When “Grassroots” Starts to Feel Like Extraction

By Chelsea Lynn Wooton There’s a quiet group of people in activism who don’t talk much about why they leave. They don’t storm out. They don’t post dramatic exits. They don’t denounce anyone publicly. They just… stop showing up. Not because they don’t care—but because somewhere along the way, participation started to feel less like community and more like extraction. I’ve Shown Up I’ve marched. I’ve protested. I’ve stood outside in the cold with strangers for causes that matter. What I struggle with isn’t activism itself—it’s the spaces that claim to be welcoming while subtly demanding conformity, labor, and visibility on someone else’s terms. Many “grassroots” groups say they’re inclusive. But inclusion often comes with unspoken conditions: Be available Be loud Be physically present in cramped, overstimulating rooms Repost this Amplify that Recruit others Become a “champion” If you hesitate, you’re framed as disengaged. If you set boundaries, you’re labeled difficult. If you participate differently, you’re quietly sidelined. When Participation Turns Transactional I’ve lost count of how many times “participation” quietly turned into a request to repost someone else’s message, recruit on their behalf, or show up physically despite clearly stated limits. When I hesitated, the tone shifted—from curiosity to expectation. Nothing overt. Just the subtle sense that my value lay less in my perspective and more in my reach. For people with sensory sensitivities, chronic illness, caregiving responsibilities, or simply a different nervous system, this isn’t a minor inconvenience—it’s a barrier. And yet, we’re told this is what real engagement looks like. How Hierarchies Hide in Plain Sight What rarely gets named is how quickly some awareness-building spaces turn into hierarchies: A small inner circle sets priorities Others are invited to amplify, recruit, or validate Agency flows upward Labor flows outward It’s not always malicious. Often it’s born of urgency, burnout, or people doing too much alone. But impact matters more than intent. Good intentions don’t prevent harm when structures quietly incentivize extraction—especially from people who are thoughtful, visible, or already stretched thin. Choosing a Different Way to Engage Many of us choose quieter forms of resistance: Curated participation Selective visibility Engaging on our own platforms Supporting causes without enrolling in someone else’s structure That doesn’t make us apathetic. It makes us discerning. Not everyone is meant to fit neatly into a group. Not everyone thrives in performative solidarity. Not everyone wants to be recruited before being respected. What Healthy Movements Actually Look Like Healthier movements don’t demand enrollment to allow contribution. They: Offer multiple lanes of engagement (online, outdoors, asynchronous, anonymous if needed) Ask before amplifying someone’s voice—not after Share decision-making power instead of centralizing it Understand that sustainability isn’t a branding problem—it’s a structural one Collective action still matters. Scale still matters. But scale built on pressure, conformity, or unpaid emotional labor is fragile. Movements that respect autonomy don’t fracture—they endure. They don’t need everyone to show up the same way to move together. If This Sounds Familiar If you’ve ever felt smaller after showing up, quieter after speaking honestly, or more useful than welcome— You’re not imagining it. You’re responding to a model that confuses participation with compliance. Refusing that model isn’t disengagement. It’s discernment. And the future of grassroots work depends on it.