A #Safetypin from Another Era
Who remembers this safety pin creation? While rummaging through a drawer looking for something else, there it was. I’m pretty sure someone I knew was making these in the days after 9/11. I wore it then as a symbol of unity and solidarity. Even though I hadn’t voted for George W. Bush, even though I wasn’t convinced he had won the election, our country had been attacked. We needed to stand together.
For a period of time, we were all patriotic Americans, regardless of party affiliation. We sang, held vigils, lighted candles, and hugged one another. Then the war drums started for an invasion of Iraq, despite there being no direct connection to the devastating attack of September 11, 2001. And I put my flag safety pin creation in a drawer.
I have been wearing safety pins since the recent election to stand with people who feel threatened by Trump’s rhetoric and victory. Sometimes, people flash me a peace sign when they see my pin. Sometimes they say, “Did you know there is a safety pin on your shirt.” If they want to know why I’m wearing one, like my six-year-old grandson did recently, I can explain my rationale for choosing this symbol of resistance. I want folks to know:
I am a safe person.
If you are a Muslim, immigrant, Latino, woman, person of color, person with a disability or special needs, part of the Transgender or LGBTQ, community, I am here for you. I will listen to you, stand up for you, add my name to a registry if you are forced to do this, and advocate for your rights.
I will disavow bigotry and hatred whenever I hear or see it.
I will donate to causes that support kindness and inclusion.
I will support organizations that fight for your rights.
And I will fight for the rights of young children to grow up in an inclusive, accepting community that values them for who they are.
Now, I am wearing my American flag safety pin creation in the hope of recapturing the feeling I had back in 2001 when we cared for and about our fellow Americans regardless of their race, religion, culture, gender, ability, or immigration status. We all deserve to feel safe and cherished for who we are. We all deserve to be seen as part of the diverse and beautiful fabric woven together to create our country.
The way I see it, if a single safety pin is easily overlooked or seems like something a cleaner left behind, how can anyone miss my nine pins decorated with patriotic beading? We are always stronger together and we can be great again simply by recapturing the spirit of caring for and about one another that revealed itself after the Towers fell.
Talk to me. Ask for my help. I care.
I invite you to read my book Terribly Strange and Wonderfully Real, join my Facebook community, visit my website, and sign up for my newsletter.
