You may recall the epic speech that Maya gave last season about the burden of being a Black woman. It was one of the strongest feminist monologues that the series has ever delivered. And it marks a trend in Maya’s relationship with her headstrong daughter. Despite the means with which she achieves it — including high profile assassinations — Maya has always prioritized her own autonomy and freedom over anything else. This has been juxtaposed against Liv’s blind allegiance to the Republic to make her out to be the villain. But as the seasons go on, I find this to be more of a credit to Maya’s character. Audre Lorde famously said that, “Caring for myself is not self- indulgence, it is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare.” I think that Maya is a shining example of that in Olivia’s life. After all, the crisis manager is in a constant state of stress and trauma as she tries to make decisions about what is best for everyone except herself.