Articles by Tim Hjersted | Films For Action

Tim Hjersted · Chomsky is 97 years old and recovering from a stroke. He cannot defend himself in this moment. It falls to those of us who understand his contributions, and who refuse to participate in guilt-by-association politics, to make the case...

The Fundamental Asymmetry of the Left vs Right Divide

Tim Hjersted · Let’s be plain. The left and the right are not two equal teams with different tastes.

A Letter to Liberals: On Lesser Evils and the Courage to Demand Better

Tim Hjersted · We hear it constantly: "You're too harsh on Democrats. You're helping Republicans by criticizing our side. Now is not the time—we need unity against the rising threat of fascism."

A Letter to Conservatives: On Power, Principles, and the Path Forward

Tim Hjersted · Our ask isn't that you become a progressive. It's for both loyal Democrats and loyal Republicans to stop defending their party uncritically and to challenge the rot in both parties, especially the one they think will be more responsive...

When Cheering for Murder Is Disguised as Patriotism

Tim Hjersted · To revel in the image of human beings being blown apart is to confess a kind of moral numbness that civilizations acquire only in their final stages of decay.

Those Cheering These Killings are Not Defending Civilization—They Are Dismantling It

Tim Hjersted · The moment we allow governments to kill without trial, we step out of the rule of law and into barbarism.

People Aren’t Being “Replaced” — They’re Being Distracted From Who Actually Robbed Them

Tim Hjersted · “Invasion” and “replacement” narratives function as cover stories for the corporate plunder of the working class, turning justified anger away from elites and toward scapegoats.

What Is Libertarian Socialism?

Tim Hjersted · Libertarian socialism is a political tradition that argues real freedom requires both personal liberty and democratic control over the economic institutions that shape our lives.

The Real Ideology Behind Reason Magazine's Anti-Socialist Crusade

Tim Hjersted · Reason Magazine presents itself as a courageous outsider “pushing back against socialism,” but its real and consistent function is far more familiar: it operates as an ideological shield for concentrated private power while marketing...

What the ‘Men in Crisis’ Narrative Hides About Power, Capital, and Discontent

Tim Hjersted · Steve Rose's framing of Scott Galloway as a kind of enlightened guide to “the crisis of men” is a useful illustration of how contemporary media systems manage dissent.

A Society Built on Scapegoats Will Always Destroy Itself

Tim Hjersted · If we’re serious about understanding what makes a society flourish - or disintegrate - history offers plenty of lessons. The idea that hatred, exclusion, and authoritarian nationalism could lead to “greatness” is not only unsupported by...

The Crisis Is Real, but the Story Is Wrong: What Scott Galloway Misses About Men, Power, and Society

Tim Hjersted · Galloway describes real symptoms facing young men, but his analysis leaves the political economy that produced those symptoms out of view. To understand the crisis, we have to step outside the self-help narrative and confront the system...

Public Grocery Stores Don't Lead to Monopolies — They’re a New Choice in a Rigged Market

Tim Hjersted · Critics say a public grocery program would limit consumer freedom, but unlike corporate monopolies, it expands it by adding competition, giving shoppers another choice and pushing private retailers to keep prices in check.

The Case for a Planetary Identity in an Age of Collapse

Tim Hjersted · A cosmic identity begins with the understanding that humanity is a single species — sharing not only a common biology and evolutionary history, but a shared capacity for consciousness, suffering, and ethical responsibility. It invites...

How Compassion Becomes a Wrench in the Machinery of Extremism

Tim Hjersted · “So you’re saying we should just be nice to fascists.”

Films For Action Reached 3 Million People Last Month Thanks to Our Patron Supporters

Tim Hjersted · Friends, over the past month our posts on Facebook got over 10 million views and reached more than 3 million people — almost double the month before. That's all thanks to you.

The 86 House Democrats Who Condemned Socialism Weren’t Defending Democracy—They Were Defending Concentrated Private Power

Tim Hjersted · When 86 House Democrats—including party leader Hakeem Jeffries—join Republicans to “condemn the horrors of socialism,” you don’t need a political science degree to understand what’s happening.

The Central Function of Race in America Has Been to Prevent Class Solidarity

Tim Hjersted · From the very beginning of the American project, race has been the primary tool for dividing the population against itself.

What Is the Opposite of Fascism?

Tim Hjersted · Fascism is not merely a set of authoritarian habits or unpleasant attitudes. It is a political arrangement designed to centralize power: the fusion of state authority with corporate interests; the suppression of dissent; the...

Why Progressives Need to Be More Critical of Corporate Democrats, Not Less

Tim Hjersted · A former supporter recently unfollowed Films For Action's Facebook page, which I admin, saying:

How to Defeat Concentrated Private Power: A Practical Guide to Chris Hedges’ Prescription for Change

Tim Hjersted · To defeat the rise of authoritarianism, Chris Hedges has called for mass movements, strikes and counter‑institutions to challenge corporate rule and revive democracy. This guide breaks down his suggestions into actionable steps.

