Rest is Resistance: A landmark book about disrupting capitalism and reimagining our world

Rest is Resistance by Tricia Hersey is a book unlike any other. It addresses rest way beyond the act of relaxing. It’s a book about social justice, black liberation and healing for all. It’s one of the most path-breaking books I’ve read in recent times.

Writing a review of this book has been incredibly challenging. There are words of wisdom and insights throughout the book. I’ve highlighted almost the entire book.

The book is intentionally repetitive. Repetition is critical to introduce something so radical, yet simple and impactful. There’s a certain lyricism in Tricia Hersey’s writing which perhaps goes back to her being a spoken word artist.

Not once in her book does she mention self-care. She instead leans towards community care - which is holistic, reciprocal and inclusive. Unlike self-care which is more individualistic and can get performative. Community care is where true liberation happens for all.

She emphasises that rest is not a luxury or privilege like the dominant culture makes us believe. Rest she says is a divine right and a human right. “Rest is as natural as breathing and waking up. Rest is part of our nature.”

She invites us to disrupt capitalism and white supremacy via rest. She opens our eyes to show how “everything that has been told to us about rest, labor, sleep, leisure, and care has been a lie.” She calls us to release the shame that we feel when resting, stating it does not belong to us.

She encourages us to reimagine rest which is more than taking naps. Rest is also not about not working. She lists 20 things that rest can be from daydreaming to taking a long warm bath to laughing intensely. The emphasis is on doing whatever is restorative and nourishing to you. Here’s a book that motivates us to create a leisure space without having to take a vacation.

I loved the 4 tenets of The Nap Ministry. Each one of the tenets is powerful and thought-provoking. These tenets for me are a guiding light to help me stand tall in capitalist culture while challenging its ways. This book has inspired me to subvert “a system that has no pause button.”

Tricia Hersey pertinently says “I believe the powers that be don’t want us rested because they know that if we rest enough, we are going to figure out what is really happening and overturn the entire system. And the system doesn’t want that. It would crumple under the weight of this power.”

“When I say sleep helps you wake up — it helps you wake up to the truth of who and what you are.”

She talks about how deep-seated capitalism is in our world. From the time we come out of the womb to acculturation and indoctrination we go through school. Imagination and critical thinking are discouraged. Instead, we’re taught things that prepare us to become good candidates to serve a capitalist culture.

Tricia’s story about her grandmother Ora - a refugee from Jim Crow terrorism was heartfelt. It was inspiring to know how she took the radical stance of resting her eyes for 30 minutes every day. It was a form of resistance.

The story of the American maroons was incredibly inspiring and the best part about the book. The maroons' subversion of the mainstream exploitative culture has inspired me. It's motivated me to play outside the system to dethrone systemic ways that don’t work for me.

Her intent is to inspire us to believe that “We can build, rest, and usher in a new way that centers liberation and care, no matter what the systems continue to do.” This is motivating to subvert aspects of mainstream culture and play outside the capitalist system, even while being in it.

Tricia Hersey’s book has inspired me to daydream, rest and reimagine. To log out of the cult of busyness, urgency and productivity. To sink into the guidance of intuitive intelligence that I have access to when I rest. It’s helped me see through the lie of capitalism and allows me to rest in the truth that I’m enough.

I sincerely hope you enjoy reading this book as much as I did.
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