This morning, I stumbled upon a quote, one sentence from Dan Savage's podcast (someone I'd never heard of until today) about how activists fought during one of America's darkest chapters.

They were fighting a mountain of lies, that AIDS was a "gay plague" and heterosexual women were safe. That it wasn't worth researching. That it wasn't killing thousands. That it wasn't the government's problem.

The LGBTQ+ community fought back, and despite all odds, they transformed public health policy. They revolutionized how clinical trials work. They proved that grassroots activism could change history.

They showed that joy and rage could coexist, had to coexist, to sustain a movement.

Not just with protests, but with art.

With ACT UP die-ins that made the invisible visible.With plays like "Angels in America" that forced America to see what it was trying to ignore. With the AIDS quilt that turned statistics into stories.

That's not just a feel-good American underdog story, it's a blueprint.

Right now, we're watching a dangerous playbook unfold.

Yesterday, Trump's FCC chairman launched an investigation into NPR and PBS over "prohibited commercial advertisements" (they're not breaking any rules – these regulations have existed for decades).

This isn't random, this exact action is literally written in Project 2025 — Trump's blueprint for his first 180 days. You can read it for free here (don't give them your email). On page 246 of the plan (279 of the pdf file) they lay out their plan to eliminate funding for public broadcasting and specifically name NPR and PBS.

Here’s what authoritarians (and marketers tbh) know — If you can control the story, you can control everything else.

Putin used "foreign agent" laws to shut down independent media. Hitler called the press "lügenpresse" (lying press) before taking control of radio.

All so they could control the story.

Now we're watching manufactured investigations into public broadcasting.

Truth doesn't die just because you try to silence it, but they’re trying very very hard.

And SO MUCH is happening SO FAST.

Why do you think their playbook is only 180 days long?
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They think they can dismantle, divide and conquer, and steamroll us in an attempt to extinguish any fight we have left.

They think if they can overwhelm us, depress us, and make us lose all hope, they think we’ll lay down and die.

But if we refuse to lose hope and refuse to accept their story, they won’t succeed.

The AIDS activists proved that.

When the government wouldn't acknowledge the crisis, they created their own media. Their own art. Their own noise. They built power through community and joy even while literally fighting death.

Which brings me to what I’m writing about today.

I've been wrestling with how to show up in these times. How to balance talking about business while also acknowledging what's happening around us. And I've realized that we (or at least I) desperately need both.

We need profitable, sustainable businesses because money is power. Resources fuel resistance. Having the means to support what matters, to amplify important voices, to fund necessary change is crucial.

So this newsletter isn't going anywhere. We'll keep talking strategy, growth, and building something sustainable.

But I'm also writing something new.

A separate weekly letter dedicated to understanding what's happening (with historical context), using that context to share practical ways to resist, keeping our collective spirit alive, and most importantly, proving that hope isn’t naive.

While I can't cover every single horrific thing that’s happening, I'll focus on illuminating the most critical threats to democracy and civil rights - the ones that could fundamentally change our society if left unchecked.

More importantly, I'll share how we can recognize and thwart these threats before they take root.

The AIDS activists didn't just protest. They built community organizations that still exist today. They created art that still moves us. They found joy that sustained them through unimaginable loss.

They knew what we need to remember — collective action requires individual sustainability.

A hundred people doing what they can consistently is better than an unorganized gathering of a thousand.

Some days you'll have nothing left to give. On those days, I hope these emails can fill your cup enough to keep going.

And on the days when your cup overflows, my hope is that you’ll share that strength with someone else who needs it.

If you want to receive this additional newsletter (separate from my Business & Other Bad Words content), you can click here.​

I believe I can help people build powerful businesses AND fight injustices.

I believe we can be aware, face hard truths, AND find joy.

We can acknowledge darkness AND create light.

To truth-telling and joy-finding,

Olivia

P.S. If you know someone who needs either of these newsletters in their inbox – the business building OR the resistance sustaining – please forward this to them. The more of us building power and holding onto hope together, the harder we will be to break apart.

P.P.S. Someone will probably tell me to "stick to business." But I keep thinking about Mr. Rogers testifying before Congress on May 1, 1969 to save PBS funding. He faced John Pastore, a Democratic senator at the hearing who was known for being short and impatient. He shared stories about what his show did for children.

As Rogers was wrapping up, Pastore says, “Well, I am supposed to be a pretty tough guy and this is the first time I've had goosebumps for the last two days.”

To which Mr. Rogers replied, “I am grateful, not only for your goosebumps but for your interest in our kind of communication.”

We can do this.

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