This is Patrick Blindauer鈥檚 last puzzle for 大象传媒 as he moves on to new projects. We would like to thank Patrick for all the engaging and thoughtful puzzles he鈥檚 contributed since our Spring 2018 issue. 

After the Dull Knife Battle in November 1876, a society of Cheyenne men sat down and documented their account of the events on a buffalo hide or robe鈥攖he traditional medium on which my ancestors told stories and kept records. The buffalo hide is where they memorialized important moments in the Tribe鈥檚 history, as well as their own personal achievements. And they did so using pigments they created from their environment with ingredients like ash, soils, berries, and plants.

The Dull Knife hide was kept in a camp at the foothills of the Bighorn Mountains. But this camp was a major target for the United States Cavalry, which was still in search of those tribes involved in the Battle of the Little Bighorn, which had taken place in June 1876 and left the U.S. military sorely defeated.

After scouts reported the camp鈥檚 whereabouts, the cavalry ambushed it. The Cheyennes put up a good fight but eventually fled deeper into the Bighorn Mountains in freezing conditions. As the cavalry raided the now-empty camp, a soldier stole the painted buffalo hide out of a tipi. And thus the beloved hide, and the story it told, began its journey away from its people.

Heartbreakingly, this kind of theft was all too common for us. It was part of the settler-colonialist effort to erase us from our homelands鈥攁nd erase us altogether. Oftentimes when sacred objects were taken from camps, they were locked in private collections with no way to track or find them. Many were never seen again, and the Cheyennes had mourned the loss of this buffalo hide and accepted its fate to be gone forever. But after more than 100 years, this hide was once again seen by the descendants of the people from which it came.

On the 146th anniversary of the battle, the unveiling and honoring of this historical object took place at the Brinton Museum in northern Wyoming. Tribal Members and the Northern Cheyenne Tribal Historic Preservation Office were invited to view it. Many eyes filled with tears as our traditional honor songs filled the room. The sacred objects that surrounded us, caged in glass, hummed in their display cases. They, too, were excited to be a part of this honoring; it鈥檚 not everyday we as Indigenous people get to practice our ceremonies for pieces put into institutions. This was a raw and powerful experience for everyone and everything involved.

At this moment, in the presence of it all, I felt the importance of keeping our hide-painting tradition alive. I understood the impact this form of storytelling has on my own culture and on those who experience it from near and far. Although this painted retelling of the Dull Knife Battle now hangs in another non-Indigenous collection, it is closer to home than it鈥檚 ever been, and relatives are able to view it freely.

And so, in the winter of 2023, I began my renaissance of buffalo hide paintings, not far from where the Dull Knife robe was painted nearly 150 years earlier.

As a storyteller and an artist, I have painted with many different media before, on canvas, ledger paper, felt cowboy hats, and more. I had never painted on something like a tanned buffalo hide, though. Plastic paints like acrylics simply didn鈥檛 stick to the surface. Oil paints bled and left dark spots. This required me to use trial and error, as well as asking elders, scouring the internet, and reading historical books to figure out the best way to use modern materials for such a traditional technique.

To practice, I started with a vintage elk hide, which I hoped would behave similarly to buffalo, but was much easier to source. Black, white, blue, red, and yellow pigments sat in small vibrant piles of powder on my palette. While I wasn鈥檛 able to source everything the way my ancestors had, I gathered materials from far and wide to bring these pieces to life. Slowly, I began to add water and buffalo fat, mixing them with the powders until the consistency was smooth and even. The thinner the paint was, I found, the easier it was to push it across the surface of the hide.

I hung the elk hide from the wall, tacked along the top and pulled taut by gravity. I sprayed a layer of water and watched as the hide went from a bright off-white to a dark tan. Spraying the hide opens the skin鈥檚 pores and makes the painting process much easier. After a deep breath to steady my hand, I began with my first paint stroke. The nerves, the worry, and all other thoughts in my head went silent. I could feel my ancestors guiding my hands as I worked the earth pigments into the tanned hide. Almost like being in a trance, I brought paint to hide without feeling the passage of time, and the portrait of a woman appeared in front of me. She was an Arapaho/Cheyenne woman warrior who gave me the confidence that the vision I was seeing in my head was achievable in real life.

After I finished the elk hide, I was ready to move on to the much larger buffalo hide that was patiently waiting its turn to become a part of my story, the story of a modern Indigenous artist. I already knew who I wanted to paint next: I could see in my mind鈥檚 eye the contrasts of bright red and electric blue against neutral black and white, and the tan of the unpainted skin of the hide.

I chose to paint an Aps谩alooke (Crow) medicine woman by the name of Pretty Shield. A strong matriarch revered for her knowledge of medicinal plants, Pretty Shield had influence that reached far beyond her own tribe. I chose to render her in black-and-white natural pigments, representing a time when reservations were fresh and photographers were documenting the foreign feelings throughout Indian Country in black and white.

Rising above her is a halo of medicinal plants. I chose to represent this aspect of her work in contemporary color to show its continued relevance and vitality in modern times.

Each aspect of the hide represents a different generation of storytelling and art. The first generation is the hide itself, the traditional material. The second generation is the black-and-white photography that captured the first accounts of reservation life. The third generation is the contemporary style of bright colors and stylized plants.

My own love for medicinal plants comes from another matriarchal figure in my life: my mother. Bringing wellness back to the reservation through healers, medicinal plants, and creative outlets, she provided opportunities for people to help themselves, much like Pretty Shield. These two women reflect each other鈥檚 energy and inspire me to see the medicine women of today.

Pretty Shield is the first in a collection of women I plan to pay tribute to with my paint. Each of them has impacted their Plains Tribe communities with their inspiring accomplishments and gifts. I want to honor our shared stories by continuing to push the boundaries of traditional materials and contemporary ideas. I want to uplift the generations surrounding me to live in their medicine, to live out their dreams, and to live how our ancestors dreamed for us.

My name is Shawnee Real Bird, and I am Aps谩alooke (Crow). Five years ago, I held a first-edition Edward Curtis portfolio in my hands for the first time. Curtis鈥� revolved around preserving his outsider view of lifestyles that existed before the United States of America did鈥攂efore we were ever called 鈥淚ndians.鈥�

He spent the first three decades of the 20th century photographing more than 80 tribes across the continent, including mine. The published result, , is a 20-volume set that captures a pivotal time in Native American history. Curtis recorded my Aps谩alooke people in 1908, as they began their transition from nomadic freedom on the plains to isolation on reservations.

Among the thousands of sepia-toned images Curtis took is one of my great-great-grandfather, Richard Wallace, known to our people as Eyes Taken Out, as well as one of his brother, John. Today these visual remembrances aid the oral histories of my people. Born in 1998, I am part of a generation of Native Americans who know the stories of life on the plains but whose upbringings reflect reservation life. For us, The North American Indian has become a sort of Rosetta stone, helping us connect our ancestral memories with our modern lives.

In the spirit of his great-grandfather, whom the Northern Plains people affectionately referred to as Shadow Catcher, Graybill and his wife, Coleen, are working to capture shadows of today鈥檚 realities. Their 鈥溾�� aims to amplify the voices of Native Peoples whose ancestors were photographed by Curtis.

I am one of those descendants.

Five generations after Curtis鈥� visit to the Northern Plains Tribes, Graybill journeyed to the Crow Reservation to capture my story on a dry plate glass negative. I chose to bring him to the Wolf Teeth Mountains, where my mother rode horses with me in her belly and where I now chase wild horses on foot. It is also the only place I鈥檝e ever seen my dad, a lifelong Indian-Cowboy, connect to himself, and only then on the back of a horse. It鈥檚 a place his ancestral DNA understands better than anywhere else. Among the sagebrush, my father and the horse become one spirit.

I began riding horses with my parents when I was 3. It was then that I witnessed my dad鈥檚 ability to create a connection to our First Maker and integrate that spiritual relationship into his modern existence. As a young person, I wondered what I would connect with that could become a portal to the old way of life I longed for.

Growing up on the reservation, I heard oral histories from my elders and often questioned where I belonged. Those who existed before me thrived in the harsh mountains of Montana. They survived wars with enemy tribes, followed by genocide and boarding schools, then reservation life, always striving to preserve what makes our Aps谩alooke hearts strong.

In today鈥檚 fast-paced world, filled with isolating technologies, the way of life that my Aps谩alooke elders taught me felt out of place. It wasn鈥檛 until I learned to fly that I was able to merge my modern identity with my ancestral roots. In 2019, I became the first Aps谩alooke airplane pilot. In the cockpit of a Cessna 172, I find solace with the sky beings who populate my tribal histories. When the plane鈥檚 altimeter reads 10,000 feet鈥攖he same altitude at which my Aps谩alooke people once sought visions atop mountains鈥擨 honor the ability to connect, to have finally found my place among the clouds.

As Graybill sets up the vintage camera, I close my eyes (for all great things are felt most fully with your eyes closed). I am full of adrenaline, surrounded by 15 wild horses from the herd of my grandfather, Timber Leader. I know the feeling well. It bounces between the palms of my hands and gathers as sweat along my lips. I trust the horses with the entirety of my being. I take a deep breath and imagine my light expanding beyond me. All the generations of cowboys and medicine women that make up my 鈥渂lood quantum鈥� stand behind me. I put my spirit in that moment to be captured by exposure and alchemy.

From behind the camera I hear Graybill say, 鈥淕ot it,鈥� and we all breathe again. The feeling from my hands disappears. It now lives within that dry plate image. More than 100 years separate my image from those captured by Curtis. Looking at my photograph next to those of my ancestors, I am unrecognizable to them, and one day I will be unrecognizable to the generations that follow. Only the contents of our hearts will reveal our creation stories to be the same.

While enslaved people were intentionally kept illiterate, the abolitionist movement still treated these pamphlets鈥攁nd antislavery newspapers鈥攁s signposts, signaling that even amid their suffering, enslaved people were being fought for. Their human condition wasn鈥檛 being disregarded in favor of profit; instead, there was a growing movement advocating for their freedom and for their right to lead a self-determined life. 

In her new book, , Tricia Hersey calls upon some of these same abolitionist tools, including pamphlets, hymnals, poetry, and imagery, to convey a similarly urgent message: If we do not take rest seriously and divorce ourselves from capitalism, we will die much sooner than we should. While that might feel alarmist, it鈥檚 a message Hersey has been conveying for years as the . The 鈥溾�� uses her own life as a model for how we can collectively escape 鈥済rind culture鈥� and embrace rest as a spiritual practice. 

鈥淚 thought I would die,鈥� Hersey writes in We Will Rest!, an unconventional manifesto and meditation about how she learned to care for herself in a world that doesn鈥檛 allow us to slow down. 鈥淚 thought the exhaustion of capitalism would crush me. Rest saved my life.鈥� As Hersey often reminds us: Rest is a matter of life and death. 

Rest is essential to our long-term survival as individuals and a collective. Birthing a creative renaissance requires rest that isn鈥檛 reliant on productivity. Hersey鈥檚 book calls upon our ancestors, including Harriet Tubman, the Underground Railroad conductor who , to become escape artists ourselves鈥攖o help unchain our imaginations from the bounds of capitalism and embrace new possibilities. 鈥淎nyone in this culture who believes and feels they are enough right now has begun the escape artist transformation,鈥� Hersey writes. 鈥淭o know in the deepest parts of your soul that your birth grants you divinity, rest, care, and power is a seed planted in fertile ground.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Much like those abolitionist pamphlets, We Will Rest! serves as a guidepost for those who seek rest but are unsure if it鈥檚 available to them. The book begins with a thought-provoking question: 鈥淗ow do you find rest in a capitalist, white supremacist, patriarchal, ableist system?鈥� This system teaches us that rest must be earned through work, and received with humble gratitude. But Hersey offers an alternative: If we become 鈥渆scape artists鈥� or 鈥渢ricksters鈥� who defy systems that discourage us from rest, then we can prioritize our needs. 

For Black people, in particular, Hersey accurately argues that rest is our ancestral inheritance and must be protected at all costs. 鈥淭he first step for morphing into an escape artist is belief,鈥� she writes. 鈥淵ou must believe you have the power to refuse. You must believe you have been gifted with everything necessary. You must be a trickster. No matter what, you must not show fear. We are abundant.鈥澨�

Once we believe we鈥檙e entitled to rest and our ancestors have paved the way for us to claim this birthright, then we must imagine the life we desire for ourselves. 鈥淐reate community,鈥� Hersey writes. 鈥淏e community. Community care can seem impossible when you are exhausted. It is possible.鈥� It is only through crafting this community鈥� day by day, moment by moment, and person to person鈥攖hat change can come. 

It鈥檚 not as complicated as we might make it out to be. The world we imagine will come to us through silence, through daydreaming, and through unwavering belief. 鈥淓very day, morning or night, or whenever you can steal away, find silence,鈥� she writes. 鈥淓ven if for only a few minutes.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

We don鈥檛 need to have it all figured out to begin this personal and collective rest revolution. 鈥淐apitalism has a choke hold over our lives right now,鈥� Hersey writes. 鈥淭he next second, the next minute, the next hour, is ours to refuse the grind. We can craft and build temporary spaces of joy and freedom here now.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Like those abolitionist pamphlets, We Will Rest! offers encouragement in times of uncertainty鈥攁 reminder of our fundamental humanity, and affirms the truth that rest is ours for the taking. And we鈥檝e already done all we need to do to 鈥渄eserve鈥� the freedom it brings. 

The shout came from a group of Proud Boys, a far-right street gang, while they approached a (IWW) in September 2018. While the IWW, a radical labor union that and Washington State, is certainly anti-fascist, this was a union action鈥攏ot an 鈥渁ntifa鈥� protest. But those facts mattered little to the right-wing agitators who had made Portland a flash point in political violence. As the Proud Boys sought to instigate, one IWW member, Sinead Steiner, remembers union activists pivoting in an attempt to de-escalate. 

IWW members engaged the Proud Boys in mundane discussions about labor law while other demonstrators began using silly chants to lower the emotional temperature. The method was effective, no one faced harm, and the union action continued. This was not the first time the far right had threatened the IWW, so members knew they needed to walk into any protest with a nimble plan that included employing some form of community self-defense. 

As Donald Trump ascended to power in 2016, there was in as well as far-right and racist groups such as the Proud Boys, Oath Keepers and militias, and other neo-Nazi formations. They stormed U.S. cities, often holding rallies intended to provoke counterprotesters whom they could attack. As a result, there was a rise in left-wing formations, including the John Brown Gun Club and the Socialist Rifle Association, that say armed community self-defense may be a necessary component of safety, which in this case means protecting activists from racist militants.听

The threats that the far right presented to Portland鈥檚 left鈥攁long with the historical repression of unions by racist foot soldiers鈥攁re why unionists were prepared in Portland that afternoon. In the 1910s and 鈥�20s, IWW members, who were called 鈥淲obblies,鈥� invited coal miners and others to join 鈥渋ndustrial unions鈥� to win power by organizing as many workers as possible. Meanwhile, private security contractors whose job was to disrupt strikes with force in the 19th and early 20th century. 

The Ku Klux Klan, which, like later fascist groups, despised the anti-capitalist and multiracial implications of the IWW, also showed up to crush labor. In June 1924, members of the in San Pedro, California, injuring 300 members while kidnapping, tarring, and feathering others. To be a unionist, and a leftist, was to be a target.听

Amid this rise in brutality and repression, some IWW members created the IWW General Defense Committee (GDC) in 1917 as a separate organization to support activists facing reprisals. Nearly a century later, IWW members in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota鈥攕ome of whom had been involved in anti-fascist organizing across the 1980s and 鈥�90s鈥攔e-engaged the GDC as an anti-fascist auxiliary to the IWW. GDC chapters then popped up around the country, including in Portland, to fight the fascist insurgency and to defend communities against a rash of street violence. 

These kinds of threats were nothing new. Historically, wherever working-class social movements grow, fascists see them as distinct threats both because of their politics and the marginalized communities they represent. To guard against this, self-defense projects鈥攐rganized efforts where people from these communities are trained, and often armed鈥攁re formed to ward off these outside threats. Whether the appearance of self-defense squads is enough to scare off fascist attacks or if actual force is necessary to fight far-right militants back, these kinds of formations have been a reasonably common feature of how communities maintain their autonomy during escalating right-wing violence. 

At the same time, the police鈥攐stensibly defenders of peace and order鈥� and rarely keep activists safe from right-wing assaults. For abolitionists who prefer transformative justice to incarceration, police are not the answer to community safety. 鈥淭o me, community self-defense can be … an alternative to the police and courts, but it would depend on the situation鈥攁nd for that matter the community,鈥� says Daryle Lamont Jenkins, founder of the and its news website, . 鈥淚t means you do as much as you can to handle a situation as a community when one arises.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Community self-defense has become central to contemporary social movements. Just as their predecessors did, activists today seek a safety model that understands the threats they face and doesn鈥檛 reproduce the problems of the justice system. 

Deep Roots

Social movements have historically had a self-defense component. Many earlier left-wing political parties or organizations had a militant wing, in which members were trained as a defensive force that could keep their growing membership safe from violent right-wing counterefforts. 

In the early 20th century, the Jewish Labour Bund, a Jewish socialist movement involved in organizing labor unions and Yiddish schools around Eastern Europe and Russia, created self-defense squads to protect Jewish communities from racist attacks, known as 鈥減ogroms,鈥� which were escalating during that time. 

By 1905 there were Jewish self-defense groups in 42 cities, and they were often a collaborative offshoot from various leftist groups. Because many left-wing revolutionaries saw both modern nation states and reactionary political movements as their enemies, they believed they had to take measures to keep themselves safe from both entities. 

Much of the postwar left emerged directly out of the need for community safety. Take, for instance, the Black Power movement, which formed in the 1960s and 鈥�70s and considered resilience and empowerment to be central to their work. 鈥淚 have asserted the right of Negroes to meet the violence of the Ku Klux Klan by armed self-defense鈥攁nd have acted on it,鈥� wrote Robert F. Williams in 1962. Williams was an organizer who took control of the Monroe, North Carolina, chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, grew it by hundreds, and chartered it with the National Rifle Association to teach members how to defend themselves against Klan terror. 

In 1966 the Black Panther Party was founded first and foremost as an organization to monitor and intervene on police violence, a project the party eventually saw as part of a 鈥渦nited front against fascism.鈥� That slogan became the name for the Panthers鈥� 1969 conference that convened a range of other radical groups, including Students for a Democratic Society, the Young Patriots Organization, and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference.听

In 1966, Panthers began armed patrols of Oakland neighborhoods as a message to local police not to threaten the rights and safety of Black residents. They held rallies when police refused to investigate police killings, such as the . The Panthers used these opportunities to teach community members how to build armed self-defense squads as both an alternative to the police and a deterrent against police violence. The Panthers inspired other self-defense efforts, including the Lavender Panthers (sometimes known as Purple Panthers), an armed defense group formed by the Gay Activist Alliance in 1973 to defend San Francisco鈥檚 LGBTQ community against homophobic attacks. 

鈥淪omething that the Black radical tradition tells us 鈥� is that we can鈥檛 organize in just one mode,鈥� says Jeanelle Hope, Ph.D., an associate professor of African American Studies at Prairie View A&M University who studies Black anti-fascist movements. Along with legal pathways, self-defense, and more radical anarchist tactics, Hope points to the myriad mutual aid programs the Black Panther Party organized to meet people鈥檚 daily needs, including offering free breakfast to children and running the . 

This history creates what Ejeris Dixon described as a movement lineage, whereby she and others come from a tradition of radicals 鈥渨ho have dedicated our lives to our community safety.鈥� This communal resiliency inspired Dixon to co-write 鈥�,鈥� a community safety tool kit she created alongside the anti-racist organization . The guide offers a number of ideas, including how to create effective protest formations. 

When people on the right talk about security, it often simply means firearms. But for those on the political left, community self-defense is a much bigger idea. 鈥淭he most important part of how you frame community defense is to acknowledge that you provide something the state cannot 鈥� when you build a culture of community defense around you 鈥� you have a lot more protection from violence,鈥� says Lucas Hubbard, communications director for Socialist Rifle Association, which does not advocate for forming militias but does support working-class people learning firearm skills and developing mutual aid networks. 

But as Hubbard notes, self-defense projects are only an alternative to the status quo if they match the community鈥檚 expressed desires. 鈥淔irst thing you do in providing community defense 鈥� is to ask what that means to them,鈥� says Hubbard, pointing to issues like food insecurity and housing access as frontline threats. Community defense could mean developing strong bonds between affected people to better address their needs, employing armed security at queer youth events, or securing resources for those facing eviction, but it is just as likely to involve getting people the resources they need during a COVID-19 spike. 

鈥淚f you want to help a community, they have to trust you,鈥� says Snow, a founding member of the Asian American self-defense group (YPT) who goes by one name. The organization works to demystify community self-defense, including gun ownership and mutual aid organizing, in part by creating an alternative media infrastructure to shift perception about who owns firearms and why. 

鈥淚n moments where I have seen [community defense], it鈥檚 always been something that has been asked for explicitly,鈥� says Snow. YPT formed in 2020 amid a slew of anti-Asian hate crimes. Organizers from around the U.S. met through activist networks and began supporting each other not just in learning self-defense and firearms skills but also in creating more visible networks of care and connecting their ideas about community empowerment to international struggles such as supporting anarchists fighting Russian aggression in Ukraine.听

YPT helped create educational programs around responsible firearm ownership and started a podcast, Tiger Bloc, that demystifies disaster preparedness and community defense in terms that avoid adventurism and right-wing cynicism. As Snow points out, firearms themselves are often less important to community safety than, for example, 鈥済ood digital hygiene鈥� (using security protocols in digital communication and taking measures to remove personal information from the internet), locating good de-escalators to intervene in tense protest interactions, and ensuring demonstrations have trained street medics who can save lives if needed.听

Community self-defense is directly intertwined with other social movements because all political causes鈥攁nd their solutions鈥攁re tied with intersecting issues of race and class. Effective safety plans bring together a community鈥檚 struggles, identify what creates cracks in safety, and consider all movements to be potential tools for repair.听

A True Safety Plan

Because many potential harms and threats are distinct, a complete plan for community safety has to be broad enough to address everything from racist violence to incursions with the police. An expansive vision of community safety does not stop at the most immediate threats but offers some vision of an alternative to existing carceral options. 

Vision Change Win鈥檚 guide says a comprehensive vision of community safety includes 鈥渟ecurity, office and organizational safety, verbal de-escalation, physical de-escalation, personal safety, transformative justice processes, community safety neighborhood strategies, bystander intervention, and cop watch.鈥� It helps to outline the different questions you need to ask about events you are holding, what roles are necessary to keep attendees safe, and how to align every security choice with the community鈥檚 values. 

While police often play similar social roles in repressing movements, they have different legal leeway and require different responses. This is why Vision Change Win鈥檚 training focuses on a range of situations, including what to do when police attempt to enter activist spaces and how to de-escalate nonpolice threats. 

An example is Vision Change Win鈥檚 section on dealing with Rebellion Containment Agents鈥斺�渓ess lethal鈥� weapons such as chemical gas or pepper spray that are used by police against protest crowds. While often presented by law enforcement as relatively safe, these containment agents were tied to major injuries during the 2020 racial justice uprisings. The guide instructs demonstrators on how to deal with incoming projectiles, how to care for someone who has been exposed to caustic chemicals, and how street medics and those providing on-site care can make medical remedies from common materials.听

In addition to responding to police arrests and ensuring people know their legal rights, community defense also includes strategies to mitigate COVID and other pandemics. Good safety plans take into account both a community鈥檚 values and COVID transmission so as not to replicate many of the harms activists are hoping to mitigate. 

鈥淚 think having vulnerable relationships with people 鈥� where if there is somebody in your life you can talk [to] about both survivorship and harm, I think that makes us safer,鈥� says Dixon. This also points to what are often called transformative justice programs designed to, as Dixon describes, 鈥減revent and intervene in violence, and repair and heal from harm without the use of prisons.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

These can take the form of 鈥渁ccountability processes鈥� that combat harm by addressing the behavior, demanding change and the admission of culpability, and supporting both the survivor and the perpetrator in their journey. This kind of vulnerability can exist in many kinds of communities, but especially those that are bonded. 鈥淭ransformative justice is relying on the relationships 鈥� to leverage them into better behavior and accountability,鈥� says Dixon. 

These are big, radical ideas鈥攁nd that is part of the point: Community self-defense is not a singular solution but part of an ongoing project that seeks to address the fundamental unsafety of the society we currently inhabit. Through overlapping systems of inequality and oppression, many people feel isolated, targeted, and forced to face huge hurdles alone. But when members of a community see their struggles as interconnected and their issues as systemic, then modest responses become insufficient. 

Community self-defense is a piece of the larger work of building an equitable society, but it will only be truly realized if a larger mass movement confronts the entire system of structural inequity. 鈥淵ou have to believe in something bigger,鈥� says Dixon. 鈥淵ou have to believe in transformation.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Election 2024 brought the lowest of lows鈥擠onald Trump鈥檚 wildest, most fascist fantasies manifesting in a parade of hate鈥攁nd the highest highs鈥攖he late-breaking entry of a multiracial woman of color who snagged the Democratic Party鈥檚 nomination. Vice President Kamala Harris launched a record-breaking billion-dollar campaign amid a tidal wave of young women progressives spurred by attacks on their bodily autonomy. 

Over and over, we were told this was the most important election of our lifetimes. We, the people, were asked to choose between an apologist for genocide, the specter of fascist insurrection, or a third-party option that had no serious prospects for victory.

Along the way to winning the election, Trump and his allies reduced so many of us to objects, to evildoers, to garbage, to the enemy. If we made it through these past months, it was with a sense of nervous hope that the insults and attacks had an expiration date. If we could just make it to Nov. 6, we could deal with the trauma, heal, and look forward to holding the centrist establishment accountable. 

Along the way to losing the election, Harris and her backers flirted with A-list celebrities and , repeatedly shunned Palestinians fighting for their rights, pushed back against demands to hold Israel accountable for genocide, and wrapped it all up with an appearance on Saturday Night Live.听

With both candidates鈥� approaches top of mind, I began monitoring election results on Nov. 5, feeling鈥攖o quote one woman I overheard say to another that morning鈥斺�渘auseously optimistic.鈥� As I anxiously monitored the New York Times鈥� , coaxing it toward the blue-tinged left, I found myself reliving the , when that same needle veered suddenly to the red-hued right.听

So, here we are again, waking up to a new chapter of the same nightmare we experienced from 2016 to 2020. Now, as we are still reeling from many months of abuse, we face the prospect of four more years of it. 

We need to understand what has happened and how to move from here. But we also need to take a moment to mourn鈥攆or ourselves; for our fellow Americans and especially immigrants; for our Black, Brown and queer sisters, brothers, and kinfolk; for our children鈥檚 imperiled future; and for our country鈥檚 fate. 

In the coming months, we鈥檙e going to read reams of analyses about why Harris lost the  election: the insurmountable polarization our country is experiencing, third-party candidates鈥� 鈥渟poiler鈥� effects, the blind spots and failures of the Harris campaign, political amnesia, whether the nation is ready to elect a woman, and how Trump鈥檚 voters will regret supporting a demagogue. 

But maybe it鈥檚 not even that complicated. 

鈥淚n so many ways our leaders have failed us, and a lot of people are really struggling,鈥� immigrant rights organizer and author Silky Shah said on a recent episode of my show, . 鈥淎nd the easy thing that happens is blaming immigrant communities when, in fact, obviously we should be blaming those who have put in these policies that aren鈥檛 helping communities on the whole.鈥�

Most Americans agree on their basic needs: good jobs and , , and so on. They also . Indeed, some of those who picked Trump might have done so because , while others might be hopelessly invested in racist, misogynist, queerphobic, anti-immigrant hate鈥攐r both. Together they number , or 51% of the electorate, with of Latino men, younger voters, and first-time voters.听

The rest of us鈥攁bout 67 million鈥攚ho picked Harris, either did so holding our nose to keep Trump away from the levers of power, or genuinely believed she was a force for good. (It is this latter group that is probably most shocked and perplexed by the election results). 

Instead of a shift toward policies that prioritize collective care鈥攚hich could unite Americans鈥攚hat we got from the two major-party political candidates were false narratives that largely fell into two camps: Trump painted the nation as a dystopian quagmire that only a strongman like him could fix, while Harris鈥� campaign was based on the idea that we must preserve the booming economy she and incumbent President Joe Biden ushered in. 

