The Body Is Not an Apology, 2nd Edition

The Power of Radical Self-Love

by Sonya Renee Taylor

Humans are a varied and divergent bunch with all manner of beliefs, morals, and bodies. Systems of oppression thrive off our inability to make peace with difference and injure the relationship we have with our own bodies.

The Body Is Not an Apology offers radical self-love as the balm to heal the wounds inflicted by these violent systems. World-renowned activist and poet Sonya Renee Taylor invites us to reconnect with the radical origins of our minds and bodies and celebrate our collective, enduring strength. As we awaken to our own indoctrinated body shame, we feel inspired to awaken others and to interrupt the systems that perpetuate body shame and oppression against all bodies. When we act from this truth on a global scale, we usher in the transformative opportunity of radical self-love, which is the opportunity for a more just, equitable, and compassionate world—for us all.

This second edition includes stories from Taylor’s travels around the world combating body terrorism and shines a light on the path toward liberation guided by love. In a brand new final chapter, she offers specific tools, actions, and resources for confronting racism, sexism, ableism, homophobia, and transphobia. And she provides a case study showing how radical self-love not only dismantles shame and self-loathing in us but has the power to dismantle entire systems of injustice.

Paperback | 176 pages | Berrett-Koehler Publishers; 2nd edition | 2021

Sonya Renee Taylor is the founder and radical executive officer of the Body Is Not an Apology, a digital media and education company promoting radical self-love and body empowerment. Her work has been covered by HBO, BET, MTV, TV One, NPR, PBS, CNN, Oxygen Network, the New York Times, New York Magazine, MSNBC.com, Today.com, Huffington Post, USA Today, Shape.com, Ms. Magazine, and many more. She is a regular collaborator and artist with organizations such as Planned Parenthood, Association for Size Diversity and Health, Binge Eating Disorders Association, Greater than AIDS, and numerous others.