Films For Action Wants Your Feedback: A Note for Friends and Critics

Tim Hjersted · Dear friends and critics, I care a lot about what our supporters think. I read most of the comments on our Facebook posts and I try to take in as many as I can.

Mamdani's Win Is Proof That an Organized Public Can Defeat Organized Money

Tim Hjersted · Zohran Mamdani’s election in New York City is not simply a local upset. It is a breach in the ideological dam that has kept American politics safely contained for generations.

Beyond Privilege, Guilt and White Culture: The Politics We Actually Need

Tim Hjersted · I keep hearing a similar story. Someone steps into “privilege” work hoping to grow, and instead walks away feeling shamed and under attack, as if their identity is the problem. One reader online put it starkly:

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Fought Crime Lords—Not Working Class People. They Would Oppose ICE.

Tim Hjersted · Common-sense immigration reform points to the world the Turtles fought to build; militarized dragnet deportations point to Shredder’s vision for the world. Any kid can see that. Why can’t we?

Debunking Gad Saad's "Suicidal Empathy" Theory

Tim Hjersted · Gad Saad’s “suicidal empathy” thesis is the kind of shallow culture-war framing that sounds clever in a tweet but falls apart when you look at it seriously.

The Stalin Card

Tim Hjersted · Every time someone critiques capitalism, or suggests alternatives like public ownership, workplace democracy, or real economic self-governance, you can count on a predictable response: someone parachutes into the comments with “Mao...

The Real Prison Is Traffic: Debunking The 15-minute City Conspiracy

Tim Hjersted · Most American towns before the 1950s were already 15-minute cities. What changed wasn’t freedom—it was corporations dismantling transit to profit from cars and sprawl.

How “Anti-Establishment” Conspiracies End Up Serving the Establishment

Tim Hjersted · I’ll be honest: my favorite conspiracy theories are the ones that sound anti-establishment, rebellious, and free-thinking — but in practice, they do the establishment’s work for them. The ones that get people so convinced they’re...

Israel's Strike on Iran Was Terrorism. No More Excuses. We Must Demand an Arms Embargo Now.

Tim Hjersted · Israel's unprovoked attack on Iran Friday has killed not only high-ranking military officials, but also six Iranian scientists, including two prominent nuclear experts. Nearly 80 civilians, including children, were also reported dead...

Never Forget? Never Forgive? Never Again?

Tim Hjersted · Let’s talk about memory, forgiveness, and the selective outrage that props up the logic of endless war.A commentor told Films For Action on a recent post:

How the Fantasy of Trump as an Anti-Establishment Rebel Protects the Status Quo

Tim Hjersted · A persistent fiction continues to capture the imagination of a significant segment of the American public — the notion that Donald Trump is, or ever was, an “anti-establishment” figure. It is a narrative so easily disproven by evidence...

Empire With Decorum: the Complicity of Cory Booker and the Crisis of the Democratic Party

Tim Hjersted · During Cory Booker's 25-hour speech, which many mistook for an act of moral courage, he never once mentioned the atrocities committed by our so-called ally, Israel. No acknowledgment of the white phosphorus dropped on civilian...

Toward a Sacred Cosmology of Belonging: to Heal the World, We Don't Need Shame or Blame, We Need to Remember and Reconnect

Tim Hjersted · In our search to understand the immense suffering caused by colonization, racism, and centuries of domination, it’s natural to feel anger, grief, even guilt. These are human responses to the recognition that something sacred has been...

Universal Basic Income: Answering The Common Objections

Tim Hjersted · Whenever the idea of a Universal Basic Income comes up, certain objections are raised almost immediately. These concerns deserve real answers. So here’s five of the most common objections, addressed plainly and clearly:

Why We Need a Workers' Bill of Rights in the Age of Automation

Tim Hjersted · There's a basic question hanging over the future of work that almost no one in power is asking out loud:

Stop Blaming Immigrants. Start Blaming the Real Criminals.

Tim Hjersted · Let's get something clear: undocumented immigrants commit less crime than U.S. citizens. This isn't speculation. It's not "just one study." It's the consistent finding of virtually every serious analysis over decades. Study after study...

10 Lessons for Stronger Movements

Tim Hjersted · Our real opponents are the billionaires, the war profiteers, and the politicians in both parties bought by corporate money—not the few imperfect allies we have in power, and not the working class people who vote or think differently...

The Deportation-Industrial Complex Is the New War on Drugs—And It's Just as Corrupt

Tim Hjersted · Spending hundreds of billions on mass deportation for non-violent civil offenses or misdemeanors is the “war on drugs” rebranded. And it’s true—just like the war on drugs, mass deportation doesn’t solve the root causes of anything. It...

The Self-Defeating Politics of the American Left

Tim Hjersted · Bernie Sanders has always been more flawed than many on the left would like. His refusal to call Israel’s actions in Gaza a genocide, along with several of his foreign policy votes over the years, have been disappointing. Bernie's...