But in truth, both parties have moved dramatically rightward. According to investigative journalist and 大象传媒 contributor Arun Gupta, 鈥淥ne is a hard-right Republican party known as the Democrats, and the other is a fascist party, a MAGA party known as the Republicans.鈥澨�

Shah concurred, saying she found it 鈥渁ctually really surreal to see how far to the right things have moved and how much Democrats aren鈥檛 even really advocating for immigrants in the way that they were before.鈥�

Gupta attended Trump鈥檚 Madison Square Garden rally in New York City that made headlines for its speakers鈥� . He saw a different reality than the one being reported in corporate media outlets. 鈥淵ou had lots of anti-Palestinian, anti-immigrant bombast. But that is only half the equation,鈥� he said, a week before the election. 鈥淲hat鈥檚 really going on at these rallies 鈥� is love and 丑补迟别.鈥�

He concluded that Trump supporters are 鈥渢here as much out of hate as they are out of love. And they go there because these rallies make them feel good about themselves. They make them feel good about the country, that they鈥檙e part of a movement.鈥�

What if we all seek a love-based movement that prioritizes us over the interests of elites? What if Trump鈥檚 election is a horrific manifestation of a nation cutting off its nose to spite its face? There are no easy answers to these questions, but since we have failed to stave off extremist hate from occupying the highest rungs of power, we know the most vulnerable among us will likely pay a heavy price in the coming years. The rest of us can鈥檛 give up. 

鈥淥ur power and our potential actually goes beyond the ballot box,鈥� says Khury Petersen-Smith, co-director of the New Internationalism Project at the Institute for Policy Studies. 鈥淲e need to keep on pushing on all of those levers [of power], regardless of who wins, no matter what day鈥擡lection Day, the day after, Inauguration Day, the day after.鈥�

We will鈥攚e must鈥攇et through this time by reminding ourselves that most of us want the same things: safety, security, stability, and鈥攄are I say it?鈥攍ove. But how we get there as a nation is a conundrum we must continue grappling with.

The two of us have spent the past year protesting the Israeli military鈥檚 assault on Gaza, which is funded by the United States government. The day after the storm, as we surveyed the destruction all around us wrought by Hurricane Helene, we thought of the people of Gaza, whom the Israeli government has relentlessly bombed for the past year, destroying their homes, schools, markets, hospitals, places of worship, as well as crucial components of their water and food systems.听

We have always opposed the Israeli military鈥檚 destruction of Gaza鈥攐ne that began long before Oct. 7, 2023鈥攂ut in observing the destruction in our own backyards and neighborhoods that day, we felt more committed than ever before to ensuring that our government stops sending the bombs that destroy life, land, and infrastructure in Palestine. In our grief, we committed to working toward the restoration of life from Asheville to Gaza.听

Since Oct. 7, 2023, the U.S. government has sent , including $3.8 billion from a supplemental appropriations act in April 2024. Meanwhile, a request from FEMA for an additional $9 billion for disaster relief efforts in the U.S. , a shortfall that limits recovery efforts in Western North Carolina and other areas hit by Hurricane Helene. The numbers tell the story: The U.S. government invests in death while neglecting the lives of people and our planet.

As Western North Carolina University professor Robert Clines wrote in in Mondoweiss: 鈥淭he devastation from Hurricane Helene and Israel鈥檚 escalation in the Middle East may not seem connected. But they are linked through the United States鈥檚 commitment to mass militarization, imperial arrogance, exacerbation of climate change, and refusal to work toward a just global future.鈥�

We and other Appalachian Jews are speaking up from the depths of climate devastation, demanding collective liberation now. Anti-Zionist Jews like us live in every corner of the United States and are essential activists and organizers in Southern struggles for environmental justice and collective liberation. Promoting Jewish safety means investing in life rather than death. It looks like fighting real antisemitism in communities that we love and protect, even when we鈥檙e cast out by pro-Zionist institutions, including our own religious congregations.

And that is why, on Oct. 6, 2024, we made the decision to still hold a tashlich action that we had been planning for months. Tashlich is a ritual that is part of the Jewish high holiday season and centers on atonement and repair. Out of necessity, we shifted the location from a riverfront park鈥攁s the riverbank was washed out and much of the surrounding area was coated in toxin-laden mud鈥攖o a bridge overlooking the French Broad River, a waterway so inundated by Hurricane Helene that its currents smashed buildings; carried away people, animals, and vehicles; and spread rocks and mud and trees on its banks for many miles.听

The two of us together and talked of teshuvah鈥攔epentance鈥攃ontemplating how our country鈥檚 unwavering support for the Israeli apartheid regime makes all Americans complicit in the genocide of Palestinians. Rather than toss pebbles into the water, as is customary, we opted not to add to the debris lining the riverbed; instead, we placed them on the railing of the bridge, a choice that we later realized was reminiscent of the Jewish tradition of placing stones at gravesites to mark the occasion of visiting the deceased.听

In Asheville, we have begun the process of rebuilding from the hurricane. Gazans, on the other hand, cannot, because the Israeli military has not stopped dropping thousand-pound bombs on their land. that the Israeli military is even targeting aid workers鈥攖hose who are instrumental to the process of survival. Between October and May, the Israeli military targeted at least eight convoys of aid workers. This is a horrid violation of international law and a devastating act of inhumanity.听

In mid-October, Israeli forces killed 听who were on their way to conduct repairs to Gaza鈥檚 water infrastructure, which is itself being destroyed by Israeli air strikes. Receiving news of such killings is always heartbreaking, but after spending the past three weeks contributing to here in Western North Carolina (along with other community-led efforts being coordinated by the and networks), a story like this hits even harder, as we imagine the horror of doing this already-challenging work of delivering aid and humanitarian efforts while under constant threat of state violence.

As we continue to rebuild and heal here in Western North Carolina, we recognize that the destruction we face is a fraction of what the people of Gaza endure daily. While we recover from a single storm, Gazans endure an unrelenting succession of human-made storms being driven by a genocidal war campaign, even as the people working toward recovery and crisis response are themselves being targeted as enemies in this war. 

We will continue to demand that our government stop funding the Israeli military, and to instead spend our tax dollars on repairing harms in Gaza, Asheville, and everywhere there is human suffering. 

Not surprisingly, . A Pew Research Center survey of people in 24 nations in 2023 revealed that 70% of people support direct democracy, with the percentage rising to 77% support for representative democracy. However, since democracy is designed to equalize power among people, it tends to be a work in progress. Even in functioning democracies, and use it to their ends, while those who have less power struggle for their fair share. 

The United States鈥斺�攚as once regarded as a shining example of that form of government. But now, people around the world are disappointed in the nation鈥檚 approach to democracy. A of people in 34 nations concluded that only about 21% of those surveyed believe the U.S. offers a good model of democracy for the world, while 40% believe the U.S. used to be a source of inspiration but is no longer. The view from within is hardly better: Most people in the U.S. tend to distrust the government, with only about at any given time since 2007. 

Their suspicions are justified, as , a researcher at , explains: 鈥淭he data suggests that the U.S. is less democratic now than it was a decade ago, even though it remains much more democratic than it was for most of its history.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Because of the incredible promise it holds, democracy is fraught with contradictions and often triggers deep dissatisfaction when it doesn鈥檛 live up to its ideals. Indeed, . Herre found that the number of people living in democracies fell from 3.9 billion in 2016 to 2.3 billion in 2023, and that more people are living in countries that are autocratizing.听

To understand why democracies are in decline, it鈥檚 worth examining how systems are enacted. The devil is often in the details. In the space between our decision-making and the enactment of those decisions, nefarious and power-hungry actors can hijack processes and sow the seeds of autocracy. 

There are many ways to strengthen democracy amid a rise in authoritarianism. It begins with voters making wise choices: 鈥淧eople can work toward making [the U.S.] more democratic by voting for pro-democracy candidates,鈥� Herre notes. Indeed, we tend to equate democracy with voting鈥攖he most tangible way representative democracy is enacted and a critical step in choosing the public servants who make decisions on our behalf. Beyond that, Herre suggests that to make democracy more inclusive, what鈥檚 needed is 鈥渟upporting pro-democracy organizations, and expressing their support for democracy in protests and conversations.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Unfortunately, contemporary systems of representative democracy have become popularity contests in which participants are called upon every couple of years to pick between exceedingly narrow choices. In the U.S. especially, the question of 鈥攁nd therefore participate in democracy鈥攈as been debated and legislated for centuries. 

Further, there are structural obstacles to voting baked into the U.S. Constitution, which is the definitive document laying out the rules of democracy and within which are embedded those devilish details that determine the responsiveness of the system. Even after adding various amendments to right historical wrongs, rather than individual voters when it comes to electing a president, and allows for the undemocratic, racist, and complicated Electoral College system. The Constitution also specifies the undemocratic makeup of the , a powerful body that allows smaller, whiter states to have the same power as larger, more racially diverse ones.听

In other words, as Elie Mystal, justice correspondent for The Nation and author of , told 大象传媒 in 2022, the U.S. Constitution is 鈥渁 flawed document that needs to be perfected in order to achieve a level of fundamental fairness and equality that was 鈥� missing from the initial draft of it.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

He points out that none of the original authors of the Constitution or its amendments were women.鈥淸T]he same goes for LGBTQ communities. The same goes for racial, ethnic, and religious minorities in this country.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

If U.S. democracy is exclusionary by design, is it even a democracy at all? 

Democracy for Some

The U.S. Constitution was inspired not only by , but also by formations that had greater physical and temporal proximity to the nation鈥檚 modern founders. A acknowledged how the 鈥渙riginal framers of the Constitution 鈥� are known to have greatly admired the concepts, principles and government practices of the Six Nations of the Iroquois Confederacy,鈥� which today is referred to as the . 

鈥淥ur 鈥楩ounding Fathers鈥� based the U.S. Constitution on the Haudenosaunee Law of Peace,鈥� says Fern Naomi Renville, an enrolled member of the Sisseton-Wahpeton Dakota and Omaha nations, and a Seneca-Cayuga storyteller from Minnesota. Renville adds that acknowledges this debt to the Indigenous peoples of the land. 

鈥淎t the time when all of the 鈥楩ounding Fathers鈥� were having conversations, there were Native people at the table who were consulting 鈥� [and] giving input to the colonists, who weren鈥檛 all getting along, and they were being advised to come together in the way that the Haudenosaunee Tribes had,鈥� Renville says. 

Through their experience, Indigenous advisers showed the power in forming a union of disparate groups and modeled how settler colonialists could do the same to counter the power of the British Crown. However, Renville says some of the differences between the U.S. Constitution and the Haudenosaunee Law of Peace were deliberately designed to preserve power for those who already had it: wealthy white men. 

鈥淲hen people learn about the actual inspiration for the U.S. Constitution, it changes how we think about inclusion in those rights,鈥� says Renville. 鈥淚t changes how we might think about the Bill of Rights, which enshrines what are basically Haudenosaunee principles for good governance. 鈥� Just learning that might prompt people to do some growing around how we include everyone 鈥� men and women, rich and poor.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Tribes centered women in their democratic structures, and did not operate as capitalists or enslavers. In contrast, the Constitution鈥檚 framers imported European ideas of women鈥檚 disenfranchisement, human enslavement, and even landownership and property rights. 

When in 1920, they were strongly influenced by Indigenous women who enjoyed political power and decision-making authority over land and food. In 2016, women鈥檚 studies historian Sally Roesch Wagner told that early white suffragists such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton 鈥渂elieved women鈥檚 liberation was possible because they knew liberated women, women who possessed rights beyond their wildest imagination: Haudenosaunee women.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

鈥淭he Haudenosaunee Law of Peace that the Constitution is based on relies on the power of the clan mothers as the ultimate authority,鈥� says Renville. 鈥淭hat is the one piece that got left out in the application of these ideas on the U.S. Constitution and so that might be a part of why these ideas haven鈥檛 been as successfully applied in our country that we have now.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

For example, the U.S. Constitution does not enshrine reproductive justice or the right to an abortion because, according to Mystal, 鈥�the Constitution did not treat women as full people.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

People of color and especially Black people were also excluded from the writing and passage of the , , and Amendments to the U.S. Constitution, which ended enslavement, granted citizenship to African Americans, and legalized voting rights for Black men, respectively. And yet, white supremacist forces continued to curb the democratic rights of people of color until the civil rights movement forced passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. 

Calling it 鈥渢he most important piece of legislation ever passed in American history,鈥� Mystal attributes Barack Obama鈥檚 2008 presidential win to the Voting Rights Act. 鈥淔orty years after the civil rights movement, we end up with the first Black president,鈥� he says. 

U.S. democracy has suffered from constant push-and-pull factors, with excluded communities fighting for and winning rights, and reactionary forces working to undo those gains. Mystal laments how, after Obama鈥檚 election, the U.S. Supreme Court 鈥渆viscerated鈥� the Voting Rights Act in 2013 and spawned a slew of and dilute the impact of their votes. 

The exclusionary nature of U.S. democracy remains one of its central problems. Today, is seen as a continuation of slavery, with millions of people who are forced to and . 

History offers many lessons in strengthening democracy: After the U.S. incorporated the , a pay-to-play patchwork system that required people to pay taxes in order to vote, women, people of color, and low-income people overcame the corruptive power of money. Eventually, , a retired domestic worker, successfully challenged the poll tax through the 1966 Harper v. Virginia Board of Elections Supreme Court ruling. 

And yet, the overrepresentation of wealth in politics remains one of the greatest challenges to U.S. democracy. A found that 83% of Republicans and Republican-leaning people in the U.S. and 80% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning people in the U.S. feel that big-money donors and special interest lobbyists 鈥渉ave too much influence on decisions made by members of Congress.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

What Renville considers 鈥渕ost terrifying鈥� today is 鈥渢he rulings that recognize corporations as equal to people, so that economic structures have more legal weight than a human being.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Democracy is healthiest when there is greatest participation and power sharing, especially among those who have been historically excluded.鈥�

Gerald Horne, who holds the Moores Professorship of History and African American Studies at the University of Houston, agrees money has too much influence in politics. He offers a salient piece of advice to those seeking to strengthen democracy: 鈥淵ou would have to democratize the economy to begin with,鈥� he says. 鈥淲hen you don鈥檛 democratize the economy, the malefactors of great wealth鈥攁s [Theodore] Roosevelt used to say鈥攁re able to use their economic strength to put a thumb on the scale with regard to politics.鈥� A weighing scale is an apt metaphor for who has influence in U.S. democracy: The political power of historically marginalized people has been outweighed by the nefarious power of wealth and capital. 

Labor unions are microcosms of democracy and offer useful examples of how direct democracy via inclusive decision-making can counter the power of money. Horne says in the early part of the 20th century, the American Federation of Labor (AFL) tended to organize skilled workers but not low-wage workers such as secretaries in their quest for labor rights and better wages and benefits. 

In contrast, the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) 鈥渨as organizing across the board, from top to bottom鈥� in auto plants, Horne adds. 鈥淥bviously the CIO model was more democratic than the AFL model.鈥� Ultimately, McCarthyism eroded the CIO, which was then absorbed by the AFL. 鈥淲e have not learned that much from unions,鈥� says Horne. 

Furthermore, unions are relatively small formations in which direct democracy is a more viable prospect than in nation states. Most of the world鈥檚 democracies are representative, which means that people choose leaders to make decisions on their behalf rather than making every decision themselves. In contrast, direct democracies allow people to directly choose policies that govern them. 

Direct Democracies Lead the Way

When it comes to large nations in particular, representative democracy seems more efficient than, say, how a small nation such as 鈥攐ne of the world鈥檚 only direct democracies鈥攊s run. A nation of fewer than 9 million, the Swiss elect seven councilors every four years to carry out the day-to-day functioning of the government and participate in popular votes up to four times a year on specific measures. It is the closest to a direct democracy the world has today. 

At more than 333 million people, the U.S. is the third most populous nation on the planet, behind India and China. It is also the third-largest in size, behind Russia and Canada. By virtue of its sheer population and geographic size, U.S. democracy is complicated. A republic of 50 states and various territories, the federal government shares sovereign power with state governments. It makes little sense for residents of, say, Maryland, to vote on an issue that disproportionately impacts Oregonians. 

About have some form of Switzerland-like direct democracy, allowing residents to regularly cast votes on ballot measures鈥攁 sound approach, at least on paper, to ensuring state-level governments remain responsive to their voters. But there is no direct democracy at the federal level, even for something as simple as choosing the president. 

The Electoral College, where citizens vote for state-level delegates, is arguably one of the biggest tools used to dilute the power of democratic federal representation. Those delegates in turn cast ballots for the president. This is one step removed from representative democracy and could even be considered . 

The complexity of the Electoral College system becomes most apparent every four years, when adults attempt to explain to the children around them that the path to the White House winds its way through a handful of so-called 鈥渟wing states.鈥� Watch the face of a young person contort in confusion over the fact that a Michigan ballot is far more consequential than one from California, and try to explain why such a system is allowed to define itself as democratic. 

The fact that the Electoral College makes it possible for a presidential nominee to win office even if they lose the popular vote鈥攚hich has happened , including twice in the past 25 years鈥攈as prompted many to call for its abolition. After all, minority rule is a hallmark of autocracy. About favor ending the Electoral College and want direct democracy鈥攁t least when it comes to choosing the president. 

鈥淲e don鈥檛 have to get into these complicated arguments about economic democracy and the power of billionaires,鈥� says Horne. 鈥淵ou can just start with the Electoral College. It鈥檚 obvious that the Electoral College reflects a belief on the part of the framers of the Constitution that those small percentages of a potential electorate that could vote were not trustworthy and so therefore you needed this intervening force 鈥� to 鈥榗orrect鈥� any 鈥榤istakes鈥� that voters had made.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

There are efforts underway to end the Electoral College system, the most promising of which is the, a state-by-state effort to end the winner-take-all electors system practiced by 48 out of 50 states. Although the Constitution specifies the use of electors, it doesn鈥檛 require states to award all electoral votes to the winner of the statewide popular vote. Each state can therefore pass a law switching to proportional apportionment of electors and, as of , 17 states and the District of Columbia鈥攔epresenting 209 Electoral College votes鈥攈ave done so. When states representing the majority of electoral votes鈥�270鈥攑ass such laws, the Electoral College will effectively become a popular vote. 

Democratizing the Supreme Court

Another obstacle to people鈥檚 ability to rule themselves is the increasingly unaccountable U.S. Supreme Court, where only nine people with lifetime terms make decisions affecting hundreds of millions鈥攁 dynamic veering uncomfortably close to autocratic rule. 

The Court is prone to financial corruption, with justices having been found to from wealthy friends and then . It is also severely exclusionary in terms of race and gender鈥攐ut of 116 justices since the nation鈥檚 founding, . Moreover, justices are instead of interpreting laws鈥攊n effect becoming proxy legislators. 

鈥淥ne of the reasons why Republicans prefer to do certain things through the Supreme Court is that they can鈥檛 actually get them done at the ballot box, because they鈥檙e unpopular,鈥� says Mystal, who sees the Supreme Court as one of the biggest counterbalances to U.S. democracy. 鈥淧eople support women鈥檚 rights. People, now, support gay rights. Taking those away politically is difficult. That鈥檚 why they want the courts to do it.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

There are numerous ideas around reforming the Supreme Court, including 鈥攁 popular idea鈥攁nd creating a binding code of conduct. President Joe Biden has backed both these ideas, but so far, none of these efforts appear likely to come to fruition. 

Indigenous Democratic Principles

鈥淚 believe that how we treat land is how we treat people,鈥� says Renville. The sentiment captures another major difference between the U.S. form of democracy and the Indigenous democratic principles on which the U.S. Constitution was loosely based: Landownership, which is the root of individual financial accumulation and capitalism, had no place in the Haudenosaunee Great Law of Peace. 

Per Renville, 鈥渢he recognition of the 鈥榬ights of nature鈥欌�� is a critical piece of inclusion in the U.S. political system that can strengthen democracy. Humans exist within the context of their environment and consequently thrive when their environment is respected. Modern-day democratic systems tend not to consider the rights of nature. Yet, as Renville asserts, we need to begin incorporating 鈥渢he right of a river or a forest or a mountain or so forth to exist and to be preserved and protected for the future鈥� into our democratic system, as the Haudenosaunee did. 

There is precedent for such an idea. In 2008, in the world to vote on a new Constitution that centered the rights of nature and of natural systems to 鈥渆xist, flourish, and evolve.鈥� Remarkably, the idea originated in the U.S. and was pushed by a grassroots organization from San Francisco called the , and drafted with the help of the , which is based in Pennsylvania. Today, the is leading a worldwide effort to incorporate similar clauses in the constitutions of all democracies. 

Indigenous principles centering women and nature offer a pathway toward stronger democracy in the U.S. Renville cites the leadership of , the chairwoman of the Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe in the Northwest U.S. Charles was 鈥渁 huge part of the force that brought down that Elwha Dam successfully and restored their ancestral beach, and restored the salmon run鈥� so that people could sustain themselves, according to Renville. 鈥淭hat kind of female leadership, I see it as being very connected to the ability to advocate for land and water, and to take care of our lands and people.鈥� After all, care for people and the land is the ultimate measure of success in any democracy. 

Democracy is healthiest when there is greatest participation and power sharing, especially among those who have been historically excluded. Or, as Herre concluded in a , 鈥淧eople turned previous autocratic tides by advocating relentlessly for governing themselves democratically. We have done it before, and can do it again.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

A November 2024 for Rosas and thousands of other Santa Ana residents. If voters pass , noncitizen residents will have the right to vote in Santa Ana鈥檚 local elections beginning in 2028. It would be the third jurisdiction in California to offer limited voting rights to noncitizens. Meanwhile, nationwide, the number of jurisdictions that have granted some is nearing two dozen, with just last September by a vote of the local Board of Aldermen.

The measure to expand voting rights in Santa Ana is the only one like it on any ballot nationwide in November 2024. It comes as voters are being asked to decide on constitutional amendments that will to preemptively block any noncitizen voting measures from moving forward. Those amendments have been spurred by and former president about immigrants violating voting laws.

Pro-democracy and voter education groups, such as the and , have condemned the proposed amendments for giving credence to conspiracy theories about voter fraud and Democrat-led ballot harvesting. 

鈥淲e don鈥檛 know what the outcome of the presidential election is going to be in November, but we do know that immigrants have lost regardless because of the rhetoric that has been spewed by both candidates,鈥� says Carlos Perea, executive director at the , which has helped drive the movement for Measure DD in Santa Ana. Not unlike Republican nominee Trump, Democratic nominee Kamala Harris has also adopted a callous tone toward migrants during her campaign, including bragging about backing a bipartisan anti-immigrant bill that her campaign ads call 鈥�.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

鈥淚n an election year where immigrants have become the preferred boogeyman for both presidential candidates, we want to send a message that we are not going to stand for our communities being demonized,鈥� says Perea. 鈥淲e are defining our lives at the local level, and we want self-determination through political representation.鈥� Perea, a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipient who has lived in Santa Ana since he was 14, is also among the residents who could vote in local elections for the first time if Measure DD passes.

If the call to expand limited voting rights to noncitizens sounds far fetched or new, the suburban town of Takoma Park, Maryland, has news for you. 鈥淲e just celebrated 30 years of noncitizen voting,鈥� says Jessie Carpenter, Takoma Park鈥檚 city clerk responsible for election administration. Voters in Takoma Park voted to allow noncitizen residents to cast ballots in local elections in 1992. The change was implemented the following year and has worked smoothly for decades.

The movement is younger in California, where San Francisco became the first city in the state to grant noncitizens some voting rights in 2016 with a ballot measure called . The change went into effect two years later. San Francisco鈥檚 measure, which is more limited in scope than Takoma Park鈥檚, enables noncitizen parents of school children to vote only in school board races. In contrast, all noncitizen residents of Takoma Park can vote in all municipal elections. similar to San Francisco鈥檚 in 2022.

Annette Wong, managing director of programs at in San Francisco, says the initiative to enfranchise parents in school board elections was important to the city鈥檚 Chinese American community and other immigrant communities because they wanted to be more involved in the politics of their children鈥檚 education. 鈥淚t came from this desire by the parents that we had been organizing with for them to have a bigger say and a voice in their child鈥檚 education,鈥� she says.

A similar sentiment has driven the movement in Santa Ana, where parents like Rosas want to vote in local contests based on what they believe is best for their children. The campaign for Measure DD also highlights how much the noncitizen community contributes to the local economy. Each year, noncitizen residents of Santa Ana pay an estimated , according to analysis from the Harbor Institute.

That number is based on U.S. Census Bureau data and information from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. 鈥淩egardless of immigration status, regardless of where we come from, today we live in this city 鈥� our children go to school, we contribute our labor, and we pay taxes,鈥� Rosas says. 鈥淪imply, we [should] be allowed to participate just like any other person in this city participates in local decisions.鈥�

The expansion of limited voting rights to noncitizen residents in parts of California has faced challenges from opponents who argue it burdens cities with additional costs and complexities in election administration and could contradict the state鈥檚 constitution. After Proposition N passed and was implemented in San Francisco, a conservative activist named , who does not live in San Francisco, brought a lawsuit in a local court, alleging the program was unconstitutional.

A San Francisco Superior Court judge initially sided with Lacy in July 2022. However, the city appealed that decision to the California Court of Appeal, which reversed the lower court decision and upheld the legality of San Francisco鈥檚 noncitizen voting program in what city attorney David Chiu called 鈥�.鈥�

that California鈥檚 constitution, which states that 鈥渁 United States citizen 18 years of age and resident in this State may vote,鈥� only established a 鈥渇loor,鈥� meaning a lower limit on enfranchisement, rather than a 鈥渃eiling鈥� or upper limit. Therefore, it does not preclude expanding voting rights to groups beyond what is named in the state鈥檚 constitution. (The ruling also paved the way for the enfranchisement of 16 and 17 year olds in some California cities.)

Julia Gomez, senior staff attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, says the California Court of Appeal鈥檚 holding 鈥渉ighlights that it鈥檚 state specific,鈥� and whether other jurisdictions can pursue similar noncitizen resident voting programs will depend on their state constitution. 

In New York City, where the city council passed legislation allowing noncitizen residents to vote in local elections in 2021, Republican officials the rule at the appellate court level. Unlike in the California case, a judge in New York ruled that the state鈥檚 constitution establishes a ceiling beyond which voting rights cannot be expanded. In March 2024, the city council filed a in support of the law. 

In spite of repeated conservative claims that widespread and illegal noncitizen voting threatens U.S. democracy, researchers conclude that there is essentially . Carpenter, who administers elections in Takoma Park, says the noncitizen voter program in her jurisdiction does not threaten the integrity of state or federal elections, in which noncitizens remain barred from voting. The city clerk鈥檚 office maintains its own supplemental list of noncitizen voters and does not feed any information into county or state systems, meaning there is no chance that noncitizen voters from Takoma Park could accidentally end up on the Maryland voter rolls. 

Other jurisdictions that pursue limited enfranchisement for noncitizen voters have put similar safeguards in place. For example, in San Francisco, the ballots for noncitizen parents are a different color and only feature the applicable school board races, so no one could accidentally vote in another contest. 

鈥淭he stories that noncitizens are voting [in federal elections] or we鈥檙e registering people so they can vote for Democrats鈥攏one of that is the case,鈥� says Carpenter. 鈥淲hat it does mean is that people could feel like they鈥檙e really a part of the community and that they have a say in how the local government works.鈥�

Plus, noncitizen voters themselves have no desire to commit voter fraud and risk disrupting their immigration status. 鈥淔olks in the noncitizen community, the immigrant community, they鈥檙e not trying to jeopardize things for themselves,鈥� says Wong, whose organization also anchors the . That group provides outreach and education services to newly enfranchised immigrant parents to ensure they are familiar with the bounds of their hard-won rights and feel empowered to get involved in their children鈥檚 education, whether or not they decide to cast a vote in school board elections. Gomez says that if Measure DD passes in Santa Ana, the coalition there will launch a similar effort before the new rule goes into effect. 

As Republican-led legislation to preclude the enfranchisement of noncitizens gains steam amid rising anti-immigrant sentiment nationwide, proponents of noncitizen voting programs remain focused on the heart of the issue: 鈥淲e see this movement as an acknowledgment that we are all a part of this shared society,鈥� says Wong. 鈥淣o matter where you are in the society, you have a stake and you should have a voice.鈥�

When I turned 18, one of my proudest moments was completing my voter registration application. I grew up in a politically aware household. My grandma, who was raised with Jim Crow laws, discussed the importance of voting and being politically informed with me from a young age. She grew up in a time where voting was not a right extended to Black people, especially those living in the South, as she was. She instilled that history in me.

