Today we’d like to introduce you to Venus Darling
Hi Venus, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I like to say that I serve where I’m needed. I started as a pharmacy technician at the peak of COVID, providing vaccines and dispersing medication to folks in North Minneapolis. It was there that I realized how deep gaps in medical access and education for marginalized communities. One of my favorite patients was a COVID vaccine-hesitant elder, he used to bring his granddaughter to the pharmacy every so often. At the time, children weren’t yet eligible for the COVID vaccine, and she was about to return to in person learning. So after six months of conversations and debunking Facebook myths he got vaccinated to protect his granddaughter. I have many stories from my time at the pharmacy just like this– this job that reinforced for me the power of patient, community-driven education.
During the 2020 uprising and onward, I worked as a protest medic, creating survival kits for people living in encampments offering free classes on overdose reversal, abortion care, and anti-racist theory. As the fight for reproductive rights intensified, I started working at Planned Parenthood, providing reproductive and gender-affirming healthcare education while also volunteering as a doula and abortion educator. One moment that stands out was when the police were called on one of my patients. A fellow nurse and I had to step in to de-escalate the situation, highlighting the many barriers that still exist in accessing compassionate care especially for black patients.
Over time, I realized much of my very necessary work was reactive—I was diagnosing the ailment and treating the symptoms. But anyone in public health will tell you that prevention is the best medicine. That realization led me to PPNA, where I focus on uplifting grassroots advocacy, curating events that foster community connection, and supporting initiatives like the Renter Support Fund to sustain our neighbors.
I’ve been blessed to play a role in dismantling systems of our manufactured suffering—and I’m committed to continuing that work.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Honestly, so much of this has been a natural evolution of myself. Interpersonally, I’ve been chillin’—but when it comes to my work, I’ve noticed how deeply people cling to what used to be, policing both themselves and others.
I’m a big proponent of radical optimism and imagination because I recognize that this world—shaped by white supremacist, capitalist, patriarchal exploitation—began as someone’s dream. If oppression can be imagined into existence, so can liberation.
Radical optimism and imagination aren’t just abstract concepts; they’re grounding and deeply personal. They push us to interrogate what we believe we “deserve” and what’s actually possible. They open the door for us to co-create a thriving reality with others, making us more adaptable in an ever-shifting political landscape. People forget that the American Revolution was once unimaginable, just as the divine rights of kings came to an end and African nations fought for independence. Progress demands that we participate in what has never been done before.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I specialize in community-driven advocacy, public health, and grassroots organizing, with a focus on reproductive justice, harm reduction, and housing equity. My work has always been rooted in meeting people where they are—whether that means ensuring access to essentials like Narcan and menstrual kits, helping cover rent, or providing education through classes and short video content.
I exist at many intersections, which makes me uniquely vulnerable, but that lived experience also gives me an equally unique lens. It allows me to approach advocacy with deep empathy, urgency, and a commitment to transformative (not reformist) change.
I am truly blessed that my role allows me the opportunity to connect with people invested in our collective betterment and reduce societal harms– Whether it was preventing police altercations with patients seeking care, or collaborating with local organizations on a housing campaign, my work reflects my politic of radical optimism and imagination. I understand that the oppressive systems we live under were once imagined into existence—so I dedicate my work to imagining and building something better.
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