Autonomy and Community

Two words you will find often on our website and in other radical spaces are autonomy and community. I find that these two words are also co-opted and used as buzzwords by corporations and politicians. But what do they really mean?

Autonomy means having ownership and self-governance over oneself. In the example of reproductive justice, this means having ownership over your own body and having the opportunities to make your own decisions about your reproductive health. Community can be used in a wide variety of ways, whether that be the physical space we occupy or a group of people who belong to a specific social category. When we discuss community at What We Water we are referring to both of those things, as well the collective--whether that be your neighborhood, your loved ones, or the greater body. Autonomy and community are both important for radical love and determination, but on the surface can appear like they might come into conflict with one another. How can we be autonomous human beings while also working within and for the community? 

What We Water's focus this month is on autonomy and community. We want to show that these two concepts should not be thought of as separate entities that need balancing, but instead as two concepts that reinforce and feed each other. Being autonomous does not mean being individualistic, it means having the support systems (on the micro and macro levels) to be able to make your own decisions. Being autonomous means having a loving and supportive community around you to make sure you have the space to be your own person. Having a healthy community also means that each community member has the capacity to hold that space. This requires being autonomous individuals within the community. Knowing how to care for yourself and assert yourself will allow you to better care for your community.

To explore these two concepts, our content this month will cover a wide range of related topics. We hope that this work will help you do the work towards becoming the best community member and being more in touch with yourself. How can we show up for our communities if we do not know who we are and what our role is? How can we show up for ourselves if we do not have a supportive community around us? What We Water will guide you through your practice of connecting autonomy and community.