When I was in high school, I was made to read “Profiles In Courage” by JFK. It’s really the only thing I remember from yet another Civics class that was as un-woke as you might expect in 1980’s West Virginia. It largely struck me as corny and irrelevant, stories of people long dead who did what was obviously the right thing… at least, from my vantage point in history. Of course those people did the right thing — it was obviously the right thing to do.
I didn’t like it for the same reason that I didn’t like “The Emperor’s New Clothes“. It seemed too silly, too obvious. Of course he wasn’t wearing clothes. I could almost buy the Emperor being conned by the grift, but the crowds who reinforced the ruse just seemed unbelievable to me.
I was wrong. On both counts. The GOP has turned into a fascist regime. Their appointments and executive orders have been have been unequivocally bad for this country and the people living in it — unless your goal is to destroy this country.
Not the government. The country and every ideal of equality and opportunity it stood for.
The GOP is wearing the clothes of fascism.
It is up to you, and me, each of us individually, to stop pretending they’re wearing anything else… and to not tolerate the ongoing excuses for their behavior.
So what do you do?
Anything. Everything. Every little thing you do helps a little bit.
Every time you support a queer kid.
Every time you point out the DHS is calling 770,000 kids “criminals” because they don’t have the right paperwork.
Every phone call or email or letter to an editor and elected officials up and down the line.
Every time you support a small business owned by a person who is a minority.
Every time you call out casual bigotry, sexism, and racism.
Every dollar you send to an organization supporting equality, justice, and human rights.
Every time you reach out to a friend and reassure them that yes, this is not normal.
Every time you are kind.
The things that you’ll be most effective at doing may not be the same as the things I would be, so do what works with your skill set.
When I was in the military, they told us that a wounded enemy was more “costly” than a dead one. A wounded enemy tied up far more resources than killing one, along with the demoralizing effects of seeing comrades injured.
There are already those hurt and wounded — perhaps emotionally, perhaps physically — from the actions of the GOP.
As much as we need people actively “fighting” on the “front lines” we also need people who are taking care of those who are wounded and helping them take care of themselves.
The important thing is that you do not do nothing.
One common thing that is suggested is speaking up, by making phone calls and writing letters (such as through 5 Calls or Progressive Secretary, among a host of others). I’ve also had people tell me that those don’t “do anything.”
And if you’re thinking that your phone call or your letter is going to be the one that suddenly convinces them cruelty isn’t a good idea, then yes, you’re right. At best, you might introduce a seed of doubt into a staffer.
But those numbers are counted. The disconnect is that thinking that there’s some kind of “hero” moment that is going to happen.
There is not a single big heroic action that will change the tide of everything, no matter what Star Wars or the MCU has taught us. This isn’t that kind of story. Maybe it never has been.
It is a “clap for Tinkerbell” kind of story. One where it is all of us — together individually — clapping and shouting and laughing and yelling and singing in such a cacophony that it simply cannot be ignored.
We aren’t working to preserve the existing inequal structures, the baked-in racism, the rampant sexism and bigotry. This is to preserve the ideals and demand that we, both individually and as a nation, work to live up to them instead of sinking into narcissistic cruelty.
And if phone calls and letters and emails aren’t loud enough to stop the senseless cruelty, then it is the responsibility of each of us to make sure our voices are heard by whatever means necessary.
Featured Photo by Corey Young on Unsplash