What a Lovely Saturday Morning
How I’m Helping to Make America Great Again
This morning my best friend and I ran six miles on a sunny day that is expected to hit 80 degrees in February, then we went to donate bags of food to the food drive at the Islamic center.
I try to give to virtually every food drive around, but this one is special. It’s the third such event in honor of Deah, Yusor and Razan — the three young Muslim students from Chapel Hill, NC (just down the road from me) who were gunned down by their neighbor a couple of years ago; it’s a wonderful way to honor the memory of several people who were by all accounts smart, sweet, and true humanitarians. Although we arrived at the center fifteen minutes before the drive was officially set to begin, there was already a stack of donations and a group of friendly young women in beautiful hijabs were helping people unload from a long line of cars.
I admit it: I have cried more in the past several months of Trump and his trail of hate than I have in years. I’ve never been more disgusted with my white privilege; frightened for my LGBTQ, Jewish and Muslim friends as well as those of color; and saddened by seemingly good people who can’t or won’t acknowledge the issues around everything that’s been happening to unravel our Democracy.
On the other hand, this food drive made me cry a few happy tears — as have recent marches and discussions. Fair-minded people, mostly liberal but also conservative, taking a strong stand on human rights and loving one another. People of all colors, religions and sexual preferences, marching not just together but with one another — chanting, chatting, laughing and holding hands. There were 80 thousand of us at the Moral March alone, led by Rev. William J. Barber, II of the NC NAACP. More people than I’ve seen participate in the responsibilities of their citizenship in a damn long time.
Yes, there have been hiccups — white women, for example, not appreciating the dangers a woman of color (or of course, anyone of color) faces to protest in a public forum. But we are attempting to work through those issues at a faster rate than ever before. Formerly closed-minded whites saying, “Damn: that’s what Black Lives Matter is really about!”
There’s no telling just how far Trump and his henchmen will go to destroy America or how this will all turn out. But on the flip side? A huge and gloriously diverse crowd learning to love, respect and understand each other’s unique spaces. And that, my friends, is what will really make America great.