The Real Sheepdogs of the Left

Tim Hjersted · In response to Bernie Sanders and AOC's "Fight Oligarchy" tour, the same chorus of voices rings out: “Don’t be fooled by these so-called progressives! They’re just sheepdogging for the Democrats!” They say it's just another trap...

The Right's Wokeness Problem

Tim Hjersted · Paul Graham’s recent essay on “wokeness” is useful—not because it offers an entirely sound analysis, but because it provides a fascinating case study in ideological blind spots.

The Illegality of Russia's War Does Not Justify Perpetual War

Tim Hjersted · The Russian invasion of Ukraine was a clear violation of international law. It meets the definition of a war crime under the UN Charter’s prohibition on the use of force, barring cases of self-defense.¹

Elon Musk Is Wrong: Without Empathy, Civilization Ceases to Be Anything Worthy of the Name

Tim Hjersted · Elon Musk’s attack on empathy is an old reactionary trick. First, he sets it up with a weak disclaimer:

10 Ways to Fix America's Rigged Monopoly Game

Tim Hjersted · Alright folks. Real talk. We’ve reached a point where the top 1% owns more than the bottom 90% combined. That’s not a bug in the system—it’s the system working exactly as designed.

The Left Needs to Learn the Difference Between Imperfect Allies and Our True Opponents

Tim Hjersted · Tearing down the few allies we have in power is a gift to the establishment. The problem isn't their imperfections. It's that there's only a few of them instead of hundreds.

#DemEnter + #DemExit: A Unified Playbook for Beating Corporate Democrats and Republicans

Tim Hjersted · How do we take on the corporate establishment that has captured both the Democratic and Republican parties? This article proposes a strategy that unifies the two main approaches.

The Phantom Menace of “Equality of Outcome”

Tim Hjersted · The right’s fixation on “equality of outcome” as a specter haunting the Western world is not merely a misunderstanding. It is a deliberate fabrication, a straw man conjured to divert attention from the real issue: inequality.

Why People Hate Socialism—and What It Actually Is

Tim Hjersted · Socialism is one of the most vilified and misunderstood ideas in modern political discourse. The number one reason for this hatred? Most people have no idea what socialism actually is.

65 Documentaries Inspiring the Transition From Empire to Earth Community

Tim Hjersted · We are living in a time of profound transition, a moment when humanity must choose its path forward. The old systems—of empire, domination, and exploitation—are showing signs of weakness, and in their wake, we have the opportunity to...

It's Time to Abolish Private Health Insurance

Tim Hjersted · We must challenge the logic of empire and violence—both state-sanctioned and vigilante, Tim Hjersted writes, while urging a shift to collective, nonviolent action to dismantle the profit-driven healthcare system.

The Real Climate Scam Is Business as Usual — Here's How We Challenge It

Tim Hjersted · Capitalism thrives on profiting from crisis—it sold us lies about cigarettes, sugar, and opioids, and now it's doing the same with climate change. Fake solutions and disinformation aren't accidents; they're the business model.

The Real Agenda Behind Mass Deportations

Tim Hjersted · Trump’s mass deportation plan, though framed as a way to protect American jobs, actually helps corporations exploit workers and harms the U.S. economy. Here’s how: 🧵

This Post-Election Take Is Going Viral for the Best Possible Reason

Tim Hjersted · It's true.

Instructions for Courageous Living in a Broken World

Tim Hjersted · In a world marked by division, inequality, and growing despair, navigating daily life with integrity and purpose can feel overwhelming. Yet, even amid this brokenness, profound change is possible through acts of radical compassion.

Vote for Our Movements, Not Politicians: a Strategic Guide to Elections, Where Activism Matters Most

Tim Hjersted · This is a guide to think less like a voter and more like an activist.

Not Voting In Protest Is a Trap: Real Impact Requires Material Strategy, Not Symbolism

Tim Hjersted · Strategic materialism + activism > symbolic protest at the ballot box or the couch.

Kamala Harris: Heed the People's Call. Arms Embargo Now!

Tim Hjersted · We are living through this generation's WW2 moment. What will we tell our children when war crimes, including the crime of collective punishment, was committed against the Palestinian and Lebanese people with the complicit support of...

Trump’s Victory Won’t Push the Democrats Left — It’ll Only Weaken Our Movements

Tim Hjersted · "It’s one thing to criticize neoliberalism; it’s quite another to imagine that a fascist regime will provide better conditions for our movements to flourish."

A Strategy to Unite Green Party and Democratic Voters

Tim Hjersted · A concerted campaign to vote Green in Red states and Blue in Swing-States could be the key to shaking up the political system and uniting progressives.

The Myth of Far-Left Extremism: How Common-Sense Ethics Are Framed as Radical

Tim Hjersted · The real extremists are the corporate and political elites who wear $5,000 suits and calmly explain why war, profit and greed are good on the evening news.

