One year has passed since October 7th, a day of devastating loss. I write this while traveling across the U.S. on the #RevolutionaryLove Bus Tour, visiting 45 cities to connect with thousands of students, activists, and families. Everywhere we go, we are carrying the weight of immense grief.
We remember the 1,200 lives taken in Israel that day. We hold hope for the safe return of the 101 hostages still held. Our hearts are heavy for the 42,000 lives lost in Gaza since, including 16,765 children, and for the thousands missing. These numbers represent an unimaginable toll, especially the children, and the scale of violence makes it hard to resist despair. Here in the U.S., our calls for #CeasefireNow and for the return of all hostages feel ignored, as hate crimes soar, antisemitism and anti-Muslim violence spike, and student protesters face police brutality. In an election year, fear and division are weaponized to drive us apart.
But here’s what I’ve seen on the road: the forces that thrive on division want us to feel helpless, to believe that only violence holds power. Yet, I’ve met people from all walks of life who grieve both Palestinian and Israeli lives, who want safety for Muslim and Jewish communities, who long for an end to terror and occupation, who envision a future of coexistence and shared humanity. Millions of us know the truth: Revolutionary Love is the call of our time.
Our task now is to transform this pain into action, and that begins in community. Who will stand with you, breathe with you, and push with you as we face this together?
On October 7th, we gathered in Indianapolis to create a space for grief, to mourn all we have lost and connect struggles for liberation across the globe. We drew inspiration from ancestors like the #SageWarrior and their unwavering spirit, grounding ourselves in the stories of resilience and solidarity from Punjab to Palestine, Ukraine to Afghanistan. It was a night of shared tears, courageous conversations, and deep solidarity.
Local advocate Komal Chohan joined us to speak on strength in community. We first met after the 2021 FedEx mass shooting in Indianapolis, where four of the eight victims were Sikh. Komal has since raised her voice for the community as a whole, offering a reminder of the power of standing together.
In a moment of profound significance, Raghuvinder Singh joined us. We all watched as he shared a memory of his father, Baba Punjab Singh, who was shot in the 2012 Oak Creek Sikh Temple attack and remained unable to speak for nearly eight years. Every visit, Raghuvinder would ask, “Papa Ji, are you in Chardi Kala?” — a state of ever-rising spirits, even amidst darkness. Each time, his father blinked twice —yes.
If Baba Punjab Singh could find joy in the face of tragedy, so can we. This is the strength our ancestors have passed down to us: the ability to transform grief into courageous action through the power of community. We continue, for all the struggles before us, carrying forward this legacy of Revolutionary Love.
Thank you to @iamsonnysingh, @qaisessar, and @drninjakaur for music that opened our hearts that night, and to Mother Tracy Wells Miller, @mtrtracy, for twenty years of sisterhood and support. We invite you all to join us, to hold each other, and to build a world of love and justice.
Start here with our introduction to the compass. We teach ten core practices of revolutionary love, backed by research and infused with ancestral wisdom. Imagine these practices as points on a compass. Point the compass toward whomever you want to practice loving— another, an opponent, or yourself. Decide what practice you need. You can use this compass as a tool in all arenas in your life.