Friends,
Tuesday was painful. The feeling of loss and despair can be seen on the faces of our friends, family, neighbors, children and even our pets. I remember fondly the shared feelings of joy and hope after Barack Obama was elected in 2008. My train rides lately have reminded me of how the train rides felt after the Boston Marathon bombing. People are lost, confused and scared. Personally, I have found myself bursting into tears at random moments, similar to how I react if someone close to me has died. On Wednesday morning, I cried with my doctors during an ultrasound. I did not want our daughters born into a country that promotes and endorses the hateful ideas of Donald Trump, disguising racism and sexism as anger at the “establishment” (minorities and women). Like you, I cannot watch the news and I find myself taking long walks during the day to get away from my phone and social media.
When I arrived home from work last night, I was given a glimmer of hope. My husband showed me a drawing of a heart that a small child left on our car under our Hillary magnet. Through this simple drawing, I saw light. It made me think that we can fight back by electing progressive women up and down the ballot. It made me realize that Hillary won the popular vote so we are not outnumbered. It made me understand that it is up to us as progressives to turn these feelings into action. If progressives start small and spread our core beliefs of equality and fairness up and down the ballot, we can change the world.
Take time to grieve and reflect. Talk about your feelings with others. Come up with solutions. Have hope simply because hope may be all we have left.
Next year brings us an opportunity to fight hard to keep progressive women on Boston City Council and possibly add more. They deserve our energy and time. 2018 brings us the chance to elect Elizabeth Warren, Maura Healey, our great congressional delegation, myself as Register of Deeds and countless other progressive women that will carry the torch for Hillary into the halls of Beacon Hill and beyond.
I am grateful for Hillary Clinton and I am hopeful for all of us. I hope you join me on this long journey back to reclaiming the halls of power for every man, woman and child. Let’s replace the fear and suspicion of the Trump supporters with our progressive values and inclusiveness. We can be the spark that lights the fire.
Onward,
Katie Forde
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