The Tyranny of the Majority Myth: How Elites Tricked Us Into Fearing Democracy

Tim Hjersted · Heard that old saying "democracy is the tyranny of the majority? It was propaganda invented by elites.

The Tragedy of Weaponized Hurricane Conspiracy Theories

Tim Hjersted · The tragedy of the theory that the U.S. government is manipulating hurricanes is that it redirects anti-establishment energy back towards support for the status quo.

Division by Design: How Enemy Images Are Used in Polarizing Societies

Tim Hjersted · A brief primer on "enemy images" and how power structures deploy them to rally support for military and political agendas.

Should Progressives Abandon Harris? Not If Getting an Arms Embargo Is Our Goal.

Tim Hjersted · Do the Democrats deserve to be abandoned for their complicity in supporting genocide? Absolutely. Is this a wise strategy, if getting a ceasefire and arms embargo is our goal? History and Trump suggests no. It will make the task far...

The Top 250 Documentaries We Can Use to Change The World

Tim Hjersted · Hungry for change? These documentaries light the way by showing examples of people fighting against the status quo, creating alternatives and living a more beautiful world into being.

What I Learned From Reading Osama Bin Laden's 2002 "Letter to America"

Tim Hjersted · Pro-war Israel supporters today are invoking the same logic Bin Laden used to justify the 9/11 attacks. This theory, which justifies the war crime of collective punishment, is morally bankrupt no matter who promotes it.

To My Liberal Friends Who Support Israel's War: This Is Not What Defense Looks Like

Tim Hjersted · According to a December poll, 76% of Democrats and 61% of Americans support a permanent ceasefire. That still leaves 24% of Democrats who support Israel's war on Gaza.

Our Job Is to Speak Out Against the War Crimes of Our Own Government and Its Allies

Tim Hjersted · Some people say our calls to #CeaseFireNow should be directed towards Hamas rather than Israel. But there’s a good reason for focusing on Israel, which I’ll pose with a question: which crim

How The "15 Minute City" Conspiracy Theory Fooled People Into Fighting for The Status Quo

Tim Hjersted · A bunch of "free thinkers" on the internet want you to believe walkable, healthier cities are a plot to enslave you.

How “Inhabitants” Helps Us Remember the Knowledge That Sustains Life

Tim Hjersted · Inhabitants is an inspiring documentary about the work many of our indigenous relatives are doing today to restore our world.

The "No Illusions" Guide to Elections: Vote to Choose Your Opponent, Then Organize!

Tim Hjersted · This guide is for people who are ambivalent about voting in elections. It directly addresses the objections of the "don't vote" position while finding common ground. To summarize the position of this guide: "Year-round activism +...

Twenty Media Education Foundation Documentaries Are Coming to Films For Action!

Tim Hjersted and Films For Action · Hi all. I'm thrilled to announce a new partnership with the legendary nonprofit film studio, the Media Education Foundation.

What Activists Can Too Easily Forget

Tim Hjersted · Activism today, call it engaged citizenship, ought to have more humility than it often does, and perhaps a bit more compassion and curiosity, too. No matter how great our understanding, we'll always have something valuable to teach and...

Thich Nhat Hanh Was One of the Great Spiritual and Activist Teachers of Our Time. Rest in Love, Dear Brother!

Tim Hjersted · Beloved teacher, activist, and Zen Buddhist master, Thich Nhat Hanh, has died peacefully at 95.

Films for Patrons: Donate $5/Mo and Gain Access to These Great Documentaries

Tim Hjersted · Films For Action hosts the largest collection of free films related to social change online. Started by a few friends in 2006, we're a home-grown media library dedicated to empowering citizens with the knowledge essential to creating a...

The War on Crime Is Really a War on the Poor – A Civilized Society Would Simply Abolish Poverty

Tim Hjersted · Invest in people, not prisons.

Planet of the Humans Is the Media Literacy Exercise of the Year

Tim Hjersted · "In disputes upon moral or scientific points, let your aim be to come at truth, not to conquer your opponent. So you never shall be at a loss in losing the argument, and gaining a new discovery.” - Arthur Martine

What Would We Do If There Was No One to Blame?

Tim Hjersted · Bill Mckibben, Planet of the Humans, and the power we gain when we stop seeking villains

23 Films to Watch After (Or Instead Of) Planet of the Humans

Tim Hjersted · So you just watched Planet Of The Humans, and your spirits are feeling pretty crushed.

Voters Guide: Use Your Vote to Choose Your Opponent

Tim Hjersted · This guide explains why "year-round activism + voting" is the best strategy for creating the world we want. Voting alone won't do it, but "year-round activism + not voting" needlessly puts us at a tactical disadvantage. Spending 1 day...

Thanks to Our Patreon Supporters, We Hit Our 2nd Major Funding Goal!

Tim Hjersted · My friends, this is huge! Thank you so much for making this happen.

Humans Are Not a Virus - the Virus Is a Cultural Ideology

Tim Hjersted · This bears repeating: Humans are not inherently toxic, sinfl or destructive. Humanity is not a cancer.

