Beautiful Harmonica-Playing and Powerful Change-Making

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The Activist for Activists. Author of Make a Difference with Mental Health Activism and The Happy Activist: Journey the 5-Step Activism Path to Focus Your Passion and Change the World. Teacher, Psychologist, Environmental Activist, Animal Lover.

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Interview

I interviewed Rhonda for my book What’s on Your Sign? How to focus your passion and change the world, (now updated and renamed The Happy Activist: Journey the 5-Step Activism Path to Focus Your Passion and Change the World.) Here is an excerpt:

Why did you choose your activism cause?

That’s difficult to answer since I don’t have just one activism cause. One of my primary concerns, however, is the environment. As a child, I loved reading about animals and plants and how they were all connected in a web of interdependency. These were the days of DDT and its threat to the bald eagle and other large predatory birds. Then the Endangered Species Act was passed, and the numbers of the eagles rebounded—one of the major success stories in the environmental movement.

However, science has now shown that the ecological situation is so much more complex than we understood in those days. With climate change, habitat destruction, loss of biodiversity, and so many other perils, the stakes are incredibly higher.

In fact, the more I learn about the damage we’re doing to this Earth, the more I realize that nothing else may matter. We might not only send other species into extinction, we might send ourselves as well. And if we don’t, we will make this world into a living hell, where we fight over disappearing resources, land, and food. That’s why I think it’s imperative for us to get serious about putting the Earth first. After all, it’s our only home.

How did you decide what method to use for your activism?

Choosing a method for activism is probably similar to choosing your vocation—your work should be the point at which your talents meet the needs of the world. My husband and I are folk musicians. Our performances also include plenty of storytelling and history. Much of folk music was originally protest music, and my husband started his career by singing in the civil rights movement.

History should always inform our choices for the future; otherwise, we repeat the same mistakes. One of the things we try to do is teach people about past events. Some of these stories are really inspiring, and they show the power people have when they band together.

I am also an author, so I use that platform to spread these same messages. Reading The Grapes of Wrath as a teenager taught me how persuasive novels can be.

Were there areas where you felt unprepared for your work?

It took me several years of performing before I really felt comfortable or “prepared” to use our presentations as a vehicle for activism. But nowadays it comes naturally to me.

What advice do you have for new activists?

First of all, don’t wait until you feel like you are “ready” or “prepared” like I did. Just take the plunge and do it. You are as qualified as anyone else, and you are certainly entitled to an opinion.

Secondly, I think it’s a great strength to not be wedded to one particular cause. So often, many of these issues are tied together and affect one another. Whenever possible, work with others on their goals. Too often, we focus on our differences and we’re unwilling to compromise. Then nothing gets done. Instead of helping one another, we form circular firing squads. Whenever possible, we need to search for common ground, understand the concerns of others, and give them a helping hand. It’s an imperfect, diverse world, and if we hold back our support because of petty differences, we’ll create a dysfunctional world.