For a long time, people expected Black women to fight. They praised us for being strong, selfless, independent, and always on the front lines. But now, many Black women feel exhausted. We refuse to carry every cause while receiving little in return. We no longer accept being seen as warriors first and women second. That’s why more Black women are not protesting on April 5—they are choosing rest, ease, and joy. This shift doesn’t mean we don’t care about the world. It means we finally care about ourselves. And after seeing the state of the country just months into Trump’s second term, rest feels less like retreat and more like a necessary boundary.
Kamala Harris Warned Us—Now Black Women Are Resting
Just two days before the April 5 protests, former Vice President Kamala Harris gave her first major speech since the 2024 election loss. At the Leading Women Defined Summit, she addressed a room full of powerful Black women and didn’t hold back. “We’re seeing people stay quiet,” she said, calling out the silence and fear she believes now define Trump’s America. And though she claimed she wouldn’t say it, she did: “I’m not here to say ‘I told you so.’” The crowd laughed and applauded, because everyone knew she was right.
Harris’s warning during the campaign was clear. She told the country what to expect if voters let Donald Trump back into the White House. And 92 percent of Black women listened. We showed up, we voted, and we pushed. But our warnings were ignored, and now the rest of the country is watching those predictions come true. So today, on April 5, when protests erupt across the globe, many Black women are not protesting. We’re not showing up to fix what others broke. We already sounded the alarm. Now, we’re choosing rest.
This isn’t the first time a leader has spoken of exhaustion. In our recent article reflecting on Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassination, we revisited his haunting words:
“I’m tired of living every day under the threat of death… I wanna live as long as anybody… And sometimes I begin to doubt whether I’m gonna make it through. I must confess I’m tired.” – Martin Luther King Jr
These were not the words of a man giving up—they were the words of someone who had given everything and was still expected to give more.
Black women today recognize that same burden. And like King, we are allowed to say: we are tired. We have done enough.
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Why Many Black Women Will Skip the April Fifth Protests
The call to protest on April 5 may be loud, but Black women have chosen a different path—one of intentional stillness. After decades of carrying movements and being the first to show up and speak out, many are quietly stepping back. This isn’t new. It’s a shift that’s been building for years, but today it feels especially urgent.
We see organizers sharing protest posters that feature Black women—often dark-skinned women—at the front. But those same women are now asking to be left out of the narrative. They’re not protesting, not because they don’t care, but because they’ve learned that being the face of every fight comes at a cost. Safety, energy, and mental well-being are on the line.
Today, rest is not a retreat—it’s a refusal to be used. It’s a boundary. It’s Black women saying: we did what we could. The weight now belongs to those who ignored the warnings and stayed silent when it counted.
The Work Was Never Shared Equally
Black women have long stood at the center of political change in the United States. In 2020, 92 percent of us voted for progress, helping to shift key states and secure the White House. We knocked on doors, organized our communities, and turned out in record numbers—not for praise, but because we understood the stakes.
Black folks on social media are warning Black Americans not to participate in an upcoming global protest against the Trump administration and Elon Musk.#MadameNoireHeadlines | Read More: https://t.co/qXT80t8cDw
— MadameNoire (@MadameNoire) March 31, 2025
📸: Getty pic.twitter.com/KoaDKGEF1E
But now, just a few months into Trump’s second term, we’re watching the fallout of an election many of us tried to prevent, including a $2.5 trillion stock market loss caused by Trump’s tariffs, marking the biggest single-day drop since 2020. While some activists are calling for mass protests, Black women are asking a different question: why should we always be the ones to clean up the mess?
This moment reveals what has always been true. Black women show up, often without support, only to be left holding the weight when things fall apart. Today, we’re choosing not to. This protest isn’t ours to carry. Let those who stayed silent, or voted against their own futures, pick up the weight.
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Black Women Are Choosing Joy Without Apology
On this April 5, Black women are not just stepping back from protests—they are stepping into something fuller. Influencers like Jackie Aina light candles, style their homes, and share beauty tips that feel like small acts of peace. Meghan Sussex invites us into her world through With Love, Meghan, where she bakes cupcakes, hosts friends, and decorates with care. These moments may seem simple, but they speak volumes.
Black women are breaking the cycle of urgency and exhaustion. We’re choosing to enjoy life on our own terms. We cook with intention, laugh with our friends, and let joy guide our days—not because we ignore what’s happening in the world, but because we’ve carried the weight of it for too long. There’s no need to prove our strength through burnout or show our care by being the first to fight.
Rest is not a luxury—it’s a right. Joy, too often framed as indulgent, is actually a form of survival. For many, choosing peace has become a long-term strategy for protecting both health and hope. When we set boundaries, we do so not out of weakness, but with wisdom and clarity.
Today, we send a message not through marching, but through stillness. Through softness. Through saying no. And that message is this: Black women deserve more than struggle. We deserve full, beautiful lives. Today, we rest—not because we’re giving up, but because we’re giving ourselves what no one else will.
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