The New Story Revolution: Over 75 Films & Articles About the Movement With Many Names

Tim Hjersted · "It’s all a question of story. We are in trouble just now because we are in between stories. The Old Story—the account of how the world came to be and how we fit into it—sustained us for a long time. It shaped our emotional attitudes...

All I Ask Is That You See My Humanity, Which Means Seeing the Humanity in All People

Tim Hjersted · With this foundation, I think we can have healthy disagreements.

Voting Is a Chess Move, Not the Whole Game

Tim Hjersted · "Voting is a chess move, not a valentine. And here's the joy of being politically engaged all year round every year; you get to work with a whole lot of chess pieces and players and strategies and longterm visions, so you don't agonize...

We Did It! - 2018 Fundraising Goal Reached!

Tim Hjersted · Thanks to 251 amazing people, we hit our fundraising goal for 2018!

Ideological Hegemony: How Our Own Thoughts Became the Greatest Weapon of the Ruling Class

Tim Hjersted · "Ideological hegemony is the process by which the exploited come to view the world through a conceptual framework provided to them by their exploiters." - Kevin A. Carson

37 Documentaries About War That the US Government Doesn't Want You to See

Tim Hjersted · These documentaries expose the ugly truth about war and the governments who wage them. The US government is focused on in this collection because I am based in the US, and it is every citizen's duty to call out and name the crimes of...

Radical Kindness Is Liberating: A Guide to Engaging with Wisdom Online

Tim Hjersted · A few years ago, Maria Popova wrote an article on how to criticize with kindness, based on the work of philosopher Daniel Dennett.

A Surprising Strategy to Combat Hateful Ideologies: Offer Them More of What They Truly Want

Tim Hjersted · Lately, I've been interested in exploring how we can apply this strategy to combatting white supremacy and other harmful, extremist and violent ideologies. Obviously, the goal would not be to show them how following us will help them...

The True Purpose of Government Should Be Investing in People, Not Empire

Tim Hjersted · What is the true purpose of government? Critics would rightly say it's to control and dominate because that's the nature of every government we've known. Every government since the days of feudalism has been corrupted in some form...

When Our Children Become Killers, Gun Reform Isn't Enough. We Need to Redesign Our Society

Tim Hjersted · What can we do to create a culture where none of our children grow up to become killers?

Family Philosophy: a Form of Privilege or Good Fortune That We Never Talk About

Tim Hjersted · Depending on where you start on this journey it can take many many years to unlearn what we are conditioned to believe by our toxic culture.

"Whiteness" Was a Term Invented by Elites to Suppress Multi-Racial Rebellions & Divide the Working Class. It's Time to Give It Up.

Tim Hjersted · Many of us have heard the arguments for discarding the faulty logic behind "white pride" but what about "whiteness" itself?

Top 15 Documentaries That Explain Why the Occupy Wall Street Movement Was Born

Tim Hjersted · Starting with the most relevant at the top, these are the best documentaries that capture the spirit and motivation of the #OWS movement.

We All Suffer in This Love-Desert Society That We've Created - Is There an Alternative?

Tim Hjersted · Presently, most of the people in our culture believe that competition, possessiveness, and jealousy are all acceptable responses when we love someone. But is this really true, independent of culture or custom?

The Anarchist Revolt Against the Ideology of Not Voting Is Finally Taking Shape

Tim Hjersted · Anarchists have traditionally opposed voting for a variety of ideological reasons. For many, not voting is held as a badge of honor - a way of signaling one's commitment to anarchist theory. I've often thought that this belief in not...

Is Capitalism Really the Best We Can Do? Actually, No.

Tim Hjersted · We can do so much better than this.

The Privilege of Not Caring Cannot Exist When True Love Is There

Tim Hjersted · The notion of privilege exists because most people do not live in the spiritual dimension of life. We live in a culture that is based on a matrix of separation.

Looking Forward to the Day That Nationalism Is as Reviled as Racism

Tim Hjersted · Nationalism is a form of geographical racism that makes some lives matter more than others, and explicitly justifies that logic without apology. While today, not even lying corrupt politicians will outright say that racism is...

One "Piece of the Oppressor" That I Have Discovered Within Myself

Tim Hjersted · One "piece of the oppressor" that I have found in myself during my inner activist journeys is my use of shame as a method of engaging with the world's problems. Having learned that "shame" is a tool that has been used by the world's...

The Compassionate Activist Toolkit: The Ultimate Guide to Activism That Doesn't Reproduce The Status Quo

Tim Hjersted · Compassionate activism is activism that is rooted in an underlying compassion for all beings. It is an activism that resists the strong urge we all face to dehumanize our opponents, as they often do to us, and we often do to them. This...

There Is No One Right Way to Be an Activist

Tim Hjersted · There is no one right way to be an activist. There is no one right way to change the world. There is no one right philosophy of leftist politics. There is no one right solution to the massive problems we're facing.

