Standing Up
It’s been a fair number of days since the election, and I’ve had a lot of time to think about its results. I’ve done my best to analyze what it means, and ridden the emotional roller coaster that it caused, and I’ve come through it with a single piece of clarity.
His victory doesn’t change who I am.
I stand against people who commit sexual assault, trebly so against those who brag about it. I also stand against racism, misogyny, bullying, the abuse of power, and the demonization of humanity.
In short, I stand against Trump.
But I am not writing just about Trump. I’m also writing about you. If you believe that immigrants are animals who are poisoning the blood of our country, or that the LGBTQ population should be targeted for discrimination, or that the contributions and suffering of African Americans should be ignored, I stand against you. If you believe that women should be abused, I stand against you.
These are not political issues. They are moral ones.
Being principled is not a path of convenience, of sitting on our couches and shaking our heads in disbelief. Nor does it allow us to bend our souls to conform to popular opinion.
Instead, we have to ask ourselves what we can do.
The easiest and most obvious is to offer each other emotional support. Hopefully, we’ve already been doing that. It’s sort of a baseline of being human.
There must be more ways to resist the tide of darkness.
For my part, I have a rather limited skillset. I can write. I can code. I can juggle. On a good day, I can whistle cardinals down out of trees or speak with mourning doves.
Of these, I believe writing may be the most useful.
So, that’s what I’m offering. I will be seeking out opportunities where my writing can help those who are about to be targeted by the American government. Or, failing that, to shine a flashlight on the evil that is taking root in our government.
If you have a need for such writing, contact me. There will not be a charge.
It is not enough for us to be disappointed or depressed or outraged.
We must resist.
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