It seems as if I have been fighting for social justice all my life. I grew up in the mid-west, having been born at the end of WW2, and my family had its share of prejudices. I went to a high school which was predominantly white. My step-grandmother was shocked and upset with me for swimming in a public pool where black people also swam. I knew then and I know now that skin color does not make a person good or bad. People who look different shouldn’t be treated different and I told her that. I knew that the Jesus I loved taught me to love everyone, not just those who looked like me.
I marched in the 60’s for equal rights. I left organized church for several years because of the attitude of so many members who though people needed to look or dress a certain way to be accepted. I knew this was not the message of Jesus and not what my heart told me was right.
When I was in college and began working, I experienced the inequality that women had to deal with. I put up with sexual advances in silence and took lower pay for doing the same job as my male counterpart. At one time, I worked as head bookkeeper and trainer at a men’s clothing store. When the assistant manager position became available, I was tasked with filling the spot until a suitable male could be found to fill it. I did the work for 8 months but did not get the promotion or the pay because I was a woman. Although we have made great strides in work equality, the fight is ongoing and we still aren’t there.
When I was pregnant with my 4th child, my husband and I decided that we didn’t want and could not afford any more children and I would get my tubes tied. This was 1977 and I was dealing with a local Christian hospital. My doctor informed me that I had to get a form signed by my husband giving me permission to have the procedure. My case would then be turned over for review and approval by a panel of 3 male doctors. This was my body, my decision and I felt violated because the choice was being taken from me and my personal life was being examined and determined by others. I should not have needed a man’s permission nor is it the government’s business what a woman and her doctor decides about her own health and body. Would men like it if they had to get a woman’s permission to get a vasecotomy, buy a condom or use Viagra?
All my life I have cared for abandoned and abused animals. I have fought to educate, to end senseless slaughter of innocent animals in kill shelters, to encourage responsible pet ownership, to shut down puppy mills to pass laws that make cruelty to animals a crime. to encourage people to adopt and to spay and neuter their animals. I have witnessed the damage done to defenseless animals at the hand of man and will always fight for them because they are powerless to fight for themselves.
As an avid gardener for many years, I have spent countless hours outside with nature. I have seen the effects of overuse of pesticides on the delicate balance of nature. I have experienced the sun become hotter each year as we destroy the ozone. I have seen our roadways, rivers and oceans become human dumping grounds for trash and debris. I watch as climate changes and the beautiful earth God gave us cries out in pain because of the damage we do. As someone who developed asthma because of environmental pollutants, I know how air quality affects the lives of many. Clean air and clean water seem like a cause everyone should be fighting for. The reality is that fossil fuel dollars are more important to man than the future of the planet.
We have a current administration which is systematically undoing every step forward we have made. We have a President who is deregulating the EPA and the FDA, areas of government designed to protect our planet and the safety of our food. I push back against a President who belittles others, who stirs up hate and division, who makes fun of the disabled, who treats women with no respect and who is a bully most of the time. I am appalled by a President who could not even behave in a respectful way at a ceremony to honor the lives of Americans lost on 9/11. He clearly didn’t understand how inappropriate it was to raise his fists in a way used for a victory celebration or the rudeness of a thumbs up gesture and big smiles at such a somber moment of loss and pain. I push back against a President who thinks its appropriate to throw paper towels at the victims of a devastating hurricane like he is some great star parading before his followers.
I have always regarded the President as a person who should be afforded the utmost respect. I have lived through many Presidents and the one thing they all showed was leadership. They brought our nation together in times of tragedy, gave us hope for the future and even when we disagreed with their policies, they still commanded our respect. They gave us a sense of security. I find that hope and security missing under the current administration.
I know his supporters point to the economy. the stock market is doing well and job numbers look good on paper. What I see is a national debt rising at an alarming rate, inflation creeping its way upward, wages that are stagnant, more and more Americans who are homeless, seniors struggling to put food on the table and being able to afford their medications. I see a government which has stopped caring about the poor and middle class and only seems to care that the rich get richer. I see politicians who were elected by the people go to Washington and ignore the people who sent them. I see a country being torn apart by hate and division and drugs and guns, I see an education system which has failed our youth, has left them without even a basic understanding of our history or how our government works. I see teachers and public servants not being paid enough for the jobs they do while our congressmen and senators continue to raise their own pay and assure their future healthcare. I see a house of cards waiting for the first really strong wind to blow it all to pieces.
So I fight for equality and justice, I fight for truth and liberty regardless of skin color, place of birth, sexual orientation, gender or religious belief. My Jesus tells me to love others and not judge them. I fight to leave this world a better place than it was when I got here. I have passed the point where I can march anymore and I am too old to run for office. But, God has given me the ability to put words on paper and a way to let my message be heard. I will continue this fight as long as my hand can hold a pen.
Micah 6:8″What does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God,”
Philippians 2:4″Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others,”
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