Films For Action: What We Are Here For

Tim Hjersted · It's hard to believe Films For Action has been around now for 10 years. From our early years focusing on local film screenings to our more recent years, focusing on raising awareness globally via our website and social media, our...

On Ending Racism and the Need for Holding Simultaneous Realities

Tim Hjersted · One of the things I've been reflecting on a lot lately is the importance of holding simultaneous realities in our hearts and awareness at the same time. When it comes to ending the violence and divisions of racism, nationalism, and...

Is This - the Love Journey? Is This the Only One?

Tim Hjersted · You meet them, you get to know them, you date them, you learn about them. You have sex with them. Finally, you love them. You live with them. You marry them. You have kids with them. You grow old with them. Is this, the love journey? Is...

What Is My Activism Really About? to Love, Serve and Remember

Tim Hjersted · I have made a promise to this world that I will carry with me to my last days. It is my vow to lessen the suffering of the world while I am here - it is to ensure that every toxic legacy that I inherited from our culture ends with me ...

My Favorite Definition of Privilege

Tim Hjersted · My favorite definition of privilege is 'thinking something's not a problem because it's not a problem to you.'

15 Films That Explain Why the Political Revolution Must Continue Past November and Beyond

Tim Hjersted · No matter who we vote for or who gets elected, the revolution must continue. These films remind us why.

15 Films Inspiring and Illuminating the 'New Story' Revolution

Tim Hjersted · Charles Eisenstein is one of the first people I heard talk about the "new story," synthesizing a diverse movement that has been emerging for the last several decades. When I go back far enough, I first heard about these ideas from...

7 Solutions We Can Support Right Now to Transition to a Resource Based Economy

Tim Hjersted · One of the downsides of presenting such a visionary solution to our global crisis is that it's hard to know where to begin, beyond raising awareness. The gap between where we are now, and where we'd like to go appears so great that it...

Did Sanders Break His Promise to Take the Nomination All the Way to the Convention?

Tim Hjersted · He did promise he would, so that helps to explain some of the anger and disappointment with his endorsement.

Why Did Bernie Endorse Hillary? Here's One Explanation.

Tim Hjersted · He's playing the long game. If Sanders had gone third party, split the votes and then Trump got elected, it would have divided the left and set back the momentum and gains the Sanders/progressive movement has made another 10 years. The...

Don't Let Bernie Endorsing Hillary Distract You From What Matters

Tim Hjersted · There's been quite a lot of anger, disappointment and attention on Bernie's decision to endorse Clinton the last couple weeks. But I've started to believe this attention on Bernie has become a big distraction from the fact that the work...

A Few Thoughts After the #Blacklivesmatter Vigil in Lawrence, KS Tonight

Tim Hjersted · After tonight's ‪#‎BlackLivesMatter‬ vigil, I don't have the words to speak to how powerful and moving this event was. It appeared there was about

Police Terrorism Has Created a Climate so Dangerous the Police Are Being Counted Among Its Victims

Tim Hjersted · This may be hard to hear but the truth isn't aided by mincing words.

Privilege Discourse Has Noble Intentions but Perhaps It's Time to Consider Its Unintended Impacts

Tim Hjersted · Privilege discourse has noble intentions but it seems that it is used far too often in practice to guilt and shame others for things they don't have control over. If education and empathy (and not shame) is the goal, it might be better...

22 Documentaries That Tell the Truth About How Government Really Works

Tim Hjersted · And 6 that show how people are responding.

The Case for Strategic Voting in Elections

Tim Hjersted · Vote‬ defensively. Vote offensively. Vote when there is someone worth voting for. Vote locally where we have more agency over the outcomes. Vote to protect our movements, which is the real source of our power.Reject ideologies that...

Maybe the Humans in Interstellar Wouldn't Have Wrecked Their Planet If They Had Stopped Monocropping

Tim Hjersted · Did the brainiac space man played by Matthew Mcconaughey ever stop to consider the possibility that continuing to rely on massive homogeneous corn fields was driving the death of the planet? No, no he did not. This parody video isn't...

What Do You Think When You Hear People Say That 'We're All One'?

Tim Hjersted · Sometimes I feel this sense of "oneness" in my body and it's hard to describe, but I say 'we're all one' as a verbal way to describe the feeling. At other times oneness is an intellectual idea that I know to be true but I don't feel it...

90 Inspiring, Visionary Films That Will Change How You See the World in Profound Ways

Tim Hjersted · The world today is in crisis. Everybody knows that. But what is driving this crisis? It's a story, a story that is destroying the world. It's a story about our relationship to the world and to other humans, but we take this story for...

When Anarchism Becomes a Religion

Tim Hjersted · I love the core spirit of anarchism. But like most philosophies, oftentimes the spirit gets lost as it gets codified into a religion.

