure him to do it. After all, as EQAT volunteer, Eileen, reminded us at the action – we are the ones who have been doing this work all along and we have done it under both Democratic and Republican administrations.

A superhero will not save us – it is on us to come together to enact change. It is because superheroes don’t exist that we have to harness the power of collective action. This is a good thing. Hinging our hopes for the future on external events and important actors is disempowering. It leaves me overwhelmed, frozen in distress. I learned this by hinging my hopes for a better future on the 2024 presidential election.

Filling the superhero void by taking action with others, on the other hand, is empowering. It leaves me feeling joyful and warm. I learned this by wearing a superhero cape during a post-election climate action. I am so grateful to EQAT for having such a rich tradition of powerful actions. I cannot wait for the next one.