I will Speak Up, We All Must Speak Up!

Living in the world of today is a challenge. I am nearly 73 years old and thinking back to the 1960’s and even the 1970’s and all the significant social and political upheaval that led to a surge in social uprisings and movements. These movements led to protests and activism! 

Such as:

Racial Inequality

The Vietnam War

Women’s Rights

Civil Rights

Gay Liberation Movement

Never did I think we would go back in time!

I find it hard to wake up each day with some semblance of hope. Scary for sure! Never has there been such conflict and debate amongst my family, friends and our communities. It used to be that disagreements were common but not destructive. The differences between the left and the right, the far left and the far right, and even those in the middle is wide and generally non-negotiable. Friends are lost, and I am OK with that as trying to find common ground is hopeless. Even differences between family are avoided for the good of the family.

But to be honest, I do not want to live in fear and stand by and watch our world crumble. I refer to the Preamble of the Constitution, which was drafted in 1787 during the Constitutional Convention. For those who have forgotten…

“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, and establish this Constitution of the United States of America.”

How soon we forget! Those 52 words so perfectly written gave us the groundwork for our country. No one could imagine our country falling so far from those six principles. They were simply the goals of our government and it was never said that the system was perfect but in reality, a work that would grow and become a more perfect union that would always stand for those six principles.

Perhaps we should all take a course in American Civics and our Constitution and remember where we came from and the fight it took along the way. And now to see it all come crashing down by an administration filled with hate. Let’s go back:

“to form a more perfect Union” part of the first sentence of the Preamble to our Constitution: What does it mean? Not perfect now, as soon as the ink was dry, but embracing continuous improvement, united under a federal government. This Constitution would create a stronger government than the Articles of Confederation, enabled with defined limits and checks & balances. And today, where are we? 

Think about it. Our rights as citizens are being threatened and our mere safe existence is in jeopardy. For the first time in my life I am ashamed to be an American. We were never “perfect” but always strived to be.

“establish Justice” – Our founders had a very present understanding of British colonial rule. In contrast, they wanted to establish a fair system with consistent law, specifically to establish economic justice. And what does Economic Justice mean? Simply put: it refers to the concept of ensuring fair and equitable economic opportunities for all members of society. And what do we have today?

We cannot stand by and DO NOTHING. Our President, his power-hungry comrades taking key positions in his administration, and the majority of the Republicans in Congress are a threat to us all, my family, my friends and our way of life. I have had friends tell me to be patient that Trump has a plan and just needs time. And he won the election and he is simply our President. Well, thinking back, people said the same about Nixon and we all know what happened to him and his Comrades.

Disagreements are many and the list is growing each and every day. Just a few:

I will NOT BAN BOOKS

I will NOT PERSECUTE MINORITIES

I will NOT agree to lower taxes for the rich and not the middle class

I will NOT agree to help Trump use his Presidency to line his pockets and those of his family and comrades

I will NOT weaken and demolish all the laws in place to protect our environment

I will NOT destroy our National Park system

I will NOT destroy the basic CIVIL RIGHTS for all

I will NOT slash our Education system

And more….

But most of all, I WILL SPEAK UP. WE ALL MUST SPEAK UP!

Featured image: Photo by Samantha Sophia on Unsplash