Traditional Gender Norms Are Imprisoning All of Us - Let's Be Whole Human Beings

Tim Hjersted · The world needs all of us to become healers. It needs us to nurture the sacred feminine and the sacred masculine that lies dormant to various degrees w

One Example of How the Left Has Internalized the Ideology of Their Oppressors

Tim Hjersted · Leftist: "If you think something will change if you vote for a different politician then you might not understand how the system works..."

Consumerism Lies at the Heart of Our School System's Educational Purpose

Tim Hjersted · A stream-of-consciousness reflection on the state of school, civilization, capitalism and the way we live our lives.

Why I'm Supporting Bernie Sanders in the Primaries, but Am Endorsing the Movement

Tim Hjersted · And why the 'vote / don't vote' debate has been one of the greatest strategic disasters of our time.

Our Culture Is Driving the World Towards Homogenization on Every Level, but We're Not Even Aware of It

Tim Hjersted · A long, long time ago, an idea was born.

The Letters P L U R in Terrorism

Tim Hjersted · I wrote this 14 years ago, when I was a senior at Free State High School, just a couple days after September 11th, 2001. Somewhat unbelievably to me now, I actually stood up in front of my civics class and read this aloud in front of my...

Reflections on Privilege Theory: Why I'm Looking for a Better Way to Communicate This Idea

Tim Hjersted · Does privilege theory offer an adequate lens to challenge oppression and help those it is intended to help?

It's Hopeless, What a Relief! (A Letter for the Hopeless)

Tim Hjersted · If it makes sense to feel hopeless about the future, maybe what we need right now is some 'profound nonsense.'

The Top 100 Documentaries We Can Use to Change the World

Tim Hjersted · A more beautiful, egalitarian and regenerative world is possible. Take this library and use it to inspire global change!

To Vote or Not to Vote: for Anarchists, Is There Only One True Way?

Tim Hjersted · People can say with conviction and confidence that voting will never make a difference - but it's still a belief, and possibly one that may be too ideological for our own good, as it can skew our perception of reality.

What I Learned After Reading About Privilege Theory for 9 Hours

Tim Hjersted · So one particular night I went on a knowledge binge and spent 9 hours reading about privilege theory. Below you'll find excerpts and links to most of the articles I read.

If We Want to End This World's Tragic Cycles of Violence, We're Going to Have to Do Something Extremely Radical

Tim Hjersted · When every cultural force beckons us to hate, to harden our hearts and vilify the other, we must have the courage to look, deeply, with an intention to understand.

If Your Gut Response to #Blacklivesmatter Is #Alllivesmatter, Read This.

Tim Hjersted · There are myriad reasons why the rallying hashtag for the movement that grew out of ‪#‎Ferguson‬ is ‪#‎BlackLivesMatter‬ and not

To See the World With Eyes Unclouded by Hate

Tim Hjersted · With every new terrorist attack we hear about in the news, whether it be by ISIS, a white supremacist or military general of a powerful nation, I think back on this piece. The thoughts I wrote here continue to stay with me every time a...

The Story That's Destroying the World

Tim Hjersted · Let me start by saying something that sounds controversial but actually isn't:

When We Judge a Person Harshly With a Label or Dismissal, We Kill the Human Being Inside of Them

Tim Hjersted · No person or group of people is ever one thing. Inside each of us are a thousand diverse aspects - evolving dimensions.

Why Do so Many People Get Lost in Drugs Instead of Making a Life That You Don't Need to Escape From?

Tim Hjersted · "I believe, inherently, that the structures of society are driving us mad. Though most of us believe ourselves to be fairly well-adjusted, healthy individuals, we are all patients in the asylum together now."

If Someone Doesn't Love You, It's Not Because of You. It's Because Our Society Has Taught Us Not to Love

Tim Hjersted · How many of us seek out a relationship, want to find companionship with someone because we are afraid of loneliness? How many of us think that we could be with anyone we want but are, in moments of doubt, afraid that no one will love us?

A Story to My Grandson

Tim Hjersted · One night a young man and his grandfather walk down to a pond where they sit amongst trees and the swaying cattails at the foot of the water. The grandfather looks out reflectively at the stars, the wrinkles of his eyes squinting in his...

Can We Talk About Sustainability Without Talking about Religion and Spirituality?

Tim Hjersted · It would seem there are certain strands of thought within many religions that are highly unsustainable, for the health of individuals, society and the planet as a whole.

Stunning Animation of Every Protest from 1979 Reveals Earth's Immune System Trying to Heal Itself

Tim Hjersted · Stay with it till the end. Wow. Does it look like the Earth's immune system is waking up to you too? Via

The US Narrative on Syria Is a Lie: Now Is The Time to Use Facebook as a Microphone for Truth

Tim Hjersted · The corporate media has once again become complicit in promoting the propaganda and disinformation put out by the US government. Like all good propaganda, success is defined partly by framing and limiting the debate to questions which...

