Making “Inner Work” Political: Why We Need to Look at Our Baggage with Anthea Lawson

Thursday May 28th 2026

Doors & drinks at 6.30pm; Talk starts 7pm

When we're trying to do good – whether in politics, activism, charity or community work – it's easy to become attached to the idea of being good. Does that matter?

Anthea Lawson, a campaigner and author, has been investigating and documenting the saviour complex - that suite of unconscious motivations which can hide in the shadow of being 'good', and which lead to behaviours that can cut across our avowed purposes:

Moralising in lieu of strategy; Provision of information in lieu of building relationships; Purity politics and saviour heroics that bolster the shaky self, but impede connection; Internalisation of old Christian stories – albeit with God taken out – about saving and burdens.

None of this is inevitable if we are willing to look within at the stories that run us. But there are perennial obstacles to doing so as part of politics, not least the old binary between our inner lives and the outer world, an opposition that runs deep in western culture, in modernity and in patriarchy.

In this talk, Anthea will shine a light on progressive baggage and suggest some antidotes to its less helpful instructions, while thinking through, and countering, the obstacles to turning within as a necessary political project.

Anthea's talk will be followed by a one-pot vegan supper and plenty of time for discussion.

Kairos, 84 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 4TG

Doors open at 6.30pm for drinks. Talk starts at 7pm.

£15 Standard (includes Community Members); £10 Struggling financially; £10 Under 30s; £20 with Donation; £8 Frequent Visitor and Supporter Members. Food complimentary.

Before requesting a discounted ticket, please consider sincerely: Are you struggling to meet your basic needs? Would you have to make a genuine sacrifice to buy a full priced ticket? Do you have reduced earnings through a lifestyle choice or rather because you're dedicating your time to unpaid work relating to the climate and nature crises or as a result of structural inequality? If you're struggling to pay even the reduced price please contact us on events@kairos.london.

Please note that most of our events take place in our basement space and we do not have a lift so our venue is not fully accessible. Please get in touch if you have accessibility issues via events@kairos.london.

You can find our returns policy here.

You can find our Club Rules, including our no phone policy, here.