Social Justice for the Sensitive Soul – A Book Review

As soon as I saw the title of this book, I felt it call to me. I want to be part of making the world around me a lot more just, and yet as someone who often feels overwhelmed by crowds, noise and emotional intensity, the challenge feels all but impossible.

The Introduction opens with this quote from Mahatma Gandhi, “In a gentle way, you can shake the world.” It goes on to tell the story of a young man who was afraid to speak in public and had many reasons to believe himself ill-suited to function in society, much less make a difference, yet did make a profound and history-making contribution to the world.

Part One begins with an exploration of what sensitivity means in the context of this book, why it is important for our world, how those who are sensitive can make a difference without overriding their own boundaries, and the value of collaboration with those whose emotional makeup is less influenced by subtleties.

Part Two offers guidelines for finding one’s own way of being an activist. The author invites us to discover our purpose without being confined by it, consider who our sources of support are, explore justice as a long-term theme of our lives rather than an all-consuming immediate activity or occupation, and to remember and reconnect with the places and spaces that contribute to our thriving.

Part Three discusses the many possibilities open to those who experience life with greater sensitivity. Each chapter explores a different category of contribution to society as a whole, and offers stories of people in history who have made a long term difference through occupations such as record-keeping, building, research, and others.

The author’s own sensitivity comes through in her writing style. Even though the book could be categorized as “personal growth”, she uses a lot of storytelling and has obviously acquainted herself well with her own strengths and vulnerabilities. While the premise of the book is that the world needs sensitive people, she points out often that “sensitives” need “nonsensitive” collaborators, even going so far as to relate her experiences with coworkers she has found “terrifying” and what she learned from each of them.

I most appreciated the author’s suggestion that those she calls “sensitives” might be able to effect change through short-term participation in activism, interspersed with other types of activities and/or employment that allow for recovery and renewal. She suggests that activism can be more of a theme for our lives, rather than a specific type of career or “mission”, and that it is no less important or effective for not being all-consuming.

The book closes with an appendix which discusses the various nuances which affect our sensitivity, be it empathic sensitivity, sensory sensitivity, introversion/extroversion, or high stimulation seeking sensitivity. While nothing in this section was new to me, I appreciated that she provided discussion of a few of the many ways in which we are each affected differently by our surroundings, relationships, and experiences.

The book was easy to read, yet also thought-provoking multiple times in each chapter. It’s one I will return to more than once to remind myself that it really is possible to “shake the world in a gentle way.”