My elders wanted me to be an informed voter and to know more than just the names on the ballot. I also knew which issues I cared about and where candidates stood on those issues. As I developed my own understanding of the world and the societal and political issues that mattered to me, being informed was imperative so I knew which candidates aligned or misaligned with the world I hoped to see and be a part of. 

I voted in my first presidential election in 2004. During that time, the U.S. was embroiled in wars in both Afghanistan and Iraq, so I would attend campus events to better understand the concurrent conflicts and how we came to be at war to begin with. As I learned more about Islamophobia and colonialism, I began questioning our country鈥檚 role around the world.

Those events, coupled with the classes I was taking in African American Studies, broadened my worldview, allowing me to better understand how the U.S. interacts with other countries, especially those in the Middle East and Africa, and how political propaganda skews our collective perspective. I was already liberal about the 鈥渃ontroversial鈥� issues of that time, including supporting LGBTQ rights, but now my rose-colored glasses were off. I was no longer buying into the propaganda that the United States is the 鈥済reatest nation on Earth,鈥� so I knew I would be more prepared when the next election rolled around.

In January 2008, I learned about a Black man who was running against Hillary Clinton for the Democratic nomination. I didn鈥檛 know much about him, but I knew he was gaining attention among the other students on campus. When he planned a visit to my alma mater, I knew I had to attend. 

I had no idea I would be wowed by then Senator Barack Obama. I was mesmerized by his charisma, his intelligence, and his ability to work the crowd as he explained how his background led him to run for president. By the time the event concluded, I knew if he secured the Democratic nomination, I would be voting for him. I wasn鈥檛 the only person excited by Obama鈥檚 potential; my elders, all of whom were widows, never thought they鈥檇 see the day a Black man could be elected as president.

I haven鈥檛 been enamored by a candidate since Obama鈥檚 first presidential election. He imbued me with a sense of hope after living through George W. Bush鈥檚 disheartening presidency. We were electrified. And yet, the political veil I鈥檇 begun removing during Bush鈥檚 presidency came completely off during Obama鈥檚 tenure.

I began organizing in 2013 around policies that impacted the lives of disabled people and, more specifically, disabled people of color, including police violence, which . Through that organizing, I learned that the 鈥渢rainings鈥� police departments were using to better understand disability weren鈥檛 stopping them from harming and killing us, though these trainings were being heralded as 鈥済roundbreaking.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

I came to better understand that laws that should protect disabled people are in desperate need of an overhaul in order to be truly significant in the times we lived in. All of these truths hit me and kept me from being omplacent with the mere presence of a Black president; I want a president that fully supports the people who do and don鈥檛 look like me.

鈥淲hen you know better, you do better鈥� has been a guiding light in my politics, but now, I know when we know better, we demand better. As I entered my 30s, my political understanding was not just shaped by my worldview but also by those I was now in community with. Finding and learning about candidates throughout the country who not just cared about the issues that mattered to me but had a strong track record of supporting them became pronounced. This view was the reason I dived deeper in supporting candidates whose values and politics aligned with mine.  

In 2020, I had the opportunity to be a consultant on the disability policy plan for Senator Elizabeth Warren鈥檚 presidential run. Being a part of the movement to ensure every Democratic candidate that election cycle had a disability policy plan reignited my commitment to connecting with candidates who don鈥檛 overlook disabled people and figuring out what accountability looks like for me as a voter.

Now, as we face another presidential election, the awakening of Gen Z, many of whom are voting in their first election, has given me an extra boost of energy. Gen Z鈥檚 excitement is infectious. Even as they are watching a Black and Indian woman running for the most coveted position, they鈥檙e not losing sight of the issues that matter most to them鈥攁 reminder to me and others that we can and should demand better from our elected officials.

Nothing is perfect, and it never will be. But this election is pivotal for people in the United States and abroad. Every position on the ballot matters鈥攕chool boards, city councils, state representatives鈥攁nd it鈥檚 on us to use our votes to push for the causes we鈥檙e passionate about. As voters, we must remember that whoever is in office works for us; if we don鈥檛 like what they鈥檙e doing, then we can vote them out when their term is up. Gen Z is learning this reality and voting for the future they deserve to have, including one without genocide and without gun violence.

I hope Gen Z knows their presence at the polls matters and their work doesn鈥檛 end after they鈥檝e dropped off their ballots. We the people have the ultimate power, and it is critical to remember that the government is much bigger than the White House. Know who the treasurer, sheriff, and coroner of your city is鈥攊t鈥檚 just as critical as knowing who the president is. Learn what policies are being enacted and blocked that will either improve or hinder the quality of life for yourself and those more marginalized than you. You are the adults now, in charge of ensuring Gen Alpha and the generation after them will live in a world where their rights are protected.  

And, most of all, keep that hopeful energy. Don鈥檛 dive deeper into the belly of despair. Hope and joy are our birthrights as humans to hold onto and find when we need them, and they are essential elements when organizing for the world we desire to live in. Use history as a guide. Even amid the most unimaginable circumstances, people still found ways to push forward, build community, and fight for a more just world.

If we don鈥檛 believe things can and should be better, then what will motivate us to not back down when beaten down (literally or metaphorically)? Every movement has had people who believe, are hopeful, and find joy among each other鈥攁nd we need that in this moment, no matter who is elected president. Having hope is not a sign of disillusionment; it鈥檚 a reminder that every storm eventually runs out of rain. While we are in a storm right now with so much at stake, let us all do our part to demand more so that when this storm breaks, we will not be more broken. We鈥檒l be as strong as we can be. 

Ashley Tchanyoum, a high school junior in Oakland, says she has been encouraging her classmates to register in the lead-up to the election and looks forward to exercising her right to vote for the first time. 鈥淚t empowers students to have a voice in shaping the policies that affect them every day,鈥� she says. 

The Oakland initiative is part of a growing movement in the United States to lower the voting age to enfranchise 16- and 17-year-olds. Proponents of the change argue that young people are already shaping the nation鈥檚 politics through influential organizing movements, including and . Those student-led organizations respond to issues that disproportionately affect young people, including gun violence and climate change. With so much on the line, lowering the voting age would give young people a more direct means of intervening in the political process to shape policy on issues that affect them and their futures.

A dozen municipalities have already enfranchised 16- and 17-year-olds in either school board elections, such as in Oakland, or all municipal elections, meaning young people can also vote on local ballot measures and for municipal representatives. The majority of these municipalities are in . There are also ongoing campaigns to lower the voting age in Washington, D.C., and . This November, voters in Albany, California, will decide on . Meanwhile, statewide campaigns to lower voting age in , , and are growing and have garnered support from both Republicans and Democrats.听

At the national level, Representative Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts and Representative Grace Meng of New York have introduced legislation to lower the voting age in federal, state, and local elections. When Pressley proposed it as an amendment to the House Democrats鈥� voting rights bill in 2019, 鈥攁 significant number, even though the amendment failed. More recently, Meng an amendment to the Constitution that would lower the national voting age to 16 years old. 

鈥淥ver the past few years, we have seen the influence [that] young people in our nation have on trends, political movements, and elections,鈥� said Meng in announcing the legislation. 鈥淚t is time to give them a voice in our democracy.鈥� She first introduced similar legislation in 2018 and then reintroduced it in 2019, 2021, and 2023. Each time, it has failed to move out of committee.

While a federal move to lower the voting age might sound far fetched, Lukas Brekke-Miesner, executive director of (OKF), likes to remind naysayers that it has happened before. Less than six decades ago, in 1971, the 26th Amendment to the Constitution lowered the voting age from 21 to 18. 鈥淸The Oakland campaign] felt like a bit of an uphill battle,鈥� admits Brekke-Miesner. 鈥淏ut understanding that there is a legacy and precedent of this having happened was a point of hope.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Today, the push to lower the voting age enjoys less popular support than half a century ago. Back then, both liberal and conservative politicians backed it, arguing that if young people could be conscripted and go to war at 18 years old, they ought to be able to vote then, too. show that most Americans supported the change as early as the 1950s, following a change in eligibility for the military draft, which allowed Americans as young as 18 to be conscripted into World War II.

Today, those poll numbers are much different. One found that 75% of registered voters opposed letting 17-year-olds vote, and 84% opposed voting rights for 16-year-olds. Opponents express doubts about whether people in these age groups are mature enough to vote and question whether their votes would differ from those of their parents. Some Republicans, who tend to oppose lowering the voting age in greater numbers than Democrats do, are just ploys to get more votes for their rivals.听

Studies on adolescent brain development suggest that fears of 16-year-olds not having the decision-making power to cast a vote are unfounded. Instead, that what psychologists call 鈥渃old cognition鈥濃�攎eaning a person鈥檚 judgment in situations that allow for unhurried decision-making and consultation with others鈥攊s likely to be just as developed in 16-year-olds as in adults. While a person鈥檚 鈥渉ot cognition,鈥� meaning their judgment in high-pressure or emotional situations, tends not to mature until later, the skills needed to make informed decisions at the ballot box are already developed at age 16.

鈥淭his idea that young people don鈥檛 have the maturity, don鈥檛 have the smarts, don鈥檛 have the intellect to vote, I think is not only problematic, but it does a disservice to young people,鈥� says LaJuan Allen, director of , a national organization that supports youth-led campaigns to extend voting rights to 16 and 17 year olds at the state and local levels.

Research also suggests that if 16- and 17-year-olds were enfranchised, they would not necessarily vote the same way that their parents do. While there is little data on this phenomenon in the U.S., conducted before the 2014 Scottish independence referendum showed that more than 40% of 16- and 17-year-olds planned to vote differently than their parents. According to Jan Eichhorn, the researcher who led that study, when young people did intend to vote the same way as their parents, they nonetheless came to that conclusion on their own. 鈥淭hey really make up their mind in quite a complex way themselves, and that is really encouraging to see,鈥� .

In Oakland, the campaign to lower the voting age was a student-led one. Students were driven to organize around lowering the voting age because of issues they experienced and that adults seemed to overlook. First, in 2019, the Oakland School Board cut vital support programs for its students. Student organizers spoke out against the cuts, but the board pursued them anyway. 鈥淲e could definitely see a disconnect between what students think is important and what school board members do,鈥� shares Tchanyoum. More recently, Tchanyoum says students at her high school have been concerned about the lack of accessible bathrooms on campus and disparities in the amenities and extracurricular programs offered on different campuses in the district. Students would also like to implement programs to improve student鈥搒taff relationships and are concerned that their rights to speak about Palestine-related issues are being restricted.

To help get youth voting rights on the ballot in Oakland, Tchanyoum joined the movement as an organizer with Oakland Unified School District鈥檚 and the , both of which are part of the . That coalition was formed in 2019 with the goal of lobbying the Oakland City Council for a ballot measure to lower the voting age in school board elections. They succeeded, and in November 2020, voters were asked to decide on . 

Leading up to the vote, student organizers mobilized voters through phone banking, media interviews, social media, and other advertising. Measure QQ passed, with 67% of Oakland voters voting in its favor. The new rule is being rolled out for the first time this year after organizers worked with election officials, school board officials, and consultants to ensure its smooth implementation. Sixteen and 17-year-olds in neighboring Berkeley will also be for the first time, following a ballot measure that passed there in 2016 but was slow to be implemented.

For those who argue that enfranchising more young people would be a power grab for Democrats, Allen of Vote16USA says that鈥檚 simply not the point: 鈥淟owering the voting age is about enfranchising young people, prioritizing youth voting rights, and strengthening our democracy.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Plus, some research suggests that voters between the ages of 18 and 24 than voters between the ages of 25 and 29. When girls between the ages of 7 and 12 were surveyed about the 2024 election, the proportion who said they with either the Republican or Democratic party was larger than those who did identify with one. 

While it is unclear how future 16- and 17-year-olds would vote if enfranchised, evidence suggests that either way, enfranchising this group would have benefits for the nation鈥檚 democracy, including boosting low voter turnout. Data from Takoma Park and Hyattsville, Maryland, a pair of towns that allow 16- and 17-year-olds to vote on all municipal matters, show that enfranchised teens tend to than the general population.

Plus, engaging young people in the voting process earlier could encourage long-term civic engagement. Reaching young, would-be voters for the first time when they turn 18 can be challenging because they tend to be going through significant life transitions, like moving from high school to college. However, according to Ava Mateao, president of the voter turnout organization , 鈥淚f you reach a young person and engage them in the voting process [in] whatever capacity you can when they鈥檙e 16 or 17, they鈥檙e more likely to be a lifelong voter.鈥� The group also supports lowering the voting age to 16 to boost turnout. 

Brekke-Miesner says these big-picture benefits are the ultimate goal: 鈥淥ur young folks didn鈥檛 enter the chat to say, 鈥楬ey, voting is the end-all, be-all,鈥� but really because they wanted to have power within their communities,鈥� he says. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 the ultimate drive鈥攖o get folks re-engaged, organizing in their communities, and engaging in local governance.鈥�

As support for immigration has waned, Donald Trump, in his most tried and true political move, has stoked a moral panic over rising 鈥渕igrant crime,鈥� fearmongering and pitting communities of color against each other to gain votes. Meanwhile, President Joe Biden has not only gone along with the narrative, but his administration has gutted the asylum system and outsourced immigration enforcement to Mexico, exacerbating the U.S.-manufactured crisis at the border and leading to more senseless deaths and precarity in the borderlands and beyond. Vice President Kamala Harris has followed the lead of the president she hopes to succeed.

I have organized around immigration for over two decades, during which Democrats repeatedly succumbed to their opponents鈥� playbook and positioned the issue as a national security and public safety issue. Yet even in this climate, there is no escaping how surreal this moment is. In , I write about how moral panics and so-called 鈥渢ough on crime鈥� policies have facilitated the expansion of immigrant detention. The Democrats鈥� play on immigration feels akin to the Clinton era in the 鈥�90s, when Republicans took hold of Congress for the first time in decades. The 1994 crime bill, along with immigration laws passed by Congress in 1996,  of the criminal legal and immigration enforcement systems, doubling the capacity of the immigrant detention apparatus.

Later during President Barack Obama鈥檚 tenure, his administration expanded collaborations with local police and ramped up border enforcement to make the case for comprehensive immigration reform and a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants. As a result, deportations skyrocketed, earning him the moniker 鈥渄eporter in chief.鈥� But as I write in the book, years of accepting border militarization and criminalization as a strategy to bring relief to 鈥渋nnocent鈥� immigrants in the United States have only resulted in more dehumanization of migrants in general, thus creating more barriers to securing legalization for the 11 million undocumented people living here. Despite this lesson, many organizations are falling back into the 鈥済ood immigrant versus bad immigrant鈥� frame鈥攐r in this case, the old immigrant versus the new immigrant, making the case for some at the expense of others.

It all feels incredibly bleak. But I try to remind myself that there have been numerous moments when anti-immigrant sentiment has ruled the political discourse only to retreat as movements fought back: California in the 鈥�90s after the passage of the harsh ballot measure Proposition 187; the 2006 immigrant rights marches that brought millions to the streets in response to the post-9/11 immigration crackdown; and more recently the boycotts of the state of Arizona protesting SB 1070, the 鈥渟how me your papers鈥� law that gave the state unconstitutional immigration enforcement authority. In some of our most dire political moments, immigrant communities, organizers, advocates, and ordinary people have stepped up to fight back, opening space for crucial movement victories.

After the gut punch that was the 2016 election result, organizers and advocates have more seriously engaged in . Sometimes these sessions only serve to cause more anxiety. But they have also been critical spaces to figure out how our movements can prepare. It is important to recognize that we have lost ground since the 2020 onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the near-simultaneous mass uprising for Black lives, which produced significant leftward shifts on mass incarceration, policing, and immigration enforcement. Since then, the backlash has been building, and opportunities for major victories are now out of reach. In many ways, the current conditions require us to return to the basics of organizing and movement building. There are no easy solutions, and broadening the base of support is our best bet for combating the harmful narratives about immigrants and immigration.

Since the release of Project 2025,  about what a second Trump term would look like on immigration. His administration would strip status from millions of undocumented people who benefit from programs such as Temporary Protected Status, which allows them to live and work in the United States. This would make them even more vulnerable to deportation. Along with local, state, and federal police forces, a second Trump administration plans to deploy the National Guard to round up immigrants already residing in the United States and warehouse them in detention camps across the country. The proposals conjure up images from World War II, when Japanese Americans were labeled 鈥渆nemies of the state鈥� and incarcerated in 鈥渞elocation centers.鈥� In addition to the full-on attack of immigrants currently living in the country, the plans include a more robust Muslim and African ban and other efforts to shut down the border to people seeking refuge. Other proposals that have been floated, such as ending birthright citizenship, are more outlandish and difficult to accomplish, but the intent is clear. Right-wing politicians have embraced the racist 鈥溾�� theory, and the goal is to end immigration as we know it.

In the case of a Trump election win, demanding that the Biden administration dismantle the detention and deportation systems and rescind harsh border policies will be imperative. So far Biden has received a pass from liberals and even some immigration advocates on his ramping up of enforcement, but the short period of time between the election and inauguration will require a united front to make Stephen Miller鈥檚 dark agenda that much harder to implement. Once Trump is in office, there will no doubt be a relentless onslaught of executive orders requiring rapid response. Many will turn to litigation, but there are obvious limitations given the makeup of the courts. And if we want to build for the long-term, it is critical that we invest in organizing and base building.

It may seem difficult to imagine a Trump administration being affected by mass mobilization, but in 2018, after widespread public outrage, he ended the zero-tolerance policy separating families at the border. Separations continued, but not at the same scale. As immigrant communities are targeted, going local in our strategies will also take center stage to mitigate the harm of his administration. Creating spaces for sanctuary and community defense networks, limiting collaboration between police and ICE, and waging campaigns to prevent detention expansion will be essential to throwing a wrench in their plans. We must also create on-ramps for those newly engaged or returning to the fight, fortifying the movement to protect communities now and build for the future when there may be openings.

As for Harris, her  made clear that she is positioning herself as tough on immigration and will continue to campaign around what both parties like to call 鈥渂order security.鈥� Depending on the makeup of the House and Senate, an immigration bill could move in Congress in 2025. The bipartisan Senate border bill proposed earlier this year, and , created a new floor for how much Democrats are willing to trade off to get something passed. Before this point, legalization for a large portion of undocumented immigrants was always on the table, but in this instance the tradeoff was more funding for military aid to Ukraine and Israel, and nonpunitive reforms to the system were minimal.

The border panic has divided the movement, but it鈥檚 imperative for us to understand that anti-immigrant sentiment is driven in part by rampant and widening social inequality. Solidarity across movements for racial and economic justice and against U.S. militarism will be essential as we tackle the rightward lurch on immigration. Now is the time to offer an alternative approach, one grounded in a vision of a world without cages that embraces the freedom of movement鈥攐ne in which all our communities can thrive.

In addition to border policy, we should anticipate a Harris administration to follow Biden鈥檚 approach to interior enforcement. Despite Biden proclaiming a hundred days into his presidency that there should be 鈥渘o private prisons, period,鈥� his administration is still  and expanding their use. As of this summer, ICE has  for at least seven new detention centers in the Chicago, El Paso, Harlingen, Phoenix, Salt Lake City, San Francisco, and Seattle jurisdictions. Much as if Trump were to win, similar strategies of ending ICE鈥損olice collaborations and preventing detention expansion would be paramount.

Already sanctuary policies are being attacked, as a moral panic is stoked over 鈥渕igrant crime.鈥� In an attempt to debunk these claims, many organizations have emphasized data showing that immigrants commit fewer crimes than do citizens. But this only serves to accept public safety as a metric for immigration and ends up throwing  under the bus, effectively pitting working-class communities against each other. A better understanding of  with immigration enforcement has helped the movement limit deportations. Given the backlash moment we鈥檙e in, we must continue to challenge the whole system and not fall into the moral panic over crime.

Just as concerning is how conservative states have acted under Biden, which we can expect to continue under a Harris administration. From Texas to Florida, states across the country are enacting some of the harshest anti-immigrant legislation we鈥檝e ever seen. Through these efforts, such as Operation Lone Star and SB 4 in Texas, states are commandeering state-level criminal legal systems to target and prosecute migrants as well as people providing aid to migrants. SB 4, for example, includes a 10-year minimum sentence for 鈥渉uman smuggling鈥� or 鈥渉arboring鈥� undocumented immigrants. Governor Greg Abbott and Texas officials are essentially dictating immigration policy for the whole country. By filing lawsuits against forms of administrative relief such as DACA, deploying its own deportation force, and busing migrants to sanctuary cities, Texas has gone on a rampage, and Biden has done very little to intervene. If Harris wins, the question remains whether, given her history as a state attorney general, she will be more likely to push back on Texas and other states. But based on her recent comments on immigration, it is clear that she will need to be pushed, and we need to prioritize building up grassroots capacity to protect immigrant communities and fight back in these states.

The coming months will undoubtedly bring more heartache and confusion for immigrant communities. Regardless of who is president, educating people about their rights and expanding our base will be essential to building power toward longer-term change. Across the country, organizers and advocates are already planning for either outcome, hoping to be more prepared than we were in 2016. Dozens of organizations have gathered in multiple forums, such as Democracy 2025 and the Immigrant Movement Visioning Process, to develop strategies for preventing mass deportations if the worst were to happen. In this environment, abolition is a helpful tool for analysis and guidance. We must reject the reduction of immigrant lives to 鈥減ublic safety鈥� and 鈥渘ational security鈥� frameworks, and we must instead put forth a narrative of belonging and collectivity that helps bridge our struggles for racial and migrant justice. In this moment of political fervor, now is the time to start planting the seeds for a more grounded and accountable movement.

This article was originally published by . It has been republished here with permission. This essay was written in the author鈥檚 personal capacity. The views expressed are her own and and do not necessarily represent the views of Detention Watch Network. 

Meanwhile, Donald Trump and J.D. Vance seem to be recognizing that a campaign whose gendered messaging has consisted almost entirely of overt misogyny is not doing them any favors with women voters. The last few weeks have seen the Republican ticket making a host of promises to women: to 鈥溾�� them, to give them 鈥溾�� that will help them 鈥�,鈥� and to ensure a world where they will 鈥�.鈥澨�

This women-specific messaging from Trump and Vance reflects an important shift in our political culture. Feminism has achieved an unprecedented level of popularity. In a time when , it has become difficult to reach women without making some kind of claim about understanding their plight.

Yet Trump and Vance鈥攚ho oppose abortion rights, have no plans to raise the federal minimum wage, and who seem to 鈥攃annot present themselves as advocates for women without undermining their own policy positions. Yet they are now addressing what have traditionally been thought of as feminist issues, such as sexual assault, Title IX, and the struggles of moms. Their gloss on the issues is, unsurprisingly, racist, transphobic, and indifferent to economic inequality. But they seem to be banking on the idea that elite women will mistake the candidates鈥� investments in oppressive systems with investments in the fate of women.

There is a preexisting reservoir of arguments available to help Republicans accomplish this confusion, and it comes from a surprising place: from within feminism. As I argue in my new book, (Beacon Press, October 2024), feminism has always had many strands within it, and some of these have sought to advance the interests of privileged women at the expense of less privileged ones.

Trump has, in recent weeks, repeated the message that he will be women鈥檚 protector. This position has been roundly criticized for being condescending to women, and for coming from an alleged rapist. But less has been said about which women Trump and his surrogates claim to be protecting, and whom he claims to be protecting them from. 

Trump鈥檚 original protector comments were embedded within a set of dog whistles about men of color. His specific promise was to and on 鈥渃ity streets.鈥�

This is part of in which Trump has repeatedly attempted to associate rape with Latinx and undocumented people, in spite of the fact that the prevalence of sexual assault is high among all racial and ethnic groups, and in spite of the fact that many rapes of migrant women are . 

This strategy of associating Black and Brown men with rape also has a longer history within white feminism. actively argued that 鈥渙ther鈥� men鈥檚 treatment of women was a reason that countries in the Global South need to be colonized. The dominant feminist response to rape in the U.S. until quite recently was what is known as 鈥�,鈥� an approach that proposes widening the reach of a racist criminal justice system as the solution to gender-based violence.

Trump鈥檚 and Vance鈥檚 borrowings from white feminism extend to another domain in which they are using the language of 鈥減rotection鈥�: women鈥檚 sports. Vance recently claimed that in sports would prevent his daughter from being 鈥渂rutalized,鈥� repeating a false image of the trans woman as a violator of women鈥檚 鈥渟afe spaces.鈥� This concept has recently resurged since its initial popularity in feminist separatist circles in the 1970s. Feminists of color were vocally critical of , because it assumed that there was one way to be a woman鈥攗sually, implicitly, the white way.  

Vance鈥檚 recent rhetoric around family and childcare draws on another, 鈥渟ofter鈥� side of white feminism. The sarcastic tone of his 鈥渃hildless cat ladies鈥� comments and his participation in banter about the 鈥溾�� seems to have vanished, replaced with a man who wants to , and instead give them 鈥�.鈥�

The idea that feminists are enemies of stay-at-home moms has its roots in . Conservatives of the time managed to block feminist efforts to secure free childcare by portraying the feminist as a judgmental career woman who looked down her nose at motherhood. 

The legacy of this period endures in the popular feminist claim that the aim of feminism is to respect individual women鈥檚 choices鈥攖hat women should be able to make decisions about their lives without fear of judgment. Yet a feminism focused on non-judgment continues to serve only the most privileged women, since the 鈥渃hoice鈥� not to work outside the home has only ever been available to the well-off. Across a range of issues鈥攃hildcare, abortion, and sexual harassment鈥攚hat women actually need is not the false guise of options, but also material support.

Whether these strategies of appealing to privileged women will win Trump and Vance the election remains to be seen. But the lessons from these appropriations of seemingly feminist arguments extend far beyond what happens this November. Unless we achieve greater moral clarity about the goals of feminism, it will remain easy for privileged women to confuse their interests with the interests of women and gender-expansive people as a group.

Fortunately for feminists, arriving at this clarity does not have to mean starting from scratch. White feminism, and its sister ideologies such as neoliberal feminism and femonationalism, have never been the only games in town. These ideologies, I argue in the book, are united by an understanding of feminism as a movement to increase women鈥檚 individual freedom. 

But feminism should really be understood in the way famously described it in 1984鈥攁s a movement against oppression. Oppression is not the same thing as restrictions on what individual women can do; it is a set of social structures that brings down women as a group. It is only by reclaiming this heart of feminism that we can fight against the proliferation of faux feminisms that serve the interests of the powerful.

Wearing a dark blue suit and a broad smile, he walked out of his naturalization ceremony holding a small U.S. flag and his citizenship certificate. The timing was no coincidence; he aimed to become eligible to vote before the Nov. 5 presidential election. 

鈥淚 am very excited that I will be able to vote,鈥� says Garcia, 57. 鈥淲e can express our voice and, more than anything, we can make ourselves count.鈥�

In swing states such as Arizona, Nevada, and Pennsylvania, and large states such as California, the influence of Latino voters like Garcia could be key to choosing the next president in the race between former President Donald J. Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. Newly naturalized citizens and an influx of young Latinos reaching the voting age of 18 boosted to 36.2 million in 2024, up from 32.3 million in 2020.

A by Phoenix-based advocacy group (LUCHA) and Data for Social Good shows that a majority of 1,028 registered Arizona voters surveyed between April and May are highly motivated to cast a ballot. While immigration remains important for many Latinos, the poll found they are also deeply concerned about the economy, health care access, and affordable housing. The findings track with examining the issues Latino voters are thinking about less than a month before the election.

The shifting demographics of Latino voters reflect the nuanced distinctions within an evolving population often characterized as a monolithic voting bloc. 鈥淲e鈥檙e a diverse community with a wide range of political views, experience, and priorities,鈥� says Alejandra Gomez, executive director of LUCHA.

Canvassers have been knocking on doors all over the state since March to encourage voters鈥擫atinos in particular鈥攖o cast a ballot and hopes are high that they will turn out en masse, says Stephanie Maldonado, managing director at LUCHA. 鈥淚 definitely do see our community showing up and showing up big this November 5th,鈥� she adds.

Garcia says he鈥檚 looking forward to making his vote count. For years after coming to the U.S. from Mexico, he worked in construction. In the 1990s, he started his own landscaping business, which he still operates. These days he worries about inflation because his earnings don鈥檛 go as far as they used to when buying necessities. 鈥淧rices have gone way up, for food and gasoline and other items,鈥� he says.

Garcia is hopeful the next president will take on issues related to the economy, but he also would like the future commander-in-chief to push for immigration reforms. What鈥檚 needed, he says, is an orderly, speedier process that gives eligible people already in the country or waiting to apply for U.S. asylum south of the border an opportunity to live here legally. 鈥淧eople come here to improve their lives and to achieve the American dream, as I did,鈥� he says. 

Dustin Corella, who was born in Tucson, is among a generation of young Latinos coming of age in 2024. Soon after turning 18 in June, he registered to vote and is eager to cast a ballot. 鈥淚t feels like a big responsibility,鈥� he says.

The issues motivating Corella to vote include his desire to elect politicians who ensure appropriate funding for public education as well as after-school programs and other resources aimed at youth in the community. And he says there鈥檚 a need for elected officials who can better address the impact of climate change, adding, 鈥淭hose are the things that I care about, and I鈥檓 looking for leaders who can tackle them and create opportunities for the next generation.鈥�

Corella is one of 1.3 million eligible Latino voters in Arizona. The state, along with California, Texas, Florida, and New York, is home to about two-thirds, or 65%, of all Latino eligible voters in the country, according to the .

For Latinos and immigrant communities across the country, the stakes are high this election, says Nicole Melaku, executive director of the . The coalition of immigrant and refugee rights organizations is working to encourage the nation鈥檚 naturalized citizens to vote, especially in the face of anti-immigrant attacks. For example, a slew of focuses negatively on immigrants.

鈥淲ith the likes of Project 2025 looming about in the background, of family separation and of attacks to our democracy, I think it was important for us to make sure that our communities, and naturalized voters especially, are aware of the power that their vote and their voice has to shape the outcome of the election,鈥� Melaku says.

Project 2025 is a policy agenda of the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank that aims to radically restructure the federal government in a conservative administration. Experts caution that and promotes with far-reaching implications.

from the project, but he has made immigration a key part of the race. In one campaign stop after another, Trump鈥檚 against immigrants punctuates his speeches. Should he win, he promises to quickly launch living in the country without legal status鈥攁nd even some with legal status.

Instead of countering him with pro-immigrant rhetoric, Harris has responded by taking a tougher stance on the issue, including a proposal to implemented by the Biden administration. She has also endorsed . for a record number of migrants鈥攎any of them asylum seekers鈥攅ntering the U.S. from Mexico, even as amid policy changes on both sides of the border.听

In the border state of Arizona, the immigration debate is ever present. On Nov. 5, voters will reject or approve Proposition 314, which would give the state authority to enforce federal immigration policies. The initiative, Maldonado says, 鈥渟pecifically targets immigrant communities and continues to push racial profiling, which we know is a top concern among the Latino community. And I think that this election for us is pushing back against policies that continue to criminalize our families and communities.鈥�

Immigration hits close to home for Maldonado, who comes from a mixed-status family. She and her two siblings are U.S.-born citizens and her father is a legal resident. However, her mother is undocumented, says Maldonado, and returned to Mexico some time ago. Her mother鈥檚 departure was the catalyst for Maldonado to become more involved in electoral and civic matters. 鈥淲e need a permanent solution on immigration, not just for my family, but millions of families across the country and many diverse families that are living in these complexities of being separated,鈥� she explains.听

The Latino vote in the upcoming election could mean a shift in the usual narrative about the nation鈥檚 second-largest group of voters, Maldonado says. 鈥淚f we didn鈥檛 have this much power, there wouldn鈥檛 be so many attempts at trying to strip away our rights.鈥� She adds, 鈥淲e just need to come together and make it happen even greater this year.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Let me make it clear at the outset that this is a family affair; the whales about whom and on whose behalf I write are part of said family, as are you. I鈥檝e been building relationship with the community of whales who migrate from Bahia, Brazil, to Antarctica for the past seven years and sharing that process through my project, . It is from the depths of our shared oceanic origins that I bring you this offering.

Whale Whispering is an ancestral commission, an ode to water, a work of interspecies translation and co-creation between me, humpback whales, and other cetaceans and people. It is a diasporic healing quest, an exploration and transmutation of the legacy of transatlantic enslavement through music. Based in Praia do Forte, Bahia, Brazil, it is a soundtrack for personal, communal, and global transformation, a love song for whales, for Bahia, for Earth, for the ancestors, and for life. 

I鈥檓 listening to and singing with the whales to tap into the echoes of the Middle Passage contained within their songs, to bring forth sounds that honor Nature鈥檚 prescription for this time of reckoning and share water鈥檚 wisdom as it is relayed to me. Through underwater and studio recordings, filmed documentation, blog posts, and community gatherings focused on collective singing and water blessing rituals, Whale Whispering serves as a way of dreaming forward via the lens of the so-called past.

As I address the womb sickness that has affected my own womb and those of so many Black womb-carriers due to generations of sexual trauma, I鈥檓 learning to wail with the whales as a form of curative release, just as the Africans who crossed the Atlantic in slaving vessels surely did. This siren call, summoning awareness of the unity of all being(s), and resonating with the movement in support of planetary healing, is a vibrational antidote to the violence that threatens to engulf the planet right now. These messages, shared through waves of water and sound, affirm that, for those who are listening, Love鈥檚 song is stronger. 

has emerged as the central theme of this collaboration. With this echoing phrase the whales affirm that there is no reality in which we are not all connected to every other being, every other particle in existence鈥攖hrough our breathing, our intake and transpiration of water, our dreaming. Among their many offerings to the human members of their extended family is the gentle nudge to ask ourselves if we are dreaming big enough.

This is a question adrienne maree brown and I were exploring during one of our near the end of the Pandemic Pause, just as the wheels of the global economy (i.e., racial capitalism) were starting to churn back into gear. Via that conversation, I first relayed the whales鈥� message from the 2022 season. Clearly, the reduction in sonic, vibrational, and chemical interference in the oceans as a result of diminished shipping traffic had proven beneficial to them, and their perception of the retrograde slide toward pre鈥揅OVID-19 levels had moved them to make their most forceful, emphatic declaration thus far: 鈥淲e Will Run This World.鈥�

It is not lost on me that whales everywhere have proceeded to occupy increasing amounts of space in international news, asserting and claiming visibility and acknowledgement, demanding to be seen and heard. While I鈥檝e repeated their declaration a few times publicly since that interview, I鈥檝e mostly been listening and observing, wanting to be sure that any further details I bring forth about that statement are rooted in the clearest and sincerest point of connectivity between me and the whales. In my experience, this clarity requires time. Given their size, lifespan, and range of movement, it鈥檚 no surprise that the whales have their eyes on the long game with regard to guiding their human kin, as they watch what, to many, looks scarily like our imminent self-destruction.

Speaking of eyes, anyone who has had the rare and singular experience of gazing into the eye of a whale can attest to having met with a being of far vaster intelligence, sensitivity, and wisdom than most human minds can begin to fathom. Since living that wonder myself, I鈥檓 convinced that whales are capable of feats that would qualify as miraculous in any context. In considering the meaning behind the declaration that they will run this world, I鈥檓 compelled to lead with miracles. They could be as fantastical as the whales adjusting and accelerating their evolution in the blink of one of those knowing eyes, making them suddenly capable of living on land, communicating through language with humans as a whole, and deconstructing and restructuring the systems that have brought us to this point of global upheaval through direct intervention. My sense though, is that, per their nature, the whales intend something more nuanced and easily absorbed. 

Looking to the (technically dolphins, but whales by association) in the Strait of Gibraltar as an example, I see not as some type of revenge or retribution for human destructiveness, but as intentionally headline-grabbing activity drawing our attention to the rudders they have consistently disabled. They are pointing out faulty steering by humans, the ones who have been driving the planet to destruction, suggesting that a new way is needed. As far as I know, no one has died as a result of these encounters, but they have definitely put whales on many people鈥檚 minds.

By overturning boats, then , leaping onto and stealing the scene , among other shenanigans, the whales are impressing themselves upon collective human awareness. They are infiltrating our conscious and subconscious minds with suggestions to listen to their subaquatic songs and sounds. Through both our listening and the vibrational reverberations that result from playing their songs above water, the whales can infuse us with massive doses of compassion, pour into us and other species from the fount of grace to which they have access. 

Based on what the whales have shown me, their songs have the capacity to reverse so much of the damage caused by humans鈥攖hey could dissolve microplastics and oil spills, deactivate the harmful properties of chemical and other pollutants threatening the world鈥檚 water supply, and perhaps most importantly, soothe the indignation of our mothering planet, preventing her from wiping us out completely. But because fear, doubt, and subjugation to the nightmare spell of our current moment are so pervasive, and because most humans are living unaware of their own psychic impact, there has been a block on the extent to which the whales can wield their miracles鈥攁nd to which we can wield our own. From our fitful slumbering, the whales are calling us to lucidity, on behalf of all the species smaller and thus more easily ignorable than they are. They have visions of healing technologies that they can float into our imaginations, infusing them with solutions to such pressing issues as how to ensure safe, viable water for all, for example. Like so many plant spirits and human stewards, they are calling us to exalt the connective practices that Indigenous peoples worldwide have been preserving: to gather at and with water, joining our sung voices as sources of generative and regenerative force, engaging the Oneness that is the origin of all possibility.

It鈥檚 unlikely that every human will hear or answer this call. Only a critical mass of deeply engaged, genuinely receptive and open-hearted individuals is required to make way for the whales to steer us into a new dream. This whale-sized waking dream is one in which life on this planet is more balanced, healthy, just, and sustainable. It is one where the expansive generosity and compassion of these ancient beings have permeated the modus operandi of the planet鈥檚 powerful problem children鈥攈umans. 

While people will continue to hold鈥攁nd debate鈥攁 diversity of beliefs about spirituality, divinity, and the supernatural, everyone can agree that whales exist. And each one who opens themselves to imbibe the medicine the whales pour forth can taste the truth, can become imbued with the knowing that there is indeed a Higher Love, one that scales beyond what this current, shared reality suggests is real. Each one who receives that medicine and deepens into that knowing becomes a conduit for that Love鈥攐ne among the countless channels through which it flows, hydrating them with real magicalisms that have only awaited the acceptance of their own sublime potential in order to come true.

Are you One?

鈥淚鈥檓 really surprised so many people had reports today,鈥� says the National Weather Service meteorologist based in Boulder, Colorado. 鈥淭his is their most important observation鈥攎aybe of their whole time volunteering鈥攁nd so they want to get it right.鈥�

At 7 a.m. on Oct. 10, in the chaotic hours after the swept ashore, one citizen scientist in Daytona Beach Shores reported 15.8 inches of rain. Another near Lake Helen clocked 15.37 inches for a similar 24-hour period, and added in the notes section: 鈥淟ots of tree limbs down. Some roads are flooded due to lakes overflowing their banks.鈥�

Observations like these are added to an internet database at 7 a.m. each day by volunteers with the nationwide Community Collaborative Rain, Hail & Snow Network, or CoCoRaHS. The observations from 26,500 stations across the country contribute to National Weather Service flood warnings that may save lives by accounting for the variability of how much rain fell and where. Radar and satellites are not sophisticated enough to provide such down-to-the-backyard estimates.

In one such alert, for the St. Johns River in Florida鈥檚 Seminole County, forecasters more than an hour鈥檚 drive away, in the city of Melbourne, added CoCoRaHS rainfall totals to other on-the-ground observations, radar data, and river models. They estimated that runoff from Milton could cause the river to rise to 10.2 feet by the night of Oct. 14.

鈥淭he river is forecast to reach Minor Flood Stage later tonight, and will continue to climb through Moderate Flood, reaching Major Flood Stage later this weekend,鈥� reads the alert Gimmestad pulls up on his screen. It cautioned many roads were 鈥渋mpassable, limiting access to homes.鈥�

CoCoRaHS reports also help forecasters provide tornado, hail, fire, and other weather-related warnings in real time by allowing participants to log storm notes in the network鈥檚 computer system any time of day.

These observations鈥攚hich provide input in up to half of such warnings鈥攇et routed to the nearest National Weather Service station, where they ring alarm bells. Meteorologists use them to caution people to take shelter or evacuate. Scientists also use CoCoRaHS data after storms have passed to refine computer models to better reflect precipitation variability.

Such life-saving weather data are vital as the United States suffered 28 climate and weather disasters each鈥攖he most such events ever recorded in a year. Storm warnings will become all the more important as a warmer atmosphere traps more moisture鈥攍eading to more recurrent and intense rainfall.

The Heritage Foundation鈥檚 Project 2025 calls for a breakup of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which houses the National Weather Service, saying that these federal agencies push climate propaganda. But shutting down these essential services could stymie the ability of forecasters to issue comprehensive weather warnings and protect people at risk during climate disasters. 

As the presidential election looms and global warming intensifies, CoCoRaHS precipitation records, which account for two-thirds of the observational data collected by federal agencies on how much it rained or snowed, are becoming even more indispensable. 

鈥淚t鈥檚 a huge value,鈥� he adds. 鈥淩adar is really good at capturing the pattern, and CoCoRaHS observations give us the amounts, and so we put those together and it gives us a really nice map of how much it rained, hailed, or snowed.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

The Critical Role of Data Collection

Altogether, CoCoRaHS鈥檚 stations span all 50 states, Canada, the Bahamas, and several U.S. territories. The network comprises about 75 million measurements and growing. 

The effort emerged in the wake of a deadly 1998 flash flood in Fort Collins, Colorado, that caught many people by surprise. The network is now one among hundreds of citizen science projects nationwide whose data are helping researchers, identify, and catalog.

鈥淐oCoRaHS changed the way we do weather forecasting,鈥� says Ellen McCallie, program director in the Directorate for STEM Education at the U.S. National Science Foundation. The consistency and reliability of the data are helping improve National Weather Service precipitation predictions, she adds.

After CoCoRaHS volunteers watch a training video, they are assigned a station number. They install a National Weather Service鈥揳pproved cylindrical plastic rain gauge, from which they measure precipitation and record the data online.

Network coordinators, who often work for state climate offices, urge volunteers to collect readings each morning, even if there鈥檚 no precipitation. These data are immediately visible on weather service maps. Each station is represented by a dot whose color reflects the amount of precipitation鈥攔ed for more, blue for less. 

In addition to the vast public benefit CoCoRaHS provides, the citizen scientists who are the backbone of the network say they benefit personally from the work, too.

鈥淚t鈥檚 something to do every day at 7 a.m.,鈥� says Noah Newman, the program鈥檚 education and outreach coordinator. 鈥淥ne volunteer working their way through Alcoholics Anonymous got their five-year [sobriety] chip thanks to CoCoRaHS, because they said no to going to the bars so they could get up to read their rain gauge.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;        

Retired Montana State University scientist and faculty member Bill Locke recounted in an email how recording daily precipitation in the CoCoRaHS database has helped him cope with his depression in the 11 years since he signed on to be a part of the network. 

鈥淔rom now until March I need to pull on Bean boots, a headlamp, and appropriate attire to trek to my gauge,鈥� he wrote, adding that the plastic cylinder is about 82 feet away from his Montana home. In the winter, these duties often involve measuring and collecting snow from a board on the ground and swapping cylinders if the existing one is full. 鈥淚t鈥檚 tough to go back to bed after all that!鈥�

A People鈥檚 Climate Record

The CoCoRaHS network isn鈥檛 the only example of how citizen scientists contribute to the nation鈥檚 climate record. Federal agencies also rely on about 8,700 people who volunteer with the 134-year-old , or COOP.

These citizens collect temperature and precipitation data daily from National Weather Service equipment, and then report it electronically to the service. This on-the-ground grassroots system is smaller and not as geographically diverse as CoCoRaHS, says meteorologist Gimmestad.

鈥淚nstead of having official weather reporting stations that are 30 or 40 miles apart鈥攕o we might have one per county鈥攚ith CoCoRaHS, we might have 10 or 50 stations in the county,鈥� he says. 鈥淭his way, we don鈥檛 have to use one point to represent a huge area, and so we know how rainfall was distributed around that county.鈥�

Data from CoCoRaHS and COOP鈥攖ogether with observations from at the nation鈥檚 airports鈥攁ccount for about 80% of the precipitation numbers that federal scientists use to compile what鈥檚 known as the鈥攁 catalog of temperature and precipitation averages from 1991 to 2020. The 30-year retrospective is vital for the health of the nation鈥檚 economy because it鈥檚 a go-to resource for businesses. 

鈥淭he construction industry wants to know how many rainy days there will be at a location in which they are putting in a bid鈥攁nd to learn how to design air conditioning and heating for buildings,鈥� says Michael Palecki, the lead scientist on the project at the National Centers for Environmental Information. 鈥淧eople want to know what the weather is going to be like where they are looking to move, and, of course, agriculture is one of our biggest users.鈥�

Tracking Hurricane Helene

Some 11 CoCoRaHS volunteers work in Palecki鈥檚 office in Asheville, North Carolina. The physical scientist, who had to remove a few trees from his property following Hurricane Helene, recounts how the region spent two weeks without power and remains without drinkable tap water.

When the air conditioning went down in the National Centers for Environmental Information鈥檚 computer room鈥攁 vast repository of weather data鈥攖emperatures soared to 120 degrees, requiring officials to shut down the system and delaying the publication of weather-related information nationwide.

The life-saving value of volunteer precipitation data was also evident in North Carolina as hardy CoCoRaHS participants tugged on rain gear to collect rainfall totals from their plastic gauges in the face of Helene鈥檚 鈥�.鈥�

One wrote in observation notes from Flat Springs on Sept. 28: 鈥淎bsolutely catastrophic impacts from flooding, landslides, and high winds. Major roads impassable. Neighboring fire department 鈥� completely carried away by Elk River.鈥�

The North Carolina State Climate Office relied in part on CoCoRaHS observations to determine where, and how much, rain fell. Four network volunteers in the western part of the state recorded totals from : 24.12 inches in Spruce Pine, 22.36 inches in Foscoe, and about 22 inches each at stations south of Black Mountain and Hendersonville.

Using a federal weather that categorizes the likelihood of extreme storm events, state weather officials rainfall produced by Helene likely qualifies it as a one-in-1,000-year storm.

鈥淵et another event of this magnitude within the state offers even more evidence that our climate is changing, and in extreme ways,鈥� wrote Corey Davis, an assistant state climatologist, in an online summary of Helene鈥檚 formation and impacts.

Davis continued: 鈥淭he rapid intensification of Helene over the Gulf, the amount of moisture available in its surrounding environment, and its manifestation as locally heavy鈥攁nd in some cases, historically unheard of鈥攔ainfall amounts are all known side effects of a warmer atmosphere.鈥�

The National Weather Service is currently updating this atlas, and in doing so, is relying 鈥渧ery extensively鈥� on extreme precipitation data recorded by CoCoRaHS volunteers to determine where heavy rainfall was distributed over time, Palecki says.  

Understanding Science in Daily Life

One volunteer whose data will likely be reflected in this record is Matt Kelsch, a hydrometeorologist in Colorado who is also the Boulder County coordinator for CoCoRaHS. Kelsch has collected precipitation data for the network鈥攐r asked a house sitter to do it鈥攚ithout missing a day since June 2001.

His plastic rain gauge sits in his expansive backyard near his garden, which, on Oct. 10, is bone dry.

But it鈥檚 not always this way. Kelsch, who has an encyclopedic memory for notable water-related weather events, says the wettest year he recorded was 2013, when about 34 inches fell. And one of the 鈥渕ost impressive spells of snow鈥� occurred in 2006, with 26 inches around Dec. 21, then 14 inches a week later, and 11 more inches seven days after that. 

For Kelsch, the value of CoCoRaHS lies in its ability to teach people of all ages to tune into the variability of precipitation in their own neighborhoods. Volunteering helps participants 鈥渋mprove their skills at estimating how much rain is falling,鈥� he says.

鈥淭hey can see when the storm is analyzed how much rain fell鈥攖heir report was one of the dots that was used,鈥� he adds. 鈥淐oCoRaHS, even though it鈥檚 simple, connects people with the science.鈥�

鈥淚 understand why young people are really angry and really hurting,鈥� Fonda said. 鈥淲hat I want to say to them is: 鈥楧o not sit this election out, no matter how angry you are. Do not vote for a third party, no matter how angry you are. Because that will elect somebody who will deny you any voice in the future of the United States. 鈥� If you really care about Gaza, vote to have a voice, so you can do something about it. And then, be ready to turn out into the streets, in the millions, and fight for it.鈥欌��

Fonda鈥檚 remarks came in a wide-ranging interview organized by the global media collaborative听听and conducted by The Guardian, CBS News, and Rolling Stone magazine.

Making major social change requires massive, nonviolent street protests as well as shrewd electoral organizing, Fonda argued. Drawing on more than 50 years of听, from her anti鈥揤ietnam War and anti-nuclear protests in the 1970s to later agitating for economic democracy, women鈥檚 rights, and, today, for climate action, Fonda said that: 鈥淗istory shows us that 鈥� you need millions of people in the streets, but you [also] need people in the halls of power with ears and a heart to hear the protests, to hear the demands.鈥�

During the Great Depression, she said, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt agreed with helping the masses of unemployed. But FDR said the public had to 鈥渕ake him do it鈥� or he could not overcome resistance from the status quo. 鈥淭here is a chance for us to make them do it if it鈥檚听听and Tim Walz [in the White House],鈥� she said. 鈥淭here is no chance if Trump and Vance win this election.鈥�

Scientists have repeatedly warned that greenhouse gas emissions听, Fonda noted, so a President Harris would have to be pushed 鈥渢o stop drilling and fracking and mining. No new development of fossil fuels.鈥� Trump, on the other hand, has promised to 鈥溾�榙rill, baby, drill.鈥� For once, let鈥檚 believe him. The choice is very clear: Do we vote for the future, or do we vote for burning up the planet?鈥�

Fonda launched the听听three years ago to elect 鈥渃limate champions鈥� at all levels of government: national, state, and local. 鈥淭he PAC focuses down ballot鈥攐n mayors, state legislators, county councils,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 incredible how much effect people in these positions can have on climate issues.鈥�

Forty-two of the 60 candidates the PAC endorsed in 2022 won their races. In 2024, the PAC is providing money, voter outreach, and publicity to more than 100 candidates in key battleground states and in California, Fonda鈥檚 home state. California is 鈥渢he fifth-biggest economy in the world, and an oil-producing state,鈥� she explained, 鈥渟o what happens here has an impact far broader than California.鈥�

Fonda is also, for the first time in her life, 鈥渧ery involved鈥� in this year鈥檚 presidential campaign, 鈥渂ecause of the climate emergency.鈥� She plans to visit each battleground state, she said: 鈥淎nd when I鈥檓 there, we give our schedule to the Harris campaign. Then they fold in Harris campaign [get-out-the-vote events], volunteer recruitment, things like that 鈥� and then I do them for our PAC candidates鈥� as well.

Her PAC has a strict rule: It endorses only candidates who do not accept money from the fossil fuel industry. The industry鈥檚 鈥渟tranglehold over our government鈥� explains a crucial disconnect, Fonda said.Polls show that听, yet their elected officials often don鈥檛 deliver it. In California, she said, 鈥淲e鈥檝e had so many moderate Democrats that blocked the climate solutions we need because they take money from the fossil fuel industry. 鈥� It鈥檚 very hard to stand up to the people that are supporting your candidacy.鈥�

Fonda also faulted the mainstream news media for not doing a better job of informing the public about the听听and the abundance of solutions. Watching the Harris鈥揟rump debate, she thought that 鈥淜amala did very well.鈥� But she 鈥渨as very disturbed that the No. 1 crisis facing humanity right now took an hour and a half to come up and was not really addressed,鈥� she added. 鈥淧eople don鈥檛 understand what we are facing! The news media has to be more vigilant about tying extreme weather events to climate change. It鈥檚 starting to happen, but not enough.鈥�

Given her years of anti-nuclear activism鈥攊ncluding producing and starring in a hit Hollywood movie, The China Syndrome, released days before the听听in 1979鈥攊t鈥檚 perhaps no surprise that Fonda rejects the increasingly fashionable idea that nuclear power is a climate solution.

鈥淓very time I speak [in public], someone asks me if these听听are a solution,鈥� she said. 鈥淪o I鈥檝e spent time researching it, and there鈥檚 one unavoidable problem: No nuclear reactor of any kind鈥攖he traditional or听, none of them鈥攈as been built in less than 10 to 20 years. We don鈥檛 have that kind of time. We have to deal with the climate crisis by the 2030s. So just on the timeline, nuclear is not a solution.鈥� By contrast, she said: 鈥溙齮akes about four years to develop, and pretty soon it鈥檚 going to be 30% of the electricity in the world.鈥�

The reason that solar鈥攁nd wind and geothermal鈥攅nergy are not prioritized over fossil fuels and nuclear, she argued, is that 鈥渂ig companies don鈥檛 make as much money on it.鈥� Noting that air pollution from听, she added: 鈥淲e鈥檙e being poisoned to death because of petrochemicals and the fossil fuel industry. And we [taxpayers] pay for it!听[in government subsidies] to the fossil fuel industry, and we鈥檙e dying. 鈥� We need that industry out of our lives, off of our planet鈥攂ut they run the world.鈥�

The two-time Academy Award winner鈥檚 decades as one of the world鈥檚 biggest movie stars has given her an appreciation of the power of celebrity, and she applauds听听for exercising that power with her endorsement of the Harris鈥揥alz ticket.

鈥淚 think she鈥檚 awesome, amazing, and very smart,鈥� Fonda said of Swift. 鈥淚鈥檓 very grateful and excited that she did it, and 鈥� I think it鈥檚 going to have a big impact.鈥�

鈥淢y metaphor for myself, and other celebrities, is a repeater,鈥� Fonda added. 鈥淲hen you look at a big, tall mountain, and you see these antennas on the top, those are repeaters. They pick up the signals from the valley that are weak and distribute them so that they have a larger audience. 鈥� When I鈥檓 doing the work I鈥檓 doing, I鈥檓 picking up the signals from the people who live in Wilmington and the Central Valley and Kern County and are really suffering, and the animals that can鈥檛 speak, and trying to lift them up and send [their stories] out to a broader audience. We鈥檙e repeaters. It鈥檚 a very valid thing to do.鈥�

Climate activism is also 鈥渟o much fun,鈥� she said, and it does wonders for her mental health.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 get depressed anymore,鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou know, Greta Thunberg said something really great: 鈥楨verybody goes looking for hope. Hope is where there鈥檚 action, so look for action and hope will come.鈥欌�� Hope, Fonda added, is 鈥渧ery different than optimism. Optimism is 鈥楨verything鈥檚 gonna be fine,鈥� but you don鈥檛 do anything to make sure that that鈥檚 true. Hope is 鈥業鈥檓 hopeful, and I鈥檓 gonna work like hell to make it true.鈥欌��

This article by is published here as part of the global journalism collaboration Covering Climate Now.

Each year, those who live near the Atlantic Ocean, particularly those near the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean, brace themselves for . As the water temperatures increase and mix with warm, humid air, tropical thunderstorms form and gather speed. Once a storm鈥檚 winds reach 74 miles per hour, the storm is officially classed as a hurricane鈥攁nd people on land begin paying much closer attention. Between June and the end of November, the looming threat of high-speed winds, heavy rainfall, and coastal flooding hangs in the air; those who live closest to the water make emergency plans, keep an eye on their vulnerable neighbors, coordinate mutual aid efforts, and hold onto hope that, this year, they鈥檒l be safe.

If a hurricane does make landfall, many in the area of impact will have the option to drive, fly, or run away from the danger and ensure their families are warm, dry, and far from danger. Some will choose to stay behind in spite of the risks, but thousands of others will be left with no choice at all. Prisons and jails are often when natural disasters hit. While people on the outside are given ample warning, the incarcerated are at the mercy of prison staff, government officials, and state politicians.

On Sept. 26, 2024, Hurricane Helene smashed into northwestern Florida and quickly made its way toward Tennessee, Georgia, and North Carolina. When it made landfall, its winds whipped the air at 140 miles per hour, causing massive flooding and destruction across all four states. Authorities were well aware Helene was on its way, with each state declaring a state of emergency ahead of the storm. 鈥淭here will be no place for you to go if things get bad,鈥� on Florida鈥檚 Gulf Coast warned. 鈥淭his is going to be a life-threatening surge. It is nothing to take lightly.鈥�

Yet, even as the hurricane barrelled down, people incarcerated in prisons and jails in multiple states were not allowed to evacuate. Instead, or, as was the case in Florida, to 鈥� built to withstand high winds.鈥� In other cases, they were simply . 

Less than two weeks later, Hurricane Milton hit Florida again, knocking out power for millions, throwing up , and causing widespread flooding. The lead-up to the storm was grim, and photos of fleeing residents stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic only added to the alarm. Tampa Mayor Jane Castor went on television to tell Floridians, 鈥淚f you choose to stay in one of those evacuation areas, you are going to die.鈥�

For the second time, though, thousands of the state鈥檚 incarcerated people鈥攊ncluding more than 鈥攚ere left with no option but to ride out the storm behind bars. The stated it had 鈥渟uccessfully relocated鈥� 5,950 people ahead of the storm鈥攐ut of 28,000 who lay in the hurricane鈥檚 path. As Jordan Martinez, an organizer with watchdog Fight Toxic Prisons, told , the number of evacuees only made up a small percentage of the individuals in harm鈥檚 way and some of the evacuations barely qualified as such.

The majority of those evacuated came from work camps, halfway houses, and work release centers, and in many instances they were 鈥渆vacuated鈥� to theoretically stronger facilities nearby. For example, women at Lowell Work Camp, a section of the Lowell Correctional Institution in Marion County, Florida, were evacuated just a few dozen yards away 鈥� to another part of the same prison complex.

鈥淭he fact that they are unable to evacuate people in mandatory evacuation zones goes to show the complete lack of prioritization of the lives of incarcerated people during hurricanes,鈥� Martinez said. 鈥淚f we are prioritizing the safety of our communities, those communities must include the incarcerated people inside that are themselves organizing on the inside to fight for better conditions, and quite often being forced during hurricanes to prepare to protect their communities via forced slave labor with sandbags or in cleanup in the aftermath.鈥�

As Martinez noted, the trouble does not end once the wind stops blowing, either. Hurricane damage can disrupt incarcerated peoples鈥� access to light, clean water, food, and medical supplies, leaving them cold, hungry, thirsty, or sick for days or weeks at a time. Power outages can cut them off from communicating with their loved ones and the rest of the world, which also hamstrings their ability to report unsanitary or dangerous conditions inside their facilities. It also leaves them unable to check in on their own communities, or to find out whether their own families are safe.

When Helene slammed into western North Carolina, prisoners in multiple facilities outside Asheville told about losing access to running water鈥攁nd having to relieve themselves in plastic bags. As one woman鈥檚 husband told her, 鈥淲e thought we were going to die there. We didn鈥檛 think anybody was going to come back for us.鈥�

Elsewhere, Jailhouse Lawyers Speak, a nationwide collective of incarcerated individuals who provide support and legal resources to other prisoners, were able to share as Milton tore through the state: 鈥淧ower鈥檚 out in here, and the COs are hiding in their offices while we鈥檙e left in the dark. We鈥檙e shouting for meds and updates, but no one鈥檚 listening. Just trying to hold on and hope this storm doesn鈥檛 swallow us whole鈥︹��

Another message illustrated the inhumane conditions inside as the storm raged, mirroring the hellish conditions stirred up by Helene: 鈥淭oilets backing up, feces running over. We鈥檝e been told we鈥檒l have to lay in it. No movement allowed.鈥�

While incarcerated people can be denied the most basic level of hygiene inside their dorms, they are also often the first to be drafted to clean up after a climate disaster. As reported, both and to clear roads and haul debris after Helene and Milton. During a press conference, cheerfully framed this forced labor as 鈥渦tilizing鈥� the state鈥檚 鈥渞esources.鈥� 鈥淭hey do prison labor anyways,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he good thing about that is you can use that on private property, not just on public.鈥� He also noted the cleanup 鈥渨ould cost us way more money if you had to do that through some of these private contractors.鈥�

Unsurprisingly, Florida and are two of seven states in which incarcerated workers are for nearly all prison jobs.

As the climate crisis worsens, incarcerated people and those who love them will continue to worry that every new weather emergency may mean a death sentence unless real, concrete action is taken and laws are put into place to ensure state and local county officials are prepared in advance to evacuate everyone who may be under threat, regardless of their address or legal status.

Amid this ever-growing threat, incarcerated people, their loved ones, and organizers are on the front lines, advocating for themselves and their co-prisoners. 鈥淲e urge the public to understand our plight as people in jails and prisons,鈥� a member of Jailhouse Lawyers Speak told . 鈥淲e suffer during natural disasters and lock our dark cells, not knowing if we will survive or not.鈥�

Publications such as , , and are also closely following the impact of the climate crisis on prisoners and amplifying the stories of incarcerated individuals who have been subjected to dire conditions or left behind during catastrophes. Every letter, every social media post, and every phone call counts. The louder the public outcry about this cruel practice becomes, the less likely officials will give a repeat performance the next time a deadly storm starts brewing.

鈥淭his is not just a logistical failure, it鈥檚 a profound moral failing,鈥� the member of Jailhouse Lawyers Speak emphasized. 鈥淲hile entire towns are evacuated and communities band together to seek safety, we remain locked within these walls, treated as less than human. It is heartbreaking to think that while the world preps for survival during a pending natural disaster such as Hurricane Milton, we are still treated as if we don鈥檛 matter, as if our lives can be tossed aside in the name of protocol. We must end this normalized routine. We beg the public to pay attention and have a heart of compassion.鈥�

A sus 19 a帽os, se dirig铆a a Canad谩. Ella ser铆a la primera de su familia en ir a la universidad en el extranjero. Todos sus familiares vinieron al aeropuerto para la despedida. Ella recuerda el adi贸s como un momento desgarrador. En ese momento, a Chavan y a su familia les result贸 dif铆cil comprender plenamente el sacrificio que implica migrar. 鈥淣o ten铆amos idea de lo que significa dejar tu hogar,” dijo.

Una nota de los editores: Esta historia ha sido traducida al espa帽ol por . Puede leerla en ingl茅s 补辩耻铆.
(Editor鈥檚 note: This story has been translated into Spanish by . You can read the story in English here.)

Pero inevitablemente, el duelo lleg贸 a sus vidas. Casi doce a帽os despu茅s de la partida de Chavan, mientras se encontraba sentada en su departamento en Winnipeg a principios del 2020, Chavan sinti贸 un nudo en el est贸mago cuando su mam谩 le llam贸 por tel茅fono para compartir la noticia. La abuela de Chavan, quien viv铆a en Sidney, Australia, se hab铆a enfermado y, tras unas cuantas semanas, hab铆a fallecido. Su abuela hab铆a sido una de las personas m谩s importantes en su vida, pero Chavan no ten铆a manera de ir a Australia para llorarla en persona. Adem谩s del costo de los boletos de avi贸n, no contaba con la visa necesaria para ingresar al pa铆s, ni con el presupuesto necesario para solicitarla. Ante esta situaci贸n, Chavan se apag贸 emocionalmente. 鈥淢e sent铆 congelada por un largo tiempo,鈥� explic贸.

Los expertos en temas de migraci贸n y psicolog铆a usan los t茅rminos 鈥渄uelo transnacional鈥� o 鈥渓uto transnacional鈥� para describir esta experiencia, la cual se refiere a la p茅rdida de un ser querido estando en otro pa铆s. Aunque el duelo en s铆 es un proceso dif铆cil, los inmigrantes que experimentan el duelo transnacional frecuentemente enfrentan sentimientos adicionales de culpa, negaci贸n y sufrimiento, ya que les es imposible asistir a los rituales de luto de sus seres queridos. 

La imposibilidad de ver a sus seres queridos en persona complica lograr una sensaci贸n de cierre, y el doliente puede sentirse incapaz de procesar la p茅rdida y seguir con su vida de una manera sana. En a帽os recientes, esta experiencia se ha vuelto m谩s com煤n, ya que el COVID-19 acab贸 con millones de vidas, y simult谩neamente caus贸 que aumentaran las restricciones fronterizas. La pandemia resalt贸 la importancia del apoyo comunitario y los cambios a las pol铆ticas migratorias para ayudar a aquellos que enfrentan sus duelos desde lejos.

El Dolor de la P茅rdida a Larga Distancia

Desde hace mucho tiempo, experimentar el duelo a larga distancia ha sido la realidad de muchos inmigrantes. Cualquiera que deja a su familia atr谩s tambi茅n corre el riesgo de estar separado de sus seres queridos durante tiempos de p茅rdida. Esto frecuentemente conlleva un torbellino de emociones complicadas.

鈥淗ay un fuerte sentimiento de culpa. Hay un fuerte sentimiento de arrepentimiento de no haber podido estar con su ser querido al momento de su muerte,鈥� explic贸 , una investigadora del duelo, de la Universidad de Alberta. Ella recuerda una conversaci贸n que tuvo cuando entrevist贸 a un inmigrante Iran铆-Canadiense, quien hab铆a perdido a su hermano durante las cuarentenas de la pandemia del COVID. Porque no le fue posible viajar a Ir谩n, o siquiera ver su cuerpo antes de que fuera enterrado, se negaba a aceptar la muerte de su hermano.

Chavan recuerda experiencias similares que sufri贸 al estar separada de su familia por fronteras despu茅s de la muerte de su abuela. 鈥淪ent铆a que no ten铆a derecho a llorar su muerte, porque no hab铆a estado ah铆,鈥� dijo.

Sin este espacio para llevar luto, el duelo puede volverse dif铆cil de superar; especialmente para los inmigrantes indocumentados. , una soci贸loga en el Center for Racial Justice de la Universidad de Michigan, trabaja con estas comunidades, y cont铆nuamente escucha sobre c贸mo el duelo afecta la vida cotidiana. 鈥淟as personas describen estas experiencias de duelo y luto a larga distancia como una de las partes m谩s dif铆ciles de estar indocumentado en Estados Unidos,鈥� explic贸.

Por ejemplo, mientras estudiaba entre el 2017 y el 2023, Fullerton Rico conoci贸 a una mujer a quien llama Florencia (un pseud贸nimo usado para proteger su privacidad), quien dijo: 鈥淓ra algo que no hab铆a de qu茅 manera poderlo arreglar. No queda de otra m谩s que aceptar que no puedes hacer nada.鈥� Fullerton Rico tambi茅n comparte una conversaci贸n que tuvo con un hombre a quien llama Felipe: 鈥淔elipe me dijo que el duelo te cambia profundamente.鈥� La distancia aumenta el dolor del duelo porque es imposible decir adi贸s o asistir a un funeral, y esto impide obtener una sensaci贸n de cierre. 鈥淗ay un cap铆tulo que no se cerr贸, que est谩 como abierto,鈥� explic贸 Felipe. 

 El peso del duelo transnacional frecuentemente es una carga soportada en soledad, lo cual agrava la situaci贸n. 鈥淣o es algo que se suele reconocer abiertamente,鈥� explic贸 Fullerton Rico.

Acortando la Distancia

Los rituales sociales, en cualquier cultura, son una parte importante del proceso del duelo. Los velorios y otras conmemoraciones pueden ayudar a la gente a pensar activamente en la persona difunta, dice , una neurocient铆fica que estudia el duelo en la Universidad de Colorado en Boulder. 鈥淧ensar en estas memorias le permite a tu cerebro como鈥� remodelar y pensar en c贸mo encajan esas memorias ahora en tu vida,鈥� dice ella. Pero para aquellos quienes est谩n lejos al momento de la muerte y no pueden asistir al funeral en persona, este proceso puede ser mucho m谩s dif铆cil o quedar inconcluso.

, una psic贸loga que trabaja con expatriados, ayuda a sus clientes a crear sus propios rituales para que cada uno pueda conmemorar su relaci贸n con su ser querido de una manera 煤nica. Ella los gu铆a a trav茅s del proceso del duelo a larga distancia, usando acciones como escribir cartas, comer la comida favorita de un ser querido, o participar en una actividad que sol铆an hacer juntos. El proceso toma tiempo. Frecuentemente son necesarias varias sesiones de adioses y rituales para que alguien haga las paces con una muerte repentina, dice Encina.

Similarmente, durante la pandemia, Chavan encontr贸 su propia manera de enfrentar el duelo a trav茅s de la escritura. Ella hab铆a perdido su trabajo en ese tiempo y decidi贸 asistir a una clase de escritura. As铆 inici贸 un proyecto de 鈥渘o-ficci贸n creativa鈥� que le permit铆a sumergirse en sus experiencias con el duelo transnacional. Chavan lentamente rompi贸 el hielo que hab铆a encerrado a su coraz贸n por ocho meses. Sollozaba mientras recordaba todos los detalles de su abuela: los debates en茅rgicos que juntas ten铆an, c贸mo dominaba los lugares a pesar de su peque帽o tama帽o, c贸mo reforzaba los lazos familiares con su amor.

鈥淔ue horrible. Fue devastador. Se sinti贸 como perderla de nuevo,鈥� Chavan dijo.

Pero fueron estos actos de escribir y recordar los que le permitieron reconectarse a sus memorias鈥� Y empezar a sanar.

Soluciones Sist茅micas

Apoyar el duelo transnacional requiere que reconsideremos la forma en la que pensamos acerca de la inmigraci贸n y la p茅rdida. Actualmente, pocos inmigrantes indocumentados pueden ajustar su estado migratorio en los Estados Unidos. Los pocos que son elegibles t铆picamente reciben una autorizaci贸n de trabajo antes de tener la opci贸n de viajar de visita a su pa铆s de origen, y toma a帽os para que obtengan la residencia permanente legal, explic贸 Fullerton Rico.  Es as铆 que la oportunidad de visitar a sus seres queridos se vuelve una espera alargada, incluso mientras ellos envejecen o fallecen. Para muchos, es una espera sin fin.

鈥淪i aprobamos leyes que le den prioridad a crear un camino r谩pido hacia la ciudadan铆a, podr铆amos evitar que las personas tengan que vivir estas experiencias,鈥� dijo Fullerton Rico.

Muchos inmigrantes indocumentados tambi茅n tienen trabajos inflexibles y de salarios bajos, lo cual los presiona a tomar decisiones dolorosas, como ver los funerales de sus seres queridos a trav茅s de su celular mientras ayudan a los clientes o preparan comidas en un restaurante. 鈥淓n lugar de estar ah铆 en persona, ellos tuvieron que escaparse al ba帽o, o esconderse en una c谩mara frigor铆fica para tener vistazos de uno de los rituales m谩s significativos en la vida de una persona,鈥� dice Fullerton Rico.

El permiso remunerado beneficia a las personas que est谩n procesando un duelo. Esto les permite a los dolientes tomarse tiempo libre de sus trabajos sin tener que asumir las consecuencias potenciales de perder un cheque de pago o sus mismos trabajos. Chavan recuerda la presi贸n de continuar su trabajo en medio de su duelo porque no ten铆a la flexibilidad financiera para perder horas de trabajo pagadas, lo cual gradualmente degrad贸 su salud mental. En la actualidad, solo cinco estados de los E.E.U.U. requieren que los empleadores den permiso de faltar a causa de duelo, dice Fullerton Rico, y solo dos de esos estados requieren que los empleados sigan siendo pagados durante este periodo.

Tambi茅n es crucial 鈥渉acerle saber a las personas que no est谩n solas en este dolor,鈥� dice Fullerton Rico. Ella considera que es necesario que m谩s organizaciones que apoyan a los inmigrantes reconozcan esta realidad y brinden apoyo para lidiar con el duelo transnacional. Por ejemplo, podr铆an ayudar a los inmigrantes a tener acceso a terapia, ofrecer otros recursos de salud mental, o ayudar a organizar rituales religiosos para que puedan conmemorar a sus seres queridos desde lejos. As铆, los dolientes enfrentando el duelo transnacional correr铆an menos riesgo de condiciones como la depresi贸n cl铆nica. Ella comparte el ejemplo de un sacerdote cat贸lico que entrevist贸 en la ciudad de Nueva York, quien ha ayudado a realizar misas memoriales para dolientes transnacionales desde los 1990s. Hoy en d铆a, estas ceremonias funerarias son transmitidas a trav茅s de Facebook Live, YouTube o Zoom, ayudando a las familias a sentir alg煤n grado de cercan铆a.

Los expertos coinciden en que la formaci贸n de este apoyo social es un factor clave en el proceso de duelo. 鈥淓l duelo es algo as铆 como una experiencia social,鈥� dice Bayatrizi. 鈥淓s una experiencia emocional que es formada a trav茅s de nuestras interacciones sociales.鈥�

Chavan dice que la 煤nica raz贸n por la cual ella finalmente se sinti贸 lista para afrontar las emociones fue gracias a que su pareja y sus suegros fueron solidarios, provey茅ndole una comunidad peque帽a pero fuerte en un tiempo aislante. Tras escribir acerca de la experiencia, ella tambi茅n comenz贸 a tener m谩s conversaciones con familiares y amigos alrededor del mundo quienes hab铆an le铆do su art铆culo, sobre el dolor del duelo a larga distancia y c贸mo lo hab铆an afrontado ellos.

鈥淓sencialmente, llegu茅 a tener una comunidad, una comunidad global a la cual yo pod铆a recurrir,鈥� dice ella. 鈥淐omprender que no eres la 煤nica persona que ha pasado por una situaci贸n dif铆cil puede ser una gran ayuda.鈥�

CORRECTION: This article was updated at 3:29 p.m. PT on Nov. 11, 2024, to correct a few translation and production errors.听Read our corrections policy here.

Alongside get-out-the-vote efforts that happen right before elections, long-term policy-oriented campaigns are underway nationwide to boost voter turnout in the U.S., including making Election Day a national holiday to give voters time off to cast their ballots, rolling out automatic and pre-registration options, and expanding vote-at-home options. 鈥淕enerating higher voter turnout is critical toward building a healthy democracy that works for everyone,鈥� says Andrea Hailey, CEO at .

Several factors influence voter turnout in every nation, including voter enthusiasm; candidates and issues; and whether the election is a presidential, midterm, or local election. The U.S. is unique in its complex and patchwork state-led voting system, which creates stumbling blocks for would-be voters at every turn. 鈥淥ne of the largest contributors to low voter turnout in the U.S. [are] the laws that govern voting,鈥� says Gayle Alberda, a professor of politics and public administration at Fairfield University.

Depending on where a voter lives, they must navigate a series of hurdles, including registering to vote, requesting an absentee ballot or locating a polling place, and ensuring they have the documents required to cast a ballot before they even get to the ballot box. These burdens are multiplied for some groups, including individuals with limited English proficiency, students attending college away from home, those in rural or low-income areas, and disabled people to whom registration processes or polling locations may be inaccessible. 鈥淭his process places the burden of voting on the individual,鈥� says Alberda, making it less likely people will turn out to vote.

Organizations focused on voter education and mobilization, including community groups and national giants such as and , backed by tens of thousands of volunteers, help eligible voters navigate these complexities each election cycle. Their efforts are vital, but the groups are fighting an uphill battle. The nation also needs policy interventions to streamline the burdensome election system and ensure more Americans can access the democratic process. 

Making Election Day a national holiday is one such intervention that has gained steam and even Congressional backers in recent years. 鈥淲ork-related barriers hold back as many as 35% of non-voters from going to the polls,鈥� says Hailey, citing data from a Pew Research Center survey conducted after the . Currently, 鈥渢ime off to vote鈥� laws vary widely across the country, and require employers to provide paid time off for employees to vote.

Representative Anna G. Eshoo introduced the in 2024 to standardize state rules by making Election Day a federal holiday. Hailey says her organization hopes the bill is passed 鈥渟o every voter has the flexibility they need to vote.鈥� In the absence of a federal mandate, in August 2024, Vote.org challenging businesses to guarantee paid time off for their employees to vote on or before Election Day. 

While making Election Day a national holiday is a simple way to signal the importance of civic participation, researchers and voting rights advocates say the intervention should be coupled with changes to how people register to vote and cast their ballots. Research from the at Tufts University suggests that automatic and pre-registration options significantly positively impact turnout, . 

With (AVR), eligible voters are automatically registered when they utilize the services of a state agency, such as when they apply for a driver鈥檚 license or identification card at the Department of Motor Vehicles. Those who do not want to register to vote can opt out. 鈥淪tudies show that automatic voter registration does increase voter registration and slightly increases voter turnout as it does eliminate a key barrier to voting, the registration process,鈥� says Alberda. 

Oregon was the first state to implement AVR in 2016, and showed that AVR added more than a quarter of a million voters to the state鈥檚 rolls. Of that group, 36% were first-time registrants, and the group was younger and more ethnically diverse than the population of voters who had registered before automatic registration went into effect. A total of nationwide have enacted AVR policies so far. From Oregon鈥檚 introduction of AVR in 2016 to the 2018 voter registration deadline, Oregon and seven other states with new AVR programs added a combined .

Another innovation in voter registration is pre-registration, which allows young people to register to vote before reaching voting age. Many states allow 17-year-olds to register to vote as long as they will turn 18 before the next federal election. and allow those as young as 16 to pre-register. This approach eliminates the challenge of reaching would-be voters for the first time when they turn 18, an age at which many are transitioning into college life or new jobs away from home.

Pre-registration also allows young people to become familiar with the election process while still in school and rooted in a community. These factors encourage an enduring sense of civic responsibility and can turn teenagers into lifelong voters, according to Ava Mateo, president of voter organization . 鈥淧re-registering to vote not only provides pathways for younger people to be involved in the civic process earlier, but it also, through our experience, has shown to have a positive impact on youth voter turnout,鈥� she says.

Expanding vote-by-mail is another way to boost voter turnout. With this method, which resembles absentee balloting, the government mails ballots to eligible voters, and the voter marks their ballot at home and returns it before a deadline. Currently, , mail paper ballots to every registered voter before every election. Many voters also got a taste of this system when in-person polling locations had to be closed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and . 

Alberda says that shift helped drive 鈥渞ecord-high turnout鈥� in the November 2020 election. Most states only offer in limited cases, and moving toward universal mail balloting could give turnout another boost. Similar to making Election Day a national holiday to ensure paid time off for voting, allowing people to vote from home eliminates work-related barriers that prevent so many Americans from getting to the polls. Recent research from the , a research and advocacy nonprofit, suggests that implementing vote-by-mail could boost turnout by as much as in some jurisdictions.

For Barbara Smith Warner, executive director of the National Vote at Home Institute, expanding vote-by-mail is not only a matter of engaging more voters but also of showing respect for voting as a fundamental right. 鈥淚f you think voting is a right, it should be as convenient and voter-centric as possible, and nothing is easier than sending everybody their damn ballot.鈥�

Some innovations to expand voter access have faced criticism from conservatives, who claim they . However, there is no evidence to back assertions that leads to illegal voting. Errors with automatic voter registration programs are also rare and mitigable. In Oregon, where it has recently come to light that some voters were mistakenly registered through the automatic system without showing requisite proof of citizenship, . The Oregon Secretary of State鈥檚 office emphasized that the records show evidence of clerical errors, meaning that clerks had mistakenly identified people as U.S. citizens when they obtained a driver鈥檚 license, even though they had not provided proof of citizenship. Previously, in cases such as this, many of the registrants were, in fact, citizens and only needed to provide a missing document to update their registration.

While pro-democracy organizers fight to protect the right to vote and boost the nation鈥檚 relatively low voter turnout on multiple fronts, they are also forced to confront harmful conservative narratives that paint expanding voter access as potentially leading to fraud. They are also up against regressive legislation from Republican lawmakers to restrict rather than expand access to the polls. The nonpartisan research group has tracked a surge in restrictive voter identification laws, restrictions on mail voting, and other policies undermining voting rights . 

Advocates argue that the struggle to expand access and boost turnout is nonpartisan, and legislation to restrict voting is a threat to all. 鈥淰oter suppression threatens the constitutional rights of every American,鈥� says Hailey. 鈥淭he best way to safeguard the foundations of our democracy is to empower the electorate and ensure every voter has the opportunity to make their voice heard.鈥�

At first, getting in this much of a tizzy over what to wear to an abortion might seem silly or frivolous. But as Bracey Sherman talked to more people about their abortion experiences, she found that worrying about what to wear was quite common. It is the manifestation of uncertainty that stems from near-constant abortion stigma and lack of knowledge and expectations.

鈥淚 wish I had known鈥� is a common refrain. Despite abortion being a near-universal experience, it can be hard to find advice that resonates. That鈥檚 the reason we believe a critical part of sharing our abortion stories and changing the narrative is sharing abortion wisdom.

Somatics coach, artist, and abortion storyteller Nik Zaleski taught Bracey Sherman about abortion wisdom鈥攖he advice that those of us who鈥檝e had abortions impart to one another to try to make the path forward a little easier for those coming after us. These are the little tips and tricks we鈥檝e learned from experience or that someone passed along to us鈥攖he little touches of care that we know to provide when showing up for one another, because we鈥檝e been there, too.

We hope you can create an abortion experience that鈥檚 meaningful for you based on the advice of those of us who鈥檝e been there. Although we can鈥檛 pick out your appointment outfit for you, we hope you鈥檒l pick out clothes you feel confident in as you begin this next chapter of life.

Confirm What You鈥檝e Suspected

There are a lot of reproductive conditions that mimic pregnancy symptoms, so first and foremost, confirm your pregnancy with a test. Pregnancies can be confirmed through a blood test at a clinic or hospital or by using a urine sample with an over-the-counter pregnancy test at least one week after missing an anticipated period.

Also, despite what the marketing suggests, the cheap pregnancy tests from the dollar store work just as well as the expensive ones at the pharmacy or grocery store, so grab whatever feels right for you and your budget. You may want to pick up more than one in case you don鈥檛 believe the positive result of the first one, which is quite common, or in case you take the test too early after your missed period and you need to test again in a few days.

We suggest picking up at least two鈥攐ne to confirm the pregnancy now and another to confirm you are no longer pregnant a month or so after your abortion. But if you don鈥檛 believe the first positive test, get as many as you want. They鈥檒l all say the same thing: It might be time to schedule an abortion.

You should be wary of free pregnancy tests. Anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers love to advertise free pregnancy tests to entice you to stop in, only to use the opportunity to proselytize, slut-shame, and misinform you. A lot of really wonderful community organizations, clinics, and abortion funds give out free pregnancy tests because they know tests are expensive鈥攕o free isn鈥檛 always bad. But if you鈥檙e looking for a free test, be mindful about who is giving it out.

Cover Your Tracks

Depending on whom you live with, where you live, and a whole host of other factors, you should be careful about whom you text with, what you search on the internet, and what information about your condition and decision you share.

As Texas-based organizer and We Testify storyteller Nancy C谩rdenas Pe帽a explained, it鈥檚 often the people who are closest to us who put us at deeper risk. She knows this from experience: 鈥淚 wish I could have had more time to disclose my abortion story in the manner I felt comfortable with just as anyone should be able to share their story on their own terms.鈥�

Surveillance is a reality of life now and can lead to criminalization for people seeking abortions. Even if you end up not having an abortion, you should be careful about your digital footprint throughout your process.

Talk to people on the phone or in person rather than in writing. Try to use messaging apps with encrypted or disappearing messages or those that don鈥檛 allow screenshots. Delete your call log history. Clear the browser history of the search engine you use, or use a private browser that doesn鈥檛 save or track your history. Use a lock on your phone and computer so that others can鈥檛 look at your messages or browser history when you鈥檙e not watching. Protecting your communications can help keep you safe.

Get Your Money Right

One of the most challenging aspects of obtaining an abortion is paying for it. The cost of an abortion (depending on how far along you are and the method) can range from $150 to well over $15,000. If you鈥檙e seeking a first-trimester appointment at a clinic in the United States, the average cost is $500. On top of that, you may have to pay for short- or long-distance transportation to and from the clinic, a multi-night hotel stay, meals, childcare, and pain medications. Some state and federal policies ban private and public health insurance from covering abortions. If you are going to a clinic, ask if they accept insurance鈥攕ome do not.

Prepare for Your Abortion

It鈥檚 common to feel scared or embarrassed about asking questions during a medical appointment, even when it鈥檚 not an abortion. But the answers to your questions can put you at ease, so muster your courage and ask questions so you can feel as comfortable and informed as possible.

Travel Planning

If you鈥檙e traveling for your abortion, save all important phone numbers, including the numbers for the clinic, abortion fund case manager, practical support volunteer, or any other emergency contacts. Download maps to your phone so you can access them offline if cell service is slow or unavailable. Familiarize yourself with directions to and from the airport or train station so you know where you鈥檒l need to go to catch your ride smoothly.

Getting to Your Appointment

Arranging a ride to your abortion can be complicated, because you have to trust someone else with your experience, and they may need to travel across state lines with you. If you trust a friend enough, this is a good opportunity for a bestie road trip. If you have the cash, you can always take a cab or use an app service to book a car, but remember there may be a digital history of your ride to the clinic. If you need to enter a destination digitally, instead of using the clinic鈥檚 address, try choosing a spot nearby.

Local abortion funds and practical support organizations can arrange volunteers to drive you from your home, work, airport, or train station鈥攖ruly wherever!鈥攖o your appointment and back.

Be vigilant for police outside of the clinic or Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, who set up traps on thoroughfares and near clinics, schools, and hospitals to detain and arrest Black and Brown people, undocumented immigrants, and other marginalized groups. This step is critical if you鈥檙e crossing checkpoints or borders or if you live in or near heavily policed communities. The morning of your appointment, you might want to check with your community and trusted immigration organizations that document ICE checkpoints.

When you arrive for your appointment, double-check to make sure the place you鈥檙e headed to is indeed the clinic. Anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers often set up next door to abortion clinics, or an anti-abortion clinic may have a name similar to the name of the exact clinic you鈥檙e trying to get to. There are often anti-abortion protesters outside of clinics who scream and yell at anyone walking near the abortion clinic, in hopes of scaring people out of going inside or disorienting them so they walk into the wrong place.

Call 鈥淵our Person鈥�

In the first season of Grey鈥檚 Anatomy, Dr. Cristina Yang (Sandra Oh) sits at a bar with Dr. Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo) as they grieve their failing love lives over snacks. Cristina is pregnant and has an abortion scheduled, but according to clinic policy, she needed to designate an emergency contact on her form, so she wrote down Meredith鈥檚 name. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 why I told you I鈥檓 pregnant,鈥� Cristina tells Meredith. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e my person.鈥� Meredith hugs her friend, who receives the hug reluctantly. 鈥淪hut up. I鈥檓 your person,鈥� Meredith replies.

This short scene in the iconic long-running television show created a beloved shorthand for best friends who promise to show up for one another, no matter what. That it grew out of a supportive abortion decision is just the icing on the cake for us. 

Like Cristina, you may want to identify 鈥測our person鈥� to check in on you, hold your hand in the waiting room, or sit with you as you pass the pregnancy while binge-watching Grey鈥檚 Anatomy. Ask your clinic whether you can bring a friend or loved one with you. 

You might be a little dizzy after the sedation or cramping a bit if you have an in-clinic procedure, so we recommend having someone else drive you home. We Testify abortion storyteller Cazembe Murphy Jackson suggests finding someone who can attend the procedure with you and be with you in the days following. 鈥淢aybe plan out some restful activities that you really like to do or that will keep you happy鈥攕hows you want to watch, stuff like that. I think that would have been really helpful for me,鈥� he explained.

If you鈥檙e having your abortion at home, you may want to call on someone from your community to sit with you through the process. They can help you get to and from the toilet, clean up, make food, and dote on you as you deserve.

Ask for What You Need

As wonderful as abortion providers are, some are still learning how to better care for patients with disabilities, those who are fat, survivors, or nonbinary or trans people, to name a few identities. Be ready to tell your provider what you need in order to have an abortion experience that is right for you. If your body doesn鈥檛 move in a particular way or you do not like body parts to be touched or referred to in a certain way, tell your providers during the counseling conversation.

You may also want to remind them your body requires a different dosage of pain medication compared with other patients. Good providers will be accommodating of your needs. While it is unfortunate you may have to be the one to initiate, you deserve an abortion experience that centers you.

Adapted excerpt from . Reprinted with the permission of the publisher Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollins. Copyright 漏 2024 by Renee Bracey Sherman and Regina Mahone.

Jones pauses and clears his throat, wiping his eyes. 鈥淚 get emotional about it,鈥� he says quietly, looking down at the black Labrador retriever sleeping at his feet. 鈥淢idnight has done so much for me. I really don鈥檛 know what I鈥檇 do without him.鈥�&苍产蝉辫; 

serves individuals experiencing homelessness in Upper Darby, a township on the outskirts of Philadelphia. It is the only shelter in the area to welcome guests along with their 鈥淭hree P鈥檚鈥�: pets, possessions, and partners of all genders. 

A few years ago, Jones was in a car accident that left him unable to work. As a result, he lost his apartment and began living on the streets. During this time, Jones left his service dog, Midnight, in the care of a friend. Every day, for months, he would take the bus to visit Midnight.  

In addition to his role as an emotional support dog, Midnight is also trained to care for Jones in the event of a medical emergency. Jones suffers from hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and relies on Midnight to bring him his medication and phone during cardiac episodes when Jones is unable to stand.  

When Jones finally secured a spot at a shelter that allowed service animals, he found the staff to be confrontational about Midnight鈥檚 presence, despite the dog鈥檚 status as a service animal. Eventually Jones was evicted from the facility. 

After sleeping in a storage unit for two nights, Charles and Midnight visited the Breaking Bread Community Shelter in search of food. They were immediately invited in for coffee and a meal. Soon after, Charles and Midnight secured a room in the shelter, shared with two other guests, and were able to move in.  

鈥淭he first day we came, the staff called us by name, even Midnight,鈥� Jones shakes his head, emotional once again. 鈥淭hey told me they had my back. I felt like I was in heaven.鈥�

Once securing a bed at Breaking Bread, Midnight was given vaccines and other medical care from volunteer veterinarians in the community. 鈥淚 owe this place everything,鈥� says Jones. 鈥淲e鈥檝e got a whole new family here.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

An Impossible Decision

鈥淎pproximately 10% of people experiencing homelessness do so with service animals, emotional support animals, or companion animals,鈥� according to the . However, very few homeless shelters currently accept pets. This means that many unhoused people are forced to make the often impossible decision between safe shelter and staying with their pet. 

Additional research by the Alliance indicates that many choose to remain with their animal, even if that means sleeping on the street or staying in a violent situation. According to the , 鈥�50% of domestic abuse survivors would not leave an abusive home unless they could take their pet with them.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Biana Tamimi, a veterinarian and the director of shelter medicine at the Animal Care Center of New York City, believes this decision is only natural. Tamimi explains that for many people, an animal is more than a pet鈥攖hey are a member of the family. Over her years of veterinary care in New York City, Tamimi has witnessed animals providing critical companionship, comfort, and trauma healing to people experiencing homelessness or poverty.  

鈥淚 have met so many unhoused people who say there鈥檚 no way on Earth they would give up their animal. [Their pet] is their reason to get up in the morning, a reason to go out and look for food,鈥� Tamimi says. 鈥淲e all know what it feels like to come home after a hard day and pet your cat or have your dog jump on your lap and give you licks. Imagine in the darkest time of your life, having a companion that鈥檚 been with you for years suddenly taken away. We never want that to happen to people.鈥�

The Interconnected Health of Pets and their Owners

In addition to her role at the Animal Care Center of New York City, Tamimi serves as a co-lead at , an organization that believes the well-being of the pet and the owner are inextricably linked. At pop-up street clinics across the nation, the Coalition provides free veterinary care to pets of people experiencing or at risk of homelessness, while also offering social services and medical resources to owners. This model of care is known as the 鈥溾�� approach. Attributed by many to 20th-century veterinary epidemiologist , the One Health movement has gained popularity in recent decades. 

鈥淥ne Health is a way of providing care that recognizes the connection between human health and animal well-being,鈥� Tamimi explains.  鈥淧ractically, what these clinics look like is a veterinary team working alongside human health care providers. For example, I鈥檒l be examining the animal, and maybe there鈥檚 a psychiatrist with us, and we鈥檙e having a conversation as a group.鈥�

Tamimi shares that, often, the focus of the appointment is first on the pet, utilizing the human-animal bond to help the owner feel comfortable. 

鈥淧eople want their animals to get the care they need,鈥� Tamimi says. 鈥淥ne of the biggest benefits [of One Health clinics] is getting someone through the door who might have a lack of trust with housing providers, with health care. 鈥� We use that bond with the pet to facilitate the human getting care for themselves as well.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

At a recent New York City pop-up clinic, Tamimi recalls a man who brought his cat to the clinic, concerned that she was developing asthma. Through conversation with the man, Tamimi and the volunteer social workers at the clinic discovered he was a heavy smoker, which was likely causing his cat鈥檚 breathing issues.

鈥淭hat was a great opportunity to discuss how the owner could smoke a little less,鈥� Tamimi says. 鈥淗e didn鈥檛 realize his smoking was causing this problem, and he said he didn鈥檛 want to do that to her. 鈥� Our team was able to say, 鈥楲et鈥檚 tackle this problem together, because you鈥檙e going to be helping your cat and 测辞耻谤蝉别濒蹿.鈥欌赌�

To Tamimi, this illustrates the effectiveness of the One Health model and the power of the human-animal bond to positively influence a person鈥檚 life. 

鈥淧ets keep their owners grounded. They keep them well, especially in really dark times of isolation and stress,鈥� she continues. 鈥淗umans can get through the most challenging times of their lives because they have an animal there with them that relies on them. 鈥� That interconnectedness is really valuable.鈥�

In Texas, a Safe Space for Pets and Owners

in Dallas is also working to keep unhoused people with their pets. The nonprofit has 20 dog kennels in its 750,000-square-foot center, along with shaded walking areas and a full-service grooming room. Recovery center clients are also provided with free dog food, leashes, and toys. 

David Woody, a social worker and the president and CEO of The Bridge, says that in his experience, if a client is offered a spot in a shelter that does not welcome their animal, they often refuse services.

鈥淗ere at The Bridge, we鈥檝e developed a real sensitivity to that kind of experience,鈥� Woody says. 鈥淭hrough the kennel program, we offer dogs a safe space while the guest gets their needs met as well. We take care of the whole person, and the canine is just as important as anything else.鈥�

Channon Cavazos, kennel manager at The Bridge, explains that often, guests open up to her about their trauma while talking about their pet. This allows the team at The Bridge to better serve the client鈥檚 individual needs. 

Cavazos says there is nearly always a waitlist for The Bridge鈥檚 pet-friendly shelter services. In the coming years, she hopes to expand the kennel program, allowing more Dallas residents to receive shelter without being separated from their animal. 

鈥淭here are people who will wait on our waitlist for weeks at a time because they can鈥檛 part with their animals. A lot of these people have been through a lot. The last thing they want to do is get rid of their animal,鈥� Cavazos says. 鈥淚 would love to see a kennel in all homeless shelters so that no one has to part with their animal to receive shelter.鈥�

Mobilizing the Public

a nonprofit working across all 50 states, provides food and medical services to the animals of unhoused people. Since it got its start in 2008, the nonprofit has provided more than 2 million pounds of food as well as medical care to more than 30,000 pets.  

鈥淲hen we first started, our clients would tell us they were giving their pet half of whatever food they could find,鈥� says founder Geneveive Frederick. 鈥淎nd we knew this wasn鈥檛 healthy for the person or the pet.鈥�&苍产蝉辫; 

Feeding Pets of the Homeless relies on donation sites across the country to collect pet food and supplies from the public. These donation sites are located in hair salons, doctors鈥� offices, pet shops, and other small businesses. The food and supplies collected then gets distributed by social service centers like domestic violence shelters and food banks. Feeding Pets of the Homeless also offers financial support to unhoused clients whose pets need urgent medical care. 

The majority of the organization鈥檚 clients are women, Frederick shares. She highlighted that, many times, unhoused women are at and rely on their animals for safety.

鈥淓ven the smallest dog can alert them that danger is coming,鈥� she says. 

Additionally, she mentions the among people experiencing homelessness. For some people, pets can provide a reason to seek help, even when they feel hopeless.  

鈥淔or many [unhoused people], they鈥檝e lost all hope 鈥� but they reach out to us because they feel responsible for their animal,鈥� Frederick says. 鈥淧rograms like ours can give people hope that somebody out there wants to help them, and their pet, in their time of need.鈥�

That the United States incarcerates people at a higher rate than most countries in the world is, by now, a truism.

But that鈥檚 not the only way in which the country is an outlier. The vast majority of people locked up in prisons throughout America cannot vote. In many democratic nations, including Canada and most of the European Union, . Imprisonment itself is seen as sufficient punishment. 

The exclusion does not stop at the prison walls. There are over 2 million other Americans who have served their time but remain barred from voting because of a felony conviction. 

In total, 4.6 million people are locked out of the democratic process in the United States. Nearly . That鈥檚 a fundamental flaw in this experiment called democracy. 

Restoring our right to vote would make society safer. It would give incarcerated people a means of pushing back against a system that controls our lives. And it would help America realize a truer, more inclusive version of itself. 

People in this country have a long history of fearing the other. I wonder what people might fear about currently and formerly incarcerated people voting? Is it that we might vote against the interests of fellow Americans? 

Maybe some of us would vote in humane policymakers who mandate , or who challenge  like picking cotton, the major cash crop of U.S. slavery. Others might mark their ballots for lawmakers committed to creating more green spaces and reducing food deserts in under-resourced communities.

Or maybe that wouldn鈥檛 happen. We are not a . In fact, inside I have noticed that it鈥檚 the working class, across all demographics, who overwhelmingly support Donald Trump. Those with more formal education tend to support Kamala Harris.  

We probably care a lot about what you care about. We want our kids to grow up healthy and safe. We want fair politicians reelected and corrupt ones voted out. We want to fund and strengthen our communities, but not waste money.

For me? I would throw my support behind school board members who would allow my daughter to read The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison, one of Texas鈥� most frequently banned books. I would advocate for safe and clean drinking water in rural towns, where prisons are often located. And I would rally behind leaders who protect a broad range of reproductive rights because I don鈥檛 believe my daughters should have fewer reproductive rights than their grandmother.听

Meanwhile, by letting us have a say in politics, you are helping us become reinvested in our communities, where . The Sentencing Project released  last year that argued restoring voting rights for people with felony convictions can improve public safety. The right to vote and the act of voting are linked to  for Americans who have been involved with the criminal legal system, according to the report. 

Instead of getting involved in our communities, we鈥檙e forced to sit on the sidelines and let the state do with us what it pleases.

A few years ago, Texas began . Before then, I was able to hold letters from my loved ones. I remember tracing the pink crayon-heart indentations of my daughter鈥檚 script, and taking in the signature scent of my mother鈥檚 perfume, which she sprayed on the page. Now, that simple but profound moment of physical connection is gone, and I can鈥檛 do anything about it.

Larger, attacks on our rights and dignity are also occurring while we cry out into the abyss, hoping someone will hear us. Failed forms of  continue to extend sentences for convictions, no matter how old. Marijuana possession is still criminalized in many states, including Texas, a fact responsible for countless ruined lives. And , who in some cases can鈥檛 even recall their convictions, are routinely denied compassionate release. Shouldn鈥檛 those of us most impacted by these policies have an opportunity to influence them?

Some people think 鈥渘o.鈥� Supporters of felony disenfranchisement laws tend to argue that incarcerated people gave up their privilege to vote when they chose to break the law. But this view ignores the fact that our legal system treats the poor differently than the rich. 

Consider the financial crisis of 2008. None of its bank CEO architects, who ruined millions of lives and cost the country an estimated $23 trillion, went to jail or prison. Same for members of the infamous Sackler family, whose company Purdue Pharma created Oxycontin and marketed the fatally addictive drug under false pretenses, leading to hundreds of thousands of deaths nationwide. Neither the bank CEOs nor the Sacklers lost their privilege to vote, despite breaking the law. 

Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump, who was found guilty on 34 felony counts earlier this year, continues his run for re-election to the highest office in the land.

But my neighbors incarcerated for bouncing grocery checks at Walmart are left without the right to have a voice in our government? 

More than anything, restoring our right to vote would honor the spirit of our democracy. It would signal to everyone inside and out that all voices matter, no matter what.

That would be a novel but no less essential development in the history of America. Since the end of the Civil War, the United States has found ways to disenfranchise Black voters. It started with literacy tests and poll taxes and threats of racist violence. Now, it鈥檚 through  and mass incarceration. 

鈥淲e the People鈥� includes we the incarcerated. It鈥檚 long past time to allow all voting-age Americans the freedom to vote.

A court of teenagers, by teenagers, and for teenagers, Teen Court is exactly what it sounds like: a program giving a new name to justice and serving young people across Texas. The court offers a voluntary alternative from the traditional court system for teens under 17 who commit Class C misdemeanors. Students can avoid a fine and instead receive their penalty in constructive ways such as community service and jury terms in the Teen Court. Once completed, the charge is completely removed from their record.

The program allows young people to plead guilty in front of a student jury that empathizes with their situation and asks them questions about circumstances鈥攖heir background, home situation, economic status, and what led them to commit the offense. Rather than face a punitive system, teens can avoid unpleasant experiences with law enforcement and move through an alternative criminal justice system that values them.听

Student attorney Alex Gonzalez, who is from El Paso, says the program is a way to avoid pigeonholing teens. 鈥淭he program shifts the focus from labeling students as 鈥榦ffenders鈥� or 鈥榡uveniles鈥� in a negative light to seeing them as people who made a mistake and are now learning from it,鈥� she says.

The goal of the court and the student jury is to set teens up for success by making sure the penalty is feasible for each person. In Teen Court, what counts as community service isn鈥檛 strictly limited to volunteering; it鈥檚 any self-improvement action, such as going to counseling, achieving a higher grade in a class, or joining an extracurricular class. 

Sophia Garza, the juvenile case manager and director of El Paso鈥檚 Teen Court program explains how community service is defined broadly to accommodate all students. 鈥淚 have kids that live on the other side, in Mexico, but they attend school in El Paso. 鈥� But as long as they鈥檙e doing anything that betters themselves or betters their community, I will take it as community service,鈥� she says.

Sherry Maximoff, Williamson County attorney and Teen Court supervisor, says the volunteer hours also work as constructive punishment for teens because it encourages them to take care of a community they have served. 鈥淚f you are taught to give back to your community and to volunteer, it gives you a sense of ownership and responsibility over your community. This is my community, and I鈥檓 going to clean up those streets, then why would I commit criminal mischief or litter?鈥� she says.

In recent years, Texas has increased criminalization and policing of teens, especially those of color. The state has intensified the number of law enforcement officers on K鈥�12 campuses with larger populations of Latinx and Black students. This has resulted in in arrests, court referrals, and use-of-force incidents. With students of color across the state saying they fear the officers on campuses, Teen Court allows them to avoid traumatizing experiences with law enforcement and have their stories heard without judgment from people within the system.

鈥淸Students are] not dealing with anyone who they identify as law enforcement. That鈥檚 the whole point of positive peer pressure, that it is their peers who stand in judgment of them, not law enforcement, not the system,鈥� explains Morales about how the program is a part of the justice system that veers heavily away from criminalizing students of color. 

Garza also says that she notices teens feeling more comfortable once they see other teens on the jury. 鈥淲hen I sit with the youth I can see some are being very cautious. I do see the youth open up more, share a little bit more with their peers, maybe because they feel like if they鈥檙e going to be judged, their peers are going to understand their situation a little bit better,鈥� she explains.

As a state that eschews gun regulation, Texas has also used the overpolicing of schools as a temporary for gun violence. At a time when students are being criminalized at such a high rate, Teen Court programs allow students from marginalized communities to have their stories heard. This is especially important because students going through the system are often dealing with issues far too serious for their age bracket and sometimes beyond their control.

Williamson County Teen Court volunteer Audrey Seigman talks about a case in which a teen was involved in an accident while driving their siblings to school. 鈥淭his person was put in a very difficult position. Their parents made them drive their siblings because they were busy with jobs. The accident wasn鈥檛 their fault, but the police found out they weren鈥檛 qualified to be driving and cited them,鈥� she says.

Other student attorneys say that they鈥檝e seen similar cases with teens who struggle with issues beyond their control because they come from first-generation families. 鈥淸There was] a case involving a student who didn鈥檛 speak English. He was charged with theft, but it became clear that he didn鈥檛 fully understand what was happening or how the legal system worked. His family had recently immigrated and there was a huge language barrier,鈥� says Gargi Singh, a student attorney with the Williamson Teen Court program.

Gonzalez says that declining mental health is common among teens who enter the program. 鈥淐ases involve students dealing with emotional or psychological issues such as depression, anxiety, or trauma. A student might engage in risky behavior as a coping mechanism for their mental health struggles.鈥�

In recent years, there has been a resurgence in 鈥渢ough on crime鈥� approaches to the justice system, including and harsh from the right. The conservative federal policy agenda Project 2025 seeks to increase criminalization and policing by eliminating training for federal law enforcement. Former President Donald Trump has promised he would increase the militarization of police and expand incarceration and the death penalty if elected. In such a context, Teen Court programs are more important than ever,  offering a crucial opportunity for teens to bypass the. Students are more likely to avoid entering the system later in their lives because Teen Court embodies a form of restorative justice that doesn鈥檛 use law enforcement or incarceration for discipline. 

鈥淎t the very lowest level, where the consequences are least impactful, we give them a positive experience with the criminal justice system. You interrupt that pipeline there, both with the way the child begins to define themselves and by actually physically dismissing the ticket,鈥� says Morales about how Teen Court directly curbs the school-to-prison pipeline. 鈥淲e have defendants who have gone through the program and have had such a positive experience at the end that they have chosen to become volunteers,鈥� she adds.

Judge Elaine Marshall from Houston, Texas, talks about her Teen Court program and how it has discouraged recidivism among teens in her community. 鈥淚 started my Teen Court in 2000. From those years I have had no repeat offenders. It says a lot that we鈥檝e had students who come through as offenders wanting to join the program.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

For student volunteers, the program is also a unique way to learn about the legal system and restorative justice. Especially in a state like Texas, which from learning about historical injustices, Teen Court gives students a hands-on opportunity to learn about nuances within the criminal justice system.

鈥淸The program] is not about branding students as 鈥榗riminals鈥� but about showing them that they鈥檙e capable of growth. It has shown me how crucial empathy and understanding are in fostering real change,鈥� says Singh.

Teen Court is creating a generation of students who know that reform in the criminal justice system is both necessary and possible. The program bridges gaps between teens and builds community and empathy, giving students the confidence to fight for change.

I was incarcerated for more than eight years in Florida. I鈥檝e been free for 18 months and just recently got the bug to vote again. Problem was, I didn鈥檛 know if I was eligible to register. I wasn鈥檛 debriefed on the matter when I left prison, and I鈥檇 heard different things from different people. Some said: 鈥淔elons can鈥檛 vote in Florida. Ever.鈥� While others claimed: 鈥淵ou can vote as long as you鈥檙e done with your sentence.鈥澨�

I needed guidance. And clearly I wasn鈥檛 the only one.  

A new proposal by the Florida Division of Elections seeks to end confusion around restoration of voting rights. If passed, the update to its existing advisory opinion process would provide people with felony convictions the chance to request a formal opinion stating definitively whether their voting rights have been restored. In so doing, it will clarify a complicated state statute that governs the process of reinstating voting rights for formerly incarcerated people. 

鈥淲e wanted to figure out a simple question: Whose job is it to determine voter eligibility?鈥� Desmond Meade, executive director of the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition, told Spectrum News 13 in August in support of the proposal. 

Confusion Over the Law

The state statute in question, SS 98.0751, dictates that for all crimes other than murder or sex offenses, restoration of voting rights is contingent upon sentence completion, including parole or probation and the satisfaction of all court-ordered fines and fees. People convicted of murder or sex offenses must seek additional permission in the form of clemency from a state-appointed board.

But this alone doesn鈥檛 definitively answer the question of eligibility. Many people are not even aware of all the fines they owe post-incarceration, let alone the offense-specific guidelines laid out in the statute.   

Meade said the proposed process, including a special form, would affirmatively address these issues. He added, 鈥淭he other thing, which I think is huge, is that it provides protection for people against鈥� being arrested for voter fraud. 

Forty-one formerly incarcerated people were arrested in 2022 and 2023 for voter fraud in Florida, according to Southern Poverty Law Center. At least some of them had attempted to vote based on honest misunderstandings of the state statute鈥攜et their prosecutions proceeded. 

In response, some critics charged that Gov. Ron DeSantis and state Republicans were deliberately suppressing the voting rights of felons. 

鈥淚nstead of fulfilling its role to enable Floridians to vote, the state has made it more difficult, which is anti-democratic,鈥� said Courtney O鈥橠onnell, a senior staff attorney for voting rights with the Southern Poverty Law Center, in an article posted on the group鈥檚 site.

Florida does indeed make it hard for felons to vote. A 2023 fact sheet by The Sentencing Project states that Florida disenfranchises nearly 1.5 million people with felony convictions, more than any other state in the nation.

A History of Controversy

The latest saga in the battle over felony disenfranchisement in Florida began heating up in 2018. 

That鈥檚 the year voters in the state approved Amendment 4, which automatically restored voting rights to anyone with felony convictions鈥攎inus those convicted of murder or sex offenses鈥攗pon release from prison. DeSantis opposed the measure. Not even a year later, thanks to legislative support by his fellow Republicans, DeSantis signed SS 98.0751 into law.   

Legal battles ensued. Opponents of the bill, including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), said it effectively instituted a 鈥減oll tax,鈥� whereby only those who could pay could vote, echoing similar attempts from the Jim Crow era. 

DeSantis said the measure was a safeguard against giving 鈥渧iolent felons鈥� certain societal benefits 鈥渨ithout regard to the wishes of the victims.鈥�&苍产蝉辫; 

Ultimately, the fight reached the U.S. Supreme Court, which in 2020 decided against intervening in a lower-court ruling that upheld the new law. In a dissent joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote that the law 鈥減revents thousands of otherwise eligible voters from participating in Florida鈥檚 primary election simply because they are poor.鈥�

Moving Forward

SS 98.0751 is the law of the land for the foreseeable future. In my case, once I did my homework, the registration process ultimately went smoothly. However, I credit this to my relative privilege in being resourceful enough to conduct such research and pay my fines, coupled with my not being convicted of murder or a sex crime.  Sadly, many others aren鈥檛 so lucky.   

The special opinion process proposed by the Florida Department of Elections is not expected to go into effect before the Oct. 7 deadline to register to vote in the fall election, according to CBS News Miami. 

For more information on voting in Florida, visit the website of the supervisor of elections in your county or. You can also review this听听from the ACLU of Florida.

When in April 2024, Barrymore referenced that nickname. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a great segue to say that I keep thinking in my head that we all need a mom,鈥� Barrymore said. 鈥淚鈥檝e been thinking that we really all need a tremendous hug in the world right now. But in our country, we need you to be 鈥楳omala鈥� of the country.鈥�

I thought a lot about that moment while watching Harris debate former President Donald Trump in September. At the start of the debate, before shaking Harris鈥� hand, which continued throughout the night. Harris was poised, standing firmly on her policies, while Trump struggled to directly answer questions and made and poor Americans.

As Trump made silly faces and referred to Harris as 鈥渢his one鈥� instead of her name and title, I was reminded of the ways Black people, especially Black women, have long been called upon to be the adults in the room. Thanks to both and , Black people are required to be above reproach, emotionless, and with a heightened understanding of the feelings of white Americans. In many ways, Harris had to embody the role of 鈥淢omala鈥� during the debate to assuage the fears of fragile white Americans, and some Americans of color, who were looking for her to be well-behaved, respectable, and unrattled.

Despite Trump鈥檚 overt disrespect and disregard for Harris鈥� station, many voters in the United States were interested in how Harris handled his childishness, his antics, his attacks, and his reactions, rather than judging her debate performance based on her expertise and preparedness for the role.

As I write in , Black women who seek political office are often expected to be hypermasculine superheroes with the ability to save white Americans from problems they themselves have created. These expectations play into the stereotype of the unsexed, unattractive, obsequious mammy, whose only desire is to care for white families, nurse white children, and relieve white women of their household duties. When Barrymore asked Harris to mother the country, that is the stereotype she was referencing鈥攁nd that鈥檚 what white Americans hoped to see at the debate.

This isn鈥檛 the first time we鈥檝e witnessed a Black presidential candidate withhold their emotions during a debate while their white male opponent displayed uncontrollable bouts of anger. When then Senator Barack Obama debated the late Senator John McCain in 2008, I distinctly remember McCain referring to Obama as 鈥溾�� and refusing to make eye contact with his opponent.

It鈥檚 a level of disrespect seemingly only tolerable when it鈥檚 exhibited by white men. But these behaviors are deeply rooted in anti-Blackness and the belief that Black Americans do not deserve the same level of regard and honor white Americans receive. We call that white supremacy.

And yet, in the face of impossible expectations, Harris managed to be pensive, thoughtful, clever, funny, and above her opponent鈥檚 demeaning critiques of her as a person. Regardless of your opinions of Harris, there are many people who will find safety and solace in her embodying the role of the country鈥檚 mammy, and they will care more about her performance of this insidious stereotype than anything she said on that debate stage.

But if we ever want to move past a political imagination limited to gender binaries and racial hierarchies, we must hope for more from anyone who stands to represent us. As such, it鈥檚 likely that those of us who believe in the fullness of Blackness and Black life have largely been left under-satisfied by Harris鈥� approach to this campaign.

Being white America鈥檚 鈥淢omala鈥� may win Harris the presidential race. It might even win her reelection in 2028. But it won鈥檛 challenge the expectations of those who see Black women as caricatures and reflections of their darkest fantasies. Being white America鈥檚 鈥淢omala鈥� won鈥檛 get us any closer to freedom鈥攁nd it certainly won鈥檛 pave the way for the radical liberationist politics we need at this moment and moving forward.

Throughout the book, Giovale faces the dark truths about her European ancestors and pushes through to see an opportunity to create a new way of being and thinking. She explores and acknowledges the atrocities committed by her European ancestors toward Indigenous peoples, the impacts on her own identity as a white person, and the systemic perpetuation of this violence. In doing so, she creates a blueprint for European-descended people living in America to examine their own role in white supremacy鈥攁nd to heal. 

Read an excerpt from Becoming a Good Relative here.

By embarking on a journey of rekindling ancestral memories, Giovale uncovers the hidden stories and legacies of her own lineage鈥攅ven those that involve the perpetration of harm or complicity in injustice. She dives deep into the historical context that led her Irish ancestors to emigrate to the United States, including the British settlement of Ireland in the 1600s and its deliberate attack on Irish culture and systems of governance as a means to dissolve communities from within. Generations later, British rule exacerbated the already catastrophic Irish potato blight, resulting in mass forced migration to the U.S., where Irish immigrants were labeled dirty and dangerous. This was the inflection point where Irish immigrants assimilated to American whiteness, leaving behind cultural traditions and practices that connected them to their heritage. That assimilation also required the once-othered Irish to participate in and perpetuate harm and violence toward other U.S. communities deemed 鈥渘on-white.鈥�

Ancestral aversion is a common experience鈥攖he urge to sever ties with the parts of ourselves that relate to painful histories. Yet Giovale urges her white peers to examine their own lineage as a way to build empathy and compassion for their ancestors. While she does not excuse or justify the harms of her ancestors, Giovale shares a road map for forgiveness, a critical first step in creating a personal reparations plan. This process of exploring ancestral narratives can create healing across generations and enable a deeper understanding of how historical traumas continue to impact individuals and societies today.

Giovale鈥檚 depiction of her family鈥檚 history draws not-so-subtle connections to other Indigenous peoples whose worlds have been destroyed time and time again by European colonizers. It also brings to mind the harmful narratives currently being perpetuated about migrants crossing our Southern border. This parallel is critical and has the power to catalyze healing on a tremendous scale. 

We need more white relatives to face their own truth, though doing so may bring immense discomfort. As we see on Giovale鈥檚 journey, it is only through this initial discomfort that she is able to achieve true growth, ultimately uncovering her own cultures and ancestral practices that have been tragically lost through colonization. It is optional for white folks to investigate their whiteness, and that itself is a privilege. Giovale acknowledges that it was many years into her own life until she was confronted by her whiteness, her ancestry, and her own role in white supremacy. 

In a time when division is the air we breathe, Giovale offers our white relatives an opportunity to stop the cycle of extraction, exploitation, and control, and embrace a worldview of human interconnectivity and mutual thriving. This is especially powerful for European-descended individuals who also have ancestors with Earth-based traditions and beliefs, whose ways of being were destroyed through the same colonialist mindsets that created the environment we live in today.  

Giovale鈥檚 story reminds us that discomfort begets connection. Her encounters with Indigenous people from around the world, and her exploration of how their practices can be applied to her own life and lineage, illuminate our commonalities鈥攁nd our relatedness. Her journey, and this book, demonstrates a deep truth: All our suffering is mutual鈥攁nd so is our healing.

But as we face the prospect of another potential Trump presidency, the architects of Project 2025 have made it clear that overturning Roe was just the first in a multistep plan to eradicate access to safe abortion. Though the Republican Party removed a federal abortion ban from its official party platform, there鈥檚 something more sinister that鈥檚 been hiding in plain sight for 150 years.

, signed into law in 1873, made it a federal offense to disseminate contraceptives, abortifacients, and information about either across state lines or through the mail. Named after Anthony Comstock, an anti-obscenity crusader who inspired the title of the biographical book , the Comstock Law had far-reaching tentacles. Even married couples who used contraception could be sentenced to up to one year in prison.

Over time, various challenges to the Comstock Act, including in 1936, which made it possible for physicians to distribute contraception across state lines; in 1964, which established the constitutional right to contraception; and, of course, in 1973, essentially made it unenforceable. However, the law was never repealed and has instead become a 鈥渮ombie law,鈥� a term used to describe laws still on the books that have been overruled by other legal cases. Take, for instance, Arizona鈥檚 1864 abortion ban, a zombie law that became legally viable after the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade. Though , it still remained on the books long enough to instill fear in those .

Now, after the fall of Roe, Project 2025 plans to revive the zombie Comstock Act and make it workable. Since it鈥檚 already on the books, Congress isn鈥檛 required to pass the Comstock Act. Instead, a president and appointed judges can choose whether to enforce it. Project 2025 architects hope that, if given another term, Trump will do just that.

A Significant Threat to Abortion

in the U.S. Since Roe fell in June 2022, every single time the issue has been on the ballot, even in traditionally conservative states like Kansas, Montana, and Ohio. While a national abortion ban could threaten congressional seats for Republicans, it would also require control of both houses of Congress and the executive branch, a higher threshold than simply winning the presidency. So, it seems, the architects of Project 2025 have developed a workaround to meet their aims.

After Roe was overturned, issued guidance about whether the Comstock Act could be used to criminalize someone who receives mifepristone and misoprostol through the United States Postal Service. 鈥淲e conclude that section 1461 does not prohibit the mailing, or the delivery or receipt by mail, of mifepristone or misoprostol where the sender lacks the intent that the recipient of the drugs will use them unlawfully,鈥� the memorandum opinion states. 鈥淔ederal law does not prohibit the use of mifepristone and misoprostol,鈥� the memorandum continues. 鈥淚ndeed, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (鈥楩DA鈥�) has determined the use of mifepristone in a regimen with misoprostol to be safe and effective for the medical termination of early pregnancy.鈥�

But under a Trump presidency, the DOJ would likely have a different view, especially since Project 2025 explicitly calls for 鈥渁gainst providers and distributors of [abortion] pills.鈥�

Additionally, the spate of radical, far-right judges Trump appointed during his first term have already proven their willingness to to curb access to abortion. In 2023, , who has deep ties to the anti-abortion movement, defied court precedent to suspend the approval of mifepristone. 鈥淭he Court does not second-guess FDA鈥檚 decision-making lightly,鈥� he wrote in his decision. 鈥淏ut here, FDA acquiesced on its legitimate safety concerns鈥攊n violation of its statutory duty鈥攂ased on plainly unsound reasoning and studies that did not support its conclusions.鈥�

If Trump is able to appoint even more partisan judges like Kacsmaryk to the federal bench, it鈥檚 possible they would use the Comstock Act to criminalize folks sending or receiving mifepristone and misoprostol (or even information about it) through the mail. 鈥淚f the Comstock [Act] were enforced, it would seriously impact the work we do,鈥� says Sneha S. Nair, partnerships coordinator at , a collection of online platforms that provides abortion and contraception information and services. 鈥淲e rely on digital platforms to share [sexual and reproductive health] content worldwide, and restrictions like the Comstock [Act] could lead to significant censorship and suppression of vital information.鈥�

But even the threat of Comstock being enforced is concerning for abortion advocates and providers. 鈥淲hat people believe the law to be is just as important, if not more so, than what the law actually is,鈥� says Farah Diaz-Tello, senior counsel and legal director at , a legal organization that aims to transform the policy landscape to make reproductive justice a reality. 鈥淲hen people have to second-guess what their options are and they just know that there鈥檚 a sort of vague and looming fear of criminalization 鈥� that is not a risk that everybody has the privilege to tolerate.鈥�

For Black and Brown people, who have already for pregnancy outcomes, even the threat of an enforceable Comstock Law could be enough of a deterrent to prevent them from seeking necessary care.

Refusing to Be Silent

While Project 2025鈥檚 architects may be banking on the Comstock Act, they will have to contend with a network of providers and advocates refusing to put the genie back in the draconian bottle. For example, 鈥檚 post-Dobbs campaign, 鈥�,鈥� promotes information about and access to medication abortion online.

Similarly, the , a DIY medical collective, has literally turned into medication abortion. Embedded in the cards are three doses of misoprostol, which can be used on its own to induce an abortion, and since it鈥檚 a paper card, the pills are harder to detect.

Others believe the best way to combat Project 2025鈥檚 insidious ploy to use the Comstock Act as a backdoor abortion ban is to refuse to be cowed into silence about the revolutionary power of being able to terminate a pregnancy in your own home.

Today, the in the U.S. are induced through medication, most often a combination of the drugs mifepristone and misoprostol. Telehealth for abortion care, in which a provider virtually prescribes these drugs to patients, has become , even in states with abortion bans.

鈥淭he number of people served through telehealth has just grown exponentially since the pandemic,鈥� says Elisa Wells, co-founder and co-director of , which promotes access to medication abortion online. 鈥淸When people find out] that you can get an abortion by the mail, which is a really new idea 鈥� they think, 鈥榃ow, that鈥檚 amazing!鈥欌��

Research from the revealed that in the second half of 2023, more than 40,000 people in states that restrict telehealth or ban abortion were able to receive medication abortion from providers in that protect providers from being criminalized. Plan C鈥檚 website traffic has surged since Dobbs; Wells says they now receive approximately 2 million visitors annually.

There鈥檚 also the option of self-managing abortion with abortion pills. For people in states with severe restrictions or bans, self-managed medical abortion with pills has become an option for many who otherwise wouldn鈥檛 have access to abortion care. Plan C, for example, showcases many sites that prescribe and mail medication abortion to folks directly, including and .

There is a vast digital ecosystem of medication abortion information and services that abortion seekers can have mailed right to their door鈥攗nless Project 2025 goes into effect.

鈥溾�嬧�媁hat we are most concerned about is that people have access to accurate information about how to get the pills, how to use the pills, and the fact that in some states there might be legal risks associated with using the pills,鈥� says Wells. 鈥淓very day is a risk assessment, and people can make good decisions about their lives. It鈥檚 not for me to say about somebody else鈥檚 life. What鈥檚 the best choice for you?鈥�

And while an overabundance of water is a major threat to the Netherlands, the even greater threat for the country is actually a lack of it. 鈥淭he concept of droughts in the Netherlands is new to most people,鈥� explains Frank van Gaalen, a researcher with the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL). 鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 match the image of the Netherlands as a country that lies, for a large part, beneath sea level, is surrounded by sea, and contains rivers, lakes, canals, and ditches.鈥�

When van Gaalen published a report that pointed out the danger of droughts this year, people鈥攅ven locally鈥攔eacted with 鈥渁mazement and disbelief.鈥�

Having too little water and having too much share a common cause: climate change. 鈥淲e know that climate change is already happening and will continue. The way we are dealing with water in the Netherlands will have to take all these threats into consideration together,鈥� van Gaalen says.听

So while leaders work to combat both floods and droughts, they also have to consider the fact that the land itself is sinking鈥攁 process called subsidence. And some researchers are pointing out that the measures the government has been implementing against floods are insufficient and overly reliant on technological solutions, such as dikes. 

鈥淚f we keep on increasing our coastal protection only with grey structures鈥攆or example, a concrete dike鈥攕ubsidence behind the dike will continue and sea level will rise,鈥� says Marte Stoorvogel, a researcher at Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ). 鈥淎t some point you鈥檙e creating some kind of situation where when it goes wrong, it will go really badly wrong.鈥澨�

For the last 20 years or so, various Dutch initiatives have tried to tackle the problem. For example, the Amsterdam district of IJburg is known for its floating houses that move with the rise and fall of a lake called IJmeer. Since the severe river floods of 1993 and 1995, the government introduced a new approach, a project called Ruimte voor de Rivier ), which tries to give back swaths of land to previously regulated rivers, letting them meander, and even overflow as necessary. Dunes are also getting more attention, not just as beautiful nature preserves, but also as dynamic, biodiverse areas that can offer an additional buffer against the effects of climate change.

The sustainable solutions that Stoorvogel and her team are working on envision a transition zone that incorporates both water and land. The work also includes making sure people in the Netherlands don鈥檛 only see the sea as a threat. 

鈥淚nstead of keeping the boundary between sea and land very sharp, we need to start incorporating the sea more into our landscape,鈥� she says. 

A More Spiritual Solution

For Stoorvogel, inspiration to solve this issue came from an unlikely source: a powerful but little-known goddess called Nehalennia. While the goddess was worshiped in the Netherlands in pre-Christian times, Stoorvogel is now hoping to introduce her to more of the modern Dutch population as a way to 鈥渞econnect with the water in a spiritual way and see also the beauty in it.鈥�

Nehalennia鈥攇oddess of the sea, as well as fertility and rebirth鈥攑lays an important role in Dutch neopaganism today. According to Hanneke Minkjan, an independent researcher who wrote her , Nehalennia was declared the most important female deity in the Netherlands during the 2006 Goddess Conference, despite the fact that not much was known about her.听

鈥淧eople immediately embraced the scarce evidence because they had something tangible, something that was really there,鈥� explains Peter Versteeg, a cultural anthropologist at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam who specializes in neopaganism and religion. 鈥淪he was a goddess of seafarers and travelers, and her altar was found in the sea. I can imagine that this has been very inspiring to a lot of Dutch neopagans.鈥�

Even though the majority of the population in the Netherlands identifies as non-religious, Stoorvogel set out to create an altar to Nehalennia. She teamed up with the Berlin-based art studio Nonhuman Nonsense, which describes itself as 鈥渁 research-driven design and art studio creating near-future fabulations and experiments somewhere between utopia and dystopia.鈥� comprises natural components, such as wood and mud, as well as an AI-generated triptych of the goddess and a space that allows visitors to listen to the sounds of the sea through a shell.

The project, called听鈥淢ud and Flood: The Return of Nehalennia鈥� won the Bio, Art and Design (BAD) Award in 2022 from a consortium of various scientific and cultural institutions in the province, demonstrating that the goddess can garner interest from scientific, artistic, and environmental communities as well.

Stoorvogel hopes that becoming aware of Nehalennia鈥檚 importance to this country鈥攁s well as her function as a medium between the sea and humans鈥攃ould help change the stance of people trying to keep water out at all costs. 鈥淭he water doesn鈥檛 always have to be a threat,鈥� she says. 鈥淚nstead of letting water into our landscape and seeing it as a gigantic loss, [we can see] the beauty of it.鈥�

A return to nature is an overarching theme in neopaganism, which is 鈥渇irmly associated with nature spirituality, the worship of nature, the energy of nature, the energy of the elements,鈥� explains Versteeg. 鈥淭his is another form of inspiration, and that鈥檚 when people turn to nature and try to become aware of it.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

That awareness can be an essential tool for combating climate change. 

From Landscape to Seascape

At a time when the lack of water in the Netherlands is becoming an even bigger threat than an overabundance, it becomes crucial to consider what the sea, lakes, and rivers truly mean to a country so long defined by them. 鈥淲ith climate change bringing more, longer, and more extreme dry and hot periods, we have to find a new balance between discharging of excess water and conserving water for dry periods,鈥� van Gaalen says.

While attempts to fight drought are less known than the struggle against the water, they do exist. For example, the Ijsselmeer鈥攁 reservoir that provides fresh drinking water to Amsterdam and its surroundings鈥攈as fluctuating water levels. This makes it possible to store more water in the wet winter months that can then be used during the drier summer months. 

The Dutch government has also implemented measures for spatial planning they call , or 鈥渨ater and soil guiding,鈥� which involves, among other things, opting for and no longer building apartments or houses in areas prone to flooding.

Implementing so many systemic changes would require a paradigm shift. 鈥淭he most important aspect in these considerations is adapting our activities and land use to the possibilities and restrictions of our water, soil, and natural systems,鈥� explains van Gaalen, 鈥渋ncluding accepting that not all activities are possible on all locations.鈥澨�

But maybe solutions can be found in a more spiritual approach alongside a purely technological one. 

鈥淣ehalennia and her history and characteristics are a way of showing people that we don鈥檛 have to fight against the water,鈥� Stoorvogel says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 about trying to open up to the idea that it鈥檚 part of our landscape.鈥�

But in the words of Mark Charles and Soong-Chan Rah in their 2019 book 鈥淲hite America could not perpetrate five hundred years of dehumanizing injustice without traumatizing itself.鈥� 

On the night of December 31, 2015, I learned about my ancestors鈥� long-standing history on this land. The next day, January 1, 2016, the process of unraveling our family鈥檚 amnesia began. As I began sharing my ancestral discoveries with my white friends and family, I encountered blank stares and shrugging shoulders, accompanied by a quick change of subject to something more timely, relevant, or entertaining. I was often told reassuringly, 鈥淲ell, that was a long time ago. Everyone thought differently then. You shouldn鈥檛 feel guilty about that.鈥� Far from being placated, I wanted to scream. People literally could not hear what I was saying. I felt isolated in a process that was rewiring my core identity.

What I had discovered in my own family history posed a threat to the person I thought I was, and to the person I was taught to be. Looking back now, it felt like I was receiving an ancestral push toward truth and healing after many generations of silence. The process went far beyond a tidy phrase like 鈥渨hite guilt.鈥� Over time, I began distinguishing guilt from accountability. Staying stuck in guilt is not helpful. Moving into accountability catalyzes necessary change. I was rapidly becoming someone I did not recognize. 

What was now glaringly obvious and 鈥渋n my face鈥� all the time was being actively ignored by well-meaning white people all around me. Overwhelmingly, I felt pressured to calm down, behave, and just stop talking about it. Why? Talking about the shadows of colonialism and enslavement contradicts the heroic American mythology that we learned as children. Within the Euro-American diaspora, our capacity to deal with our ancestral legacies is compromised. We are part of a culture that is more invested in maintaining a narrative of innocence and denial than in embracing truth and healing.

I imagine this work to confront our collective amnesia will continue for the rest of my life. I hope it will persist into future generations as well. Over the years, I came to see our amnesia as .

When our European ancestors carried to Turtle Island their diseases, poverty, disrupted communities and families, severed cultures, and violence, it did not expunge their own historical trauma. Establishing dominance over the unique civilizations that were already thriving on this continent did not make us whole again. Kidnapping African leaders, healers, holy people, Elders, mothers, fathers, and children to build us a wealth-accumulating economy did not bring us peace. 

In her book , Euro-descended Elder Louise Dunlap shares how she perceives the suffering of our settler ancestors: 鈥�…a nightmarish, button-your-lips suffering that warped the mind, closing it to compassion for other humans and encouraging brutality against perceived enemies and the Earth itself. These ancestors struggled with a punishing legacy that still afflicts us.鈥�

Our ancestors鈥� punishing legacy went into the underbelly of our society. Today, it hides out behind a polite mask of denial. Almost everything in Eurocentric culture conspires to keep us asleep. Amnesia is the path of least resistance. 

I am grateful that the ancestors have shown me the unpopular truth: Unleashing their tears and reviving their memory might just be the messy, raw, healing balm for the wounds our people sustained and perpetrated so long ago. If we muster the courage to traverse these shadows, who might we become on the other side of all that pain? Who are we underneath the denial, amnesia, grief, guilt, and shame? 

Let鈥檚 find out.

This essay is excerpted with permission from by Hilary Giovale (Green Writers Press, 2024).

鈥淥ver [two] months ago, I decided to permanently stop treatment for my autoimmune illnesses,鈥� Alexandria wrote. 鈥淭he side effects were absolutely horrendous and the treatments only provided a temporary fix that has to be administered again and again for the rest of my life to stall the illness, which isn鈥檛 a cure.鈥� She ended the post by naming her dual diagnosis, which she had been largely private about aside from .

For people with rare diseases鈥攅stimated to be between 鈥攆inding the right doctors and treatments can feel like a Herculean feat, a reality Alexandria knew all too well. 鈥淭here is no long-term cure,鈥� she wrote. 鈥淚鈥檓 very very very sick, things are progressing fast. I鈥檓 wheelchair or bed bound most of the time. I had 16 seizures yesterday and over 30 stiff person attacks.鈥�

In the United States, rare-disease patients often go into significant medical debt to pursue treatment, even traveling to different states to see specialists with months-long waiting lists. In addition to the monetary burden, those seeking treatment for rare diseases also face a mental, emotional, and spiritual toll. 

鈥淚 wake up with excruciating pain,鈥� says , a disabled adaptive fashion influencer and one of just a few hundred people in human history to have been diagnosed with , a cancer disorder that causes bone tumors and vascular lesions most often in the hands and feet. 鈥淭here鈥檚 not a moment that I don鈥檛 have excruciating pain, which is awful for a variety of reasons. It obviously takes a toll on your mental health and your social and interpersonal and professional life. The first thing I have to do in the morning is wake up, take my opioids, and then wait an hour just to be able to get out of bed and do anything at any capacity.鈥�

In the face of these obstacles, rare-disease patients like Dur谩n must relentlessly call insurance companies and medical offices, create and share resources, and form care networks to lift some of the burden鈥攁nd help keep them alive.

Routine Misdiagnosis

As a baby, Dur谩n was misdiagnosed with , which similarly causes bone tumors in different parts of the body. When her father sought a second opinion, she was again misdiagnosed, this time with , which occurs when scar-like tissue replaces healthy bones.

鈥淭hey ran with that diagnosis until I was 18,鈥� Dur谩n says. 鈥淭he treatment is similar in that I still got leg lengthening, but I was also supposed to get annual cancer screenings with full-body MRIs or full-body CT scans with radiation, and they weren鈥檛 doing that.鈥� The Cleveland Clinic notes that Maffucci syndrome patients , with up to 50% of Maffucci patients developing chondrosarcoma, a bone cancer that begins in cartilage cells. (Dur谩n estimates her odds of getting cancer at 55%.)

Just before Dur谩n graduated high school, her doctor misdiagnosed her with cancer and referred her to orthopedic oncology. However, when she showed up for her appointment, she learned she鈥檇 been kicked off her when she turned 18. To continue treatment, she had to apply for adult benefits or find other insurance, which would severely delay care.

In 2017, Dur谩n was officially diagnosed with Maffucci syndrome. 鈥淸Maffucci syndrome] is so rare that when I was diagnosed, they didn鈥檛 even know what gene caused it,鈥� Dur谩n says. Unfortunately, Dur谩n isn鈥檛 the only rare-disease patient who鈥檚 been misdiagnosed more than once.

Miranda Edwards, a.k.a. , was dismissed by multiple doctors for 鈥渁nxiety鈥� when she had a malignant tumor in her adrenal gland. Due to the delay in care, her tumor became untreatable. She has been 鈥溾�� since 2014, sharing each step of her journey online as well as resources she鈥檚 created herself鈥攍ike a 鈥攕o others can advocate for their health.

In 2023, Edwards asked for help raising thousands of dollars to pay for life-saving molecular testing of her thyroid after she was outright denied surgery to remove a Grade 5 tumor because of her existing condition. Edwards, who is based in Canada, said her health care would have paid for the testing if the tumor had been Grade 4 or lower; essentially, she was once again put at extraordinary risk because of doctors dragging their feet with the 鈥渨atch and wait鈥� approach.

Tools for Progress

In many cases, rare-disease patients are forced to become the foremost experts on their conditions, putting them in the position of educating the medical professionals who are supposed to be treating them. 鈥淚 think a lot of health care professionals give up on finding answers beyond our rare diseases,鈥� Dur谩n explains. 鈥淚 was at a Maffucci syndrome and Ollier disease patients summit at Johns Hopkins last year, and my researchers told us that when doctors see a rare-disease patient, they often focus on the rare disease and forget [the patient] can have common diseases too.鈥�

Dur谩n describes seeing multiple doctors, independently researching her test results, and persistently asking questions of her care team, particularly when they didn鈥檛 have an immediate answer for symptoms that didn鈥檛 line up with her Maffucci diagnosis. Eventually, she was diagnosed with both hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and Hashimoto鈥檚 disease. 鈥淲e already deal with a lot of health issues,鈥� Dur谩n says. 鈥淪tress is a notoriously bad thing鈥攆or lack of a better word鈥攆or pain, for chronic pain and energy levels and mental health. I think having an advocacy group to help patients navigate the system would definitely improve the quality of our lives.鈥�

Since 2008, the last day of February has been celebrated as , a patient-led effort coordinated with more than 65 global organizations, including the European Organisation for Rare Diseases (EURORDIS), to raise awareness for lesser-known diagnoses and the people living with them. Stanislav Ostapenko, who鈥檚 been director of communications at EURORDIS since 2021, says rare-disease patients must have strong support networks, including online, to effectively navigate their illnesses.

鈥淲e know that patient populations are very scarce,鈥� he explains. 鈥淲e know that for certain diseases there are just a handful [of] patients across the globe. So it is very important to know that you belong to a community and you can be accepted, you can be understood, and you can also speak to people who have the same condition as you do and that you can find support.鈥�

A major component of Rare Disease Day is translating and adapting tool kits for multiple languages and impairments so anyone can use them, even if they lack expertise. EURORDIS uses this tool to encourage us all鈥攖hose with rare diseases and those without鈥攖o be good patient advocates.

The Significance of Burnout

A from the physician network MDVIP and online random-probability panel Ipsos KnowledgePanel indicates that 61% of polled patients see the U.S. health care system as a hassle and that one in three are 鈥渂urned out.鈥� One-third of patients reported deferring care in the last five years because they couldn鈥檛 get a timely enough appointment to address their concerns or they had a bad experience with a provider. The survey also states that at least one in four Americans who did seek care suffered a negative impact on their mental health, had worsening symptoms, or were misdiagnosed.

All of these factors lead to patient burnout, with chronically ill, disabled, and rare-disease patients facing these issues on a more frequent basis because of how often they are forced to seek care for symptom management, procedures, and medications.

In her 2022 book , Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha writes about the importance of learning both one鈥檚 own and their loved ones鈥� 鈥渃are languages鈥� to create inter-abled care webs in which everyone can get what they need without harming others and getting caretaker burnout: 鈥淲hen I think of the care webs I am a part of that mostly work, they are a complex moment-by-moment dance of figuring out what we need that is a lot like consent negotiations in sex,鈥� Piepzna-Samarasinha writes. 鈥淩aw embarrassment, messiness, confusion, working through shame at needing something (or anything), figuring out what I might need to even begin to ask for.鈥�

Piepzna-Samarasinha also writes about the necessity of employing 鈥渁 diversity of care tactics鈥� so people can, for example, seek help chasing a referral from a doctor to another doctor to the insurance company and back again, or assistance applying for financial aid from organizations such as the National Organization for Rare Disorders (NORD) to help offset the costs of medication, diagnostic testing, travel assistance, and caregiver respite.

When the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020, mutual aid and collective care became even more important for people with disabilities, including people with rare diseases. Whether it鈥檚 nondisabled people offering rides, helping call doctors or email insurance companies, or assisting with documentation and organization, advocacy networks鈥攏o matter how small鈥攈ave become essential for rare disease patients.

In 2022, disability-justice activist Alice Wong wrote about that ended with her family expending great financial and personal resources to prevent her from having to move to an inpatient facility: 鈥淭he safety net is not a net!鈥� Wong wrote. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a big fucking hole.鈥� Without Wong鈥檚 family advocating for her, she would have had few choices for continued care: 鈥淭he system drives people toward institutions,鈥� she wrote. 鈥淚t is designed to segregate expendable and 鈥榥on-productive鈥� disabled and older people like me. Out of sight, out of mind.鈥�

Advocacy networks can help patients fight for their needs with insurance companies, which are often quick to dismiss medications that are 鈥渢oo expensive鈥� or treatments that are 鈥渘ot medically necessary.鈥� They can work with NORD to launch local registries, promote or host funding drives for patient-focused drug development, and work directly with existing disability-rights organizations to streamline processes and/or build out their volunteer base.

Dur谩n, like Wong, relies heavily on her nondisabled family members for help with daily tasks, which can include bringing her food and water or cleaning her room (the latter which she pays them to do). 鈥淎s disabled people, we鈥檙e already grappling with our health and it already bleeds into every aspect of our lives,鈥� says Dur谩n. 鈥淚f we had nondisabled allies caring about accessibility or ableism at any capacity and advocating on our behalf, or just calling out ableism or inaccessibility even when we鈥檙e not in the room, I think it would make a world of a difference, especially because I think a lot of disabled people already face a lot of burnout because of our health or lack thereof.鈥�

Highly visible advocates like Dur谩n and Edwards use their platforms to educate their followers, but ultimately they shouldn鈥檛 be tasked with radicalizing nondisabled people into confronting and seeking to improve the medical system. 鈥淣o one is immune to becoming disabled,鈥� Dur谩n points out. 鈥淚t can happen to quite literally anyone.鈥� If that doesn鈥檛 radicalize nondisabled people, perhaps nothing will.

On June 11, a week after a police training facility in Richmond, California, broke ground, organizers from the  marched to the Overaa Construction headquarters in protest. Citing concerns over rising police militarization and repression in the predominantly Black and Latino area, the protesters鈥攋oined by local residents鈥攃alled on Overaa workers to boycott .

鈥淏y furthering the militarizing and surveillance of our city鈥攁nd coordinating law enforcement resources across the region, including ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement]鈥攖hey鈥檙e actually making our cities into Cop Cities,鈥� said Refilwe Gqajela, a community organizer with the  in California鈥檚 Bay Area.

Gqajela said organizers in Northern California have been working to form the coalition since the facility was announced in August 2023. They鈥檝e expressed their opposition at , saying the money should instead be put into other programs that would benefit the community.

Of course, California isn鈥檛 the only state where Cop Cities are being built. The term first captured national attention in January 2023, when  while  that鈥檚 displacing one of the largest urban forests.

The influx of these facilities parallels the emergence of the Defund the Police movement, which鈥攆ollowing the murder of George Floyd in 2020鈥攕aw thousands of people across the country mobilize to decry police violence against Black and Brown communities. Within the last five years, there has been a across the country. 

This development is raising concerns with anti-police organizers, especially when it comes to the impact on marginalized communities and movements. There is now a facility in almost every state and, according to researcher and mutual aid organizer Renee Johnston, at least 10 states have multiple police compounds. 

鈥淭his nonsense with 鈥榯he training needs to improve鈥� has been on a slow incline,鈥� Johnston said. 鈥�2020 marks that period where, if we鈥檙e looking at a graph, there would be a sharp uptick in how quickly [Cop Cities] were going up.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Groups like , , and Stop Cop City Bay Area have been fighting these new police facilities in their communities by way of canvassing, holding rallies, petitioning, and more鈥攕imilar to the effort in California. 

At least seven cities, including Chicago and Baltimore, have allocated more than $100 million to their Cop Cities鈥攁nd many are meant to host international police training programs like . Activists and scholars have said that Cop Cities are replicated after Israel鈥檚 own Cop City,  against Palestinians. This would be an expansion of already existing police training exchange with .

鈥淲e鈥檙e told that police are here to serve and protect the public and they care about the community, but I just don鈥檛 think any of that is true,鈥� Johnston said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 why training doesn鈥檛 work, because there is no training that you can give that鈥檚 going to change the nature of a system.鈥�

While Cop Cities have been rolled out , activists around the country have been vocal about their opposition. Many have decried the multi-million dollar allocations to policing, and called on their local leaders to instead invest in resources needed by their communities.

Divestment From Police, Investment in Communities

Tennessee lawmakers are throwing $415 million into their , an 800-acre facility to be built in a historically Black Nashville neighborhood currently experiencing a housing crisis, extreme displacement, and gentrification, according to Erica Perry, executive director of Nashville鈥檚 .

鈥�$415 million is a huge amount of money, especially in a state where we ranked low in health, literacy, education, and housing,鈥� Perry said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 extremely frustrating because we know that money could be spent on things that would help people have healthy, thriving, safe lives.鈥�

In response, the Southern Movement Committee began advocating for in the creation of an office of youth safety, community centers, and alternatives to police in schools鈥攑rograms they say the community actually needs. In June, $1 million of this budget was approved by the Nashville City Council.

鈥淲e鈥檙e trying to approach our budget work in a way that addresses safety and creates alternative forms of safety that do not require cops, courts, and cages,鈥� said Southern Movement Committee Arts and Culture Director Mike Floss.

Activists in Chicago have shared similar concerns. In the years before the , the city had seen the closure of, as well as  in U.S. history. Naturally, many residents were outraged when the new multi-million dollar police training facility was announced, especially considering the Chicago Police Department already had seven other training facilities in the area.

鈥淲hy is there suddenly this new investment available, when we were told that the city was broke when we were asking for investments in our own communities?鈥� asked Benji Hart, an adult ally with the youth-led No Cop Academy Coalition.

Chicago鈥檚 Cop Academy came after the police-killing of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald, who was  by a Chicago police officer in 2014. Not long after, youth organizers from the Stop Cop Academy campaign began spreading information by canvassing and passing out fliers, as well as leading more disruptive actions like taking over trains in large groups chanting, passing out flyers, and talking to other passengers about the campaign. They also blocked city council building elevators. Eventually, they grew the effort into a coalition of more than 100 local organizations. 

 鈥淭he initial thought was that there has to be a challenge to this narrative,鈥� Hart said. 鈥淚t can鈥檛 just be that the city announced it was going to build this thing. There needed to be some evidence of pushback and opposition to the construction, and calling for different funding priorities on the part of the city and for investments in community resources.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

For many organizers, the work is about making it known that crime isn鈥檛 the biggest threat鈥攊t鈥檚 houselessness, rising rents, food deserts, and the myriad other issues plaguing communities competing for funds with Cop Cities.

鈥淭he safest communities in the United States are not the communities that are over-policed,鈥� said Kamau Franklin, a lead organizer with the Stop Cop City movement in Atlanta. 鈥淭hey are the communities that have resources that benefit the young people in their communities, that give people outlets, and make sure schools are satisfactory and building your mind. Those are the ways in which these resources could and should be used.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Repression of Movements

Within the last two and a half years, local activists have been leading the Stop Cop City movement in Atlanta through canvassing, demonstrations, rallies, town halls, and creating petitions that garnered more than 116,000 signatures, growing the mobilization into a national conversation.

They鈥檝e faced pushback from the other side. Dozens of  and . According to Franklin, this a coordinated effort to criminalize activism and scare organizers. He said a large part of the facility will be built by the end of the year, even though that 59% of residents don鈥檛 support it.

Over the last year, repressive policing has extended beyond Stop Cop City organizers to encompass Gaza solidarity student encampments as well. Tamera Hutcherson, an organizer with Stop Cop City Dallas, said the city council held secretive meetings and used vague language around 鈥減ublic safety鈥� to get  that gave $50 million to a police training facility. Soon after,  Gaza solidarity student encampment. 

鈥淔or students peacefully protesting, they came in riot gear and in tactical gear, they looked like they were ready for war against civilians,鈥� Hutcherson said. 鈥淚 think most residents are concerned about what this means, not just for the city of Dallas, but for Dallas county and North Texas as a whole.鈥�

While Hutcherson said there are still not many people in Dallas who are aware of the facility being built, she is starting to see more conversations happen as organizers continue canvassing, going door-to-door, and making phone calls to community members. 

鈥淣ot just in Atlanta, but around the country, the militarized police are on full display, meant basically to derail and destroy movements, to scare people,鈥� Franklin said. 鈥淐op City is a way for them to organize that policing and practice those tactics and strategies even more so.鈥�

In the Bay Area, Refilwe Gqajela said activists have faced increased police and city council repression amidst their efforts to host rallies and town halls. For example, when residents attended city council meetings to speak out about Cop City, the normal three-minute public comment period would be cut down to one minute. The San Pablo Police Department also shut down one of their attempted town halls at Costa County Community College. Nevertheless, Gqajela and others have continued to organize.

鈥淲e understand this to be a direct threat to our organizing鈥攖his is a state repression tactic,鈥� Gqajela said. 鈥淲e know that this isn鈥檛 just going to impact the people of San Pablo. It鈥檚 a regional training facility to organize the policing forces in the Bay Area to squash the kind of organizing that鈥檚 being done right now for Palestine, for example.鈥�

The Movement Continues

Activists vow to continue their advocacy, despite the pushback. Along with Black Youth Assembly, the Southern Movement Committee has been meeting with Nashville city officials to get their Varsity Spending Plan on the city council鈥檚 radar. 

鈥淚t鈥檚 our work to help people see what is happening鈥攚hen it comes to their health and education needs鈥攊s connected to the state鈥檚 insistence on spending $415 million on this campus,鈥� Perry said. 

As the organizers with Stop Cop City Dallas continue to strategize and mobilize, Hutcherson said that she sees the mobilizing of students across the University of North Texas system as a victory. Four of the five campuses have to pressure administrators to back out of the partnership with the Dallas Police Department through protests and organizing.

鈥淲e are continuing to educate the public, and also figure out and strategize ways to continue applying pressure to ensure that this is not built,鈥� Hutcherson said.

The organizers with the Anti Police-Terror Project and the coalition in the Bay Area have been holding town halls and rallies to stop their Cop City from being built鈥攁nd teachers, students, environmental activists, residents, and health care workers have been mobilized to join the cause. They鈥檝e also been organizing alongside the Ohlone people, who are native to Northern California where this project is being built and have been  being built on their land. 

In Chicago, activists were able to delay the Cop City project, but not its eventual construction. Undeterred, Hart said that some of the youth organizers involved in the No Cop Academy coalition successfully campaigned for  contract with the Chicago Police Department, which eventually led to the contract鈥檚 end.

Around the country, activists and organizers have been building solidarity with the struggle in Atlanta and other states, as well as Palestine. As Hart noted, solidarity is important during this 鈥渃lear orchestrated push for militarization and hyper investment in police鈥攊n the wake of arguably the largest protests in U.S. history calling for the defunding of the police.鈥�

鈥淲e need to be supporting each other across city and state lines, and not just treating these as a bunch of little battles against individual Cop Academies or Cop Cities,鈥� he said. 鈥淥ur response needs to be as orchestrated as the police state鈥檚 response to our organizing.鈥�

Though a world away from my daily life as a climate communicator in Boston, I found myself returning to a pressing question: 鈥淚s it too late to address climate change?鈥�

It鈥檚 a question that marine biologist and self-proclaimed 鈥減olicy nerd鈥� Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, with her own family connections to Jamaica, is intimately familiar with. In her latest book, (One World Press, September 2024), Johnson offers an evocative exploration of possibility and transformation in the face of climate change. The collection of essays, interviews, poems, and art began as an attempt to spark conversation about climate solutions in popular culture, but it evolved into something much bigger: 鈥淭his book is my response to anyone still wondering whether all of our climate efforts are worth it,鈥� Johnson told me when we spoke on the phone in September as she was traveling for her book tour. 

Johnson, who co-edited the bestselling 2021 anthology All We Can Save: Truth, Courage, and Solution for the Climate Crisis, builds on her previous work to deliver a timely and urgent guide for envisioning and implementing climate solutions. The book is not just about understanding the problem (though Johnson and climate scientist Kate Marvel make clear 鈥渢he atmosphere is fundamentally different now鈥� due to human activities); it鈥檚 about contemplating鈥攁nd in a way, manifesting鈥攖he various paths we as a society can take toward a livable future.

Find your people, whoever that might be, or bring your people. Don鈥檛 feel like you鈥檙e supposed to go it alone. This requires community.鈥� 鈥擝rian Donahue

One of those paths must inevitably involve looking to nature for solutions. In a section of the book entitled 鈥淩eplenish and Re-Green,鈥� Johnson and others imagine a world where food systems are regional and regenerative, biodiversity is valued, and human stewardship of other species is the norm. Brian Donahue, a professor, farmer, and New Englander like myself, proposes a novel plan to revitalize rural America by growing more food closer to home and repopulating small towns. 

As a Black woman with dreams of leaving urban life for a country homestead, I鈥檝e often felt afraid of the conservative values that typically come with living in rural communities. But Donahue offers sage advice: 鈥淔ind your people, whoever that might be, or bring your people. Don鈥檛 feel like you鈥檙e supposed to go it alone. This requires community.鈥�

Community is a throughline of the book, and not just the human variety. Animals and insects, ecosystems, and various natural cycles are incredibly important for planetary health. But they remain enigmatic for most of us. Take, for example, the fact that even documenting the number of species on Earth is a never-ending effort. Yet Johnson writes that 鈥渢he climate solutions that nature offers can comprise more than one-third of the CO₂ mitigation needed to hold global warming to below 2 degrees C.鈥� A crucial part of unlocking this potential for change is having greater respect for鈥攁nd ceding decision-making power to鈥攖he naturalists, conservation scientists, and Indigenous communities already stewarding the natural world.

What if we had systems that loved us and, by extension, the planet?鈥�

Just as the book homes in on specific solutions, it also zooms out, taking aim at the cultural values undergirding many of our modern systems. In an interview with author and activist Bill McKibben, Johnson draws connections between the capitalistic values of short-term growth and the funding of new fossil fuel development. The book lays bare the fact that money that companies and consumers have sitting in major banks produces more carbon than the average American does in a year. 

According to McKibben, a reimagined financial ecosystem might rely more on credit unions and locally owned banks that keep money in a given community: 鈥淭hat should be happening as we start to rely more on renewable energy, because oil and gas are in Texas and Saudi Arabia and Russia, but happily, sun and wind are everywhere.鈥�

Through the exploration of subjects from media and labor to transit and legal systems, Johnson and co-conspirators answer a deeper question about the climate crisis: What if we had systems that loved us and, by extension, the planet? In the section she calls 鈥淎way From the Brink,鈥� Johnson sees these ideas to their rightful conclusion: Advertisements for fossil fuels and gas-powered cars would be an aberration. Climate change would be embedded in all local journalism, not viewed as a niche topic. We would evolve beyond the climate-apocalypse box office flick, and climate realities would become the backdrop of every genre of television and film. The influence of fossil fuels in politics would be reigned in, and our democratic system would become more representative. Exploitative labor practices would be abolished, and a livable wage would be commonplace. Seeing this vision laid out with striking specificity, it feels to me like it鈥檚 within our grasp.

Johnson admits that on the role of electoral politics in climate action, and the climate impacts of mega industries like fast fashion, the book is a bit light. These are two topics Johnson plans to cover in her new podcast debuting on her in the fall of 2024. 鈥淭his is such a useful question鈥攚hat if we get it right?鈥攖hat this book can鈥檛 fully answer,鈥� she tells me frankly. 鈥淪o I want to keep the conversation going.鈥�

Whether you鈥檙e an activist, a parent, or simply curious about climate, you are likely to find pieces in this collection that appeal to you鈥攁nd that鈥檚 intentional. The book does not argue for one-size-fits-all solutions. 鈥淭oo often, the climate movement and the media tell everyone to do the same things: Vote, protest, donate, spread the word, and lower your carbon footprint,鈥� Johnson writes. 鈥淏ut all too rarely are we asked to contribute our specific talents, our superpowers.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

For my part, I saw myself in the book鈥檚 Afrofuturist agricultural artwork by Olalekan Jeyifous. And reflecting on Marge Piercy鈥檚 poem 鈥淭o Be of Use鈥� inspired me to view my climate work, with its many ups and downs, as an exercise in perseverance. It encouraged me to recommit to incremental change and stay invested for the long haul. 

We need to live as though we understand this crisis is real.鈥� 鈥擜yana Elizabeth Johnson

The variety of pieces in the book and the many forms they take serve as a reminder that everyone has a place in these climate futures and a hand in bringing them to life. Johnson鈥檚 climate action Venn diagram aims to pinpoint the intersection of what brings you joy, what you鈥檙e good at, and what work needs doing. That, she says, can be your place in the climate movement. For me, it鈥檚 probably something involving but the book overflows with inspiration and starting points for anyone struggling to picture a replenished world.

That鈥檚 not to say that this world is without sacrifice, though. In a concluding entry, Johnson and ocean farmer Bren Smith are clear-eyed about the necessary work and change ahead. 鈥淲e鈥檙e going to have to say goodbye to some things we hold close to our heart,鈥� Smith says, remarking on the many natural wonders we鈥檝e already lost. Johnson adds, 鈥淲e need to live as though we understand this crisis is real,鈥� which means trying out a range of solutions and having a healthy relationship with failure. 

A book of this kind, with its cautiously optimistic view on climate, might read as wishful thinking. To me, it is a prayer for the modern era: where practicality meets possibility.

Cultural queerphobia is nothing new. In many ways, this recent wave of legislation is an overt escalation of the long-standing and long-normalized homophobia and transphobia in U.S. culture, not unlike 鈥� of the 1950s.

Queer and trans people are deeply familiar with the myriad, relentless ways they experience daily discrimination, erasure, and misrepresentation interpersonally, institutionally, and through dominant beliefs and values. The cultural platforming of these values creates an environment for bigoted, discriminatory politics to be framed as legitimate, logical, and even 鈥渘ecessary.鈥� Cultural attitudes build the stage that anti-LGBTQ politicians love to preach from.听

However, there鈥檚 nothing inevitable or permanent about anti-LGBTQ sentiments or cultural beliefs, according to , a queer studies and education scholar and professor at California State University. 鈥淩estrictive, binary understandings of gender and heterosexuality as the 鈥榥orm鈥� are ideas that don鈥檛 start out 鈥榥aturally,鈥� but rather get reinforced through repetition, social stigma, or restrictive policies,鈥� says Mattheis. 鈥淲e can just as 鈥榥aturally鈥� direct people to expand their perspectives rather than restrict them.鈥�

There are many ways cultural beliefs 鈥渉appen.鈥� The American educational system, and in particular K鈥�12 public schooling, is one of the most prominent places where young people learn what鈥檚 considered normal, desirable, and valuable鈥攁nd what isn鈥檛. In this sense, education is both a window and a mirror, reinforcing certain worldviews and creating space for alternative perspectives. 

Because students are a captive audience and spend a significant portion of their formative years in the classroom, schools are, logically, a key site to change鈥攐r codify鈥攃ultural attitudes. Modern , , and anti-LGBTQ activists have been working to ensure schools mirror the existing power structures and exclusionary attitudes that benefit them, at the expense of everyone else. As a result, much of the recent anti-LGBTQ legislation targets youth and public schools, including book censorship, , and other and administrators, , and exclusions . And this list doesn鈥檛 even touch on the predatory that disproportionately targets youth of color and youth with disabilities.

As devastating as it is for the LGBTQ community, this legislation pales in comparison to Project 2025鈥攁 sweeping initiative developed by former Trump officials and the Heritage Foundation, a shadowy, conservative, . Project 2025 is a for the next conservative president to overhaul the federal government and implement an authoritarian regime of widespread surveillance, mass censorship, and discrimination. Project 2025 would dismantle the Department of Education, eliminate Head Start and other programs designed for low-income youth, revoke federal protections for LGBTQ students, and threaten schools that protect trans kids or develop inclusive curriculum with lawsuits. Public education would .

In short, queerphobic attitudes and increasingly prevalent anti-LGBTQ policies form two sides of one toxic bridge, mutually reinforcing one another and making life hellish for queer and trans people of all ages. Project 2025 merely scaffolds itself onto existing queerphobia and takes anti-LGBTQ policies in education to new heights. 

Still, schools can be a window. For every horror story, there is a knowing English teacher who slips a queer kid a life-changing book. There are the no-nonsense coaches who ensure trans kids are welcome on and off the field. And there are the lessons, friendships, and classes that offer all students a chance to connect, collaborate, and think critically across differences. Schools are sites of incredible potential鈥攁nd spaces that can effectively intervene against homophobia and transphobia.

Sparse Support for Teachers鈥攁nd Students

Creating an environment where homophobia and transphobia are challenged鈥攁nd where LGBTQ youth feel seen, safe, and valued鈥攔equires understanding the challenges facing many students and educators on the ground.

Rebecca* is a third grade teacher in Florida鈥攇round zero for much of the country鈥檚 anti-LGBTQ legislation, given the state鈥檚 proudly regressive political leadership. (Editor鈥檚 note: Rebecca asked to use her first name only, out of concern about professional retaliation for speaking candidly. Read 大象传媒鈥檚 policy on veiled sources.) She says teachers in her district lack the support they need to navigate both age-appropriate conversations around identity and a provide culturally responsive, LGBTQ-affirming curriculum (which is ). 

At 8 and 9 years old, Rebecca says her students are already starting to use the word 鈥済ay鈥� as an insult and parrot reductive gender stereotypes. In her experience, students don鈥檛 always have the social-emotional skills to understand corrective discussions. Educators are often left to address issues of identity or name-calling ad hoc鈥攁nd Rebecca says many aren鈥檛 equipped or don鈥檛 feel comfortable with the responsibility.

鈥淪ome of my own teammates will get into [these situations] and they鈥檙e like, 鈥極h, well, 鈥済ay鈥� means happy, so consider it a compliment,鈥欌�� Rebecca says. Educators who know better, meanwhile, are caught in an impossible bind鈥攖rying to support students, teach kids and colleagues how to respond to these incidents, and not run afoul of state laws that in some cases prohibit the very mention of sexual orientation or gender identity.听

Though her school鈥檚 administration has been supportive of her personally, as a lesbian teacher, Rebecca says the school district does not invite discussions about LGBTQ issues, figures, or history in or outside of the classroom. Instead, LGBTQ topics are swept up under the umbrella of teaching 鈥渞espect鈥� and anti-bullying efforts. Rebecca sees her district as mostly reactive to bullying rather than proactive about inclusive curriculum, culturally responsive staff training, and social-emotional learning opportunities for students.听

In the absence of any meaningful presence of more inclusive, expansive cultural models, many students are absorbing restrictive, queerphobic norms by default.

Even in states with , there鈥檚 little direction on how to actually enact inclusion-focused policies. As a result, many of these responsibilities end up falling through the cracks or onto well-intentioned but overburdened teachers. 鈥淚n California, state education code describes multiple aspects of school life in which teachers are expected to actively support and include queer and trans youth,鈥� says Mattheis. 鈥淗owever, most teachers receive little to no introduction to state laws and policies as part of their preparation and are unfamiliar with these protections and requirements.鈥�

Taken together, these factors鈥攆rom top-down policies and lackluster curriculum to underresourced teachers and underprepared students鈥攃reate an environment where all kids can struggle to shine and grow.听

Shaking Up the Syllabus

Building an LGBTQ-affirming classroom starts early, according to Erica Castro, MSW, a facilitator and educator at , a Denver-based organization serving queer youth. A large part of Castro鈥檚 job is going into schools, summer camps, and nonprofits鈥攁nywhere kids are growing up鈥攁nd providing educator training and organizational audits.

鈥淧articularly in elementary, there is this stigma and idea that talking about gender and sexuality does not belong,鈥� says Castro. But Castro says that by the age of 2, kids are and differentiate between boys and girls鈥攎eaning the adages that kids are 鈥渢oo young鈥� or 鈥渃an鈥檛 understand鈥� age-appropriate conversations around gender and sexuality just don鈥檛 hold up.听

鈥淏eing able to get into the elementary schools and do these workshops has been, I think, transformative for the ways that teachers are able to build foundational, cultural, and policy-level structures [from the] first day of school,鈥� says Castro. 

In shaping workshops for all ages, Castro works directly with youth to identify what resources they want and the types of training their educators need鈥攊ncluding using and respecting pronouns, creating gender-support plans in the classroom, and connecting to free or low-cost therapy and mentorships for LGBTQ youth. Castro also partners with educators to diversify and update curriculum. (As a jumping-off point, Castro recommends .)

Aside from comprehensive, and above all, consistent education for students, educators, and their families, it鈥檚 also important to consider two more factors: the physical environment and policies at a school.

鈥淎m I seeing visual cues of queerness [or] that the school is openly accepting?鈥� asks Castro when making an assessment of a school environment.  鈥淎nd beyond it looking safe as a checkbox, what does it look like for our young people to actually feel safe?鈥�

The implementation of many of these resources occur at the intersection of physical space and policy. Gender-neutral bathrooms, for example, are 鈥攂ut the policy doesn鈥檛 necessarily guarantee the resource is in place. At one Denver high school, Castro says a group of queer students were forced to cross a busy road to access a bathroom at a local library. 鈥淸LGBTQ students] were just holding it all day, or they would just go home and stay home. There were attendance barriers that impacted their education tenfold.鈥� Access to sports, too, can be make-or-break for many queer and trans kids.听

To truly support their LGBTQ students, most schools need a major shake-up when it comes to the variety, consistency, and depth of resources they offer queer and trans youth, their families, and communities. The good news is that, by and large, these tools already exist. As their own program faces closure largely due to , Castro believes a school district鈥檚 budget and priorities must reflect .听

鈥淲hat made us want to become an educator in the first place is to protect all students,鈥� says Castro, who taught high school for five years themselves. 鈥淸LGBTQ youth] are experiencing so much at home, in addition to homophobia and transphobia, and it is our responsibility to be that safe place for them.鈥�

Beyond the Classroom

In an ideal world, every school administration and teacher nationwide would hitch their wagon to the potential and needs of LGBTQ students and families. But as Nereyda Luna, a community organizer and former case worker for the gender-expansive community in New York City, points out, trans youth can be bullied at the kitchen table just as easily as in the classroom. 

鈥淧eople often think that youth exist in this whimsical world. And no, I think that youth are very aware of what is happening around them,鈥� says Luna. 鈥淭hey know that 鈥業f I come out, if I present myself to the world for who I am, this is going to be hard.鈥欌��

Community spaces often provide much-needed educational opportunities for caregivers to disrupt a queerphobic culture. Outreach to cisgender and heterosexual parents鈥攑articularly those with misconceptions about LGBTQ people or those unaware of the impact of anti-LGBTQ legislation鈥攊s especially important, because these adults vote, raise queer and trans kids, and take their values to all areas of public and private life.

鈥淭he most effective way to help families and ensure people break through cultural norms is through personal connection and stories,鈥� says Rev. Ray McKinnon, in North Carolina. 鈥淭he most effective way to reach people is not with data; it鈥檚 not going to be some incredible argument. It is humanizing the person, it is taking these means and scare tactics and [putting] a face on it.鈥�

Through PFLAG, McKinnon and his colleagues offer peer-to-peer support and workshops for adults鈥攑rimarily the parents and grandparents of LGBTQ kids. Last year, PFLAG Charlotte offered 29 workshops to more than 1,200 total participants. More than 600 people鈥攔anging from their 20s to 70s鈥攗sed PFLAG Charlotte鈥檚 peer-support services. To better serve their community, McKinnon says they鈥檝e recently launched Apoyando con Amor, a Spanish-speaking peer-support group, and plans to start groups for Black and gender-expansive families as well. 鈥淲e also firmly believe that it is not the responsibility of queer people to educate straight people on these things, and it especially isn鈥檛 the job of queer kids to do that,鈥� McKinnon adds.听

Though the organization is nonpartisan, PFLAG Charlotte also offers voter outreach and education on local legislation and policies that target LGBTQ people. 鈥淎dvocacy, allyship must always have an action,鈥� says McKinnon. 鈥淵ou are not just accumulating information when you come to the workshops … it鈥檚 for a purpose. It鈥檚 to give you tools so that you can become an accomplice who is walking lockstep with us.鈥�

Those accomplices鈥攊n schools, churches, community centers, and culture-setting institutions nationwide鈥攚ill be integral to cementing a culture shift that not only makes U.S. society safe for LGBTQ people, but welcoming and affirming. Building an LGBTQ-affirming culture requires a healthy dose of imagination, problem-solving, and critically, the willingness to become a life-long learner (and un-learner) to help map out a more just culture鈥攊n and out of the classroom.

Hell鈥檚 Kitchen, the loosely based on Alicia Keys鈥� upbringing, follows 17-year-old Ali (Maleah Joi Moon) as she searches for purpose and freedom in 鈥�90s Manhattan. Ali鈥檚 being raised by Jersey (Shoshana Bean), her overprotective single mother who Ali believes is 鈥渟uffocating鈥� her.

As a Black woman, who鈥檚 also biracial, grew up in the 鈥�90s, and navigated early adulthood in New York City, I was enthralled by the show鈥檚 colors and effervescent characters, some of whom have curly hair like mine. Within the musical, Keys鈥� familiar, soulful songs reverberate and shatter spaces that diminish women while making space for vulnerability to become the loudest melody.

While Hell鈥檚 Kitchen鈥檚 premise is promising, the perspective of Black women slowly withers away as other characters鈥� development and traumas are prioritized. When Ali meets Knuck (Chris Lee), a man who drums a bucket near her apartment, she develops a crush on him, though it is unclear why they鈥檝e fallen for each other. 鈥淲hat y鈥檃ll even got in common?鈥� Ali鈥檚 friends ask her, before saying, 鈥淒on鈥檛 waste energy on this.鈥