The Emergent Conspiracy of Culture: How the Ruling Class Is Held Captive to a Toxic Cultural Story Like the Rest of Us

Tim Hjersted · Is mass media used to manipulate the public? Yes, undoubtedly so. Numerous examples illustrate this point, with intellectuals like Noam Chomsky and Norman Solomon highlighting it, and figures like

People Are Waking Up

Tim Hjersted · People are waking up. They're getting involved. They're saying, "Not another day! This is where I mark the line." Their desire to change the world is turning from simple wishful thinking on Monday mornings into tangible action. The...

From Education to Economics: These Are The 40 Best Social Change Documentaries You Have to See

Tim Hjersted · Over the last 7 years, Films For Action has been cataloging an online library of the best social change films that can be watched free online. Opting for quality over quantity, the site has grown slowly to include 500 documentaries and...

From Consumerism to Climate Change: 41 Outstanding Documentaries You Have to See

Tim Hjersted · Over the last 7 years, Films For Action has been cataloging an online library of the best social change films that can be watched free online. Opting for quality over quantity, the site has grown slowly to include 500 documentaries and...

New World Order or Business as Usual? -- an Open Letter to Supporters of Infowars and Alex Jones

Tim Hjersted · Many of you have visited the Films For Action website and asked us why we have not posted any Alex Jones documentaries or included Infowars, Prision Planet, Natural News or other like-minded sites on our list of recommended independent...

The Best Social Change Documentaries of 2012

Tim Hjersted · 2012 was another big year for break-out films in the social change genre. With most of the bases covered for all of the major problems we're facing, more and more films this year focused on the solutions side of the equation, giving a...

Top 25 Censored Stories Of 2013 and a List of Independent Alternatives to the Corporate Media

Tim Hjersted · Every year Project Censored puts together a list of the top 25 stories censored and ignored by the mainstream media. The recently published Censored 2013 covers the period between 2011-2012.

The Top 10 Documentaries About the Israel / Palestine Conflict

Tim Hjersted · No issue may be more contentious or more misunderstood than the conflict between Israel and Palestine. Hatred, fear, religion, politics, propaganda, media misinformation, and decades of cyclical violence has made understanding the roots...

The 15 Best Documentaries About Climate Change, Free to Watch Online

Tim Hjersted · Here's a round-up of the 15 best documentaries about climate change. Click the title of each film below to watch.

The Truth about 9/11 Isn't Black or White - It's Time our Media Reflected This

Tim Hjersted · With the anniversary of September 11th, 2001 being remembered today, we can expect America and our media to look back once again on this turning point in our nation's history.

How Films For Action Began, and Where It's Headed

Tim Hjersted · This is a little window into our strategy to help catalyze a Global Paradigm Shift

Profit Is Theft: It Sounds Absurd but Here's Why

Tim Hjersted · The disparity between what the average worker earns and what CEOs take home is staggering — and it makes clear that the 99% does, in fact, need a raise. But while fighting for a $15 minimum wage is important, we also have to recognize...

Taboo or Not, Journalists Have a Duty to Report the Full Truth about 9/11

Tim Hjersted · What is the full truth of 9/11/2001? It is, quite simply, to tell all sides of the story.

The Best Social Change Documentaries of 2011

Tim Hjersted · 2011 will likely be remembered in America as the year that the nation's youth finally started to wake up - all that bubbling knowledge of the world's problems, all the discontent and disillusion with our broken system finally burst into...

The Top 10 Films That Explain Why the Occupy Movement Exists

Tim Hjersted · One of the most entertaining yet unsurprising aspects of Occupy Wall St has been the response from traditional media. Whether intentionally playing dumb or genuinely clueless, the mainstream media has failed to inform the public and...

Black Friday Is Buy Nothing Day: Here Are 10 Films to Inspire a Joyous Shopping-Free Holiday

Tim Hjersted · Since 1997, the biggest shopping day of the year in North America has also been known as Buy Nothing Day - a playful protest against the cultural and commercial pressures that compel us to consume more every year, grow more in debt to...

Dealing With Uncertainty: Why Reaching Out to Young People Is so Important

Tim Hjersted · What does a young kid do when she realizes that the map she's been given by her parents and school teachers to navigate this world is almost entirely outdated?

Raising Awareness: Why We Shouldn't Take It for Granted

Tim Hjersted · A lot of people knock raising awareness as being too abstract. But when you consider it as a strategic first step in the larger picture, taken concurrently with other actions, I don't think we can underestimate its significance.

The Root Problem Is the Root Solution: How We Can Fix Our Democracy and Create a Sustainable Future

Tim Hjersted · So, I was trying to get my friend to read a recent issue of Adbusters magazine.

Huff & Puff It Down - Towards a Vibrant Indy-Media Ecology

Micah White & Tim Hjersted · Arianna Huffington has betrayed us, so let's huff and puff her house down.

The New Website is Live!

Tim Hjersted · Oo-de-lally!! After twelve months in development, the site has finally gone live!

What's It Going to Take to Heal the Apathy in Our Society?

Tim Hjersted · With a growing awareness of mounting ecological, economic and social problems, there exists many growing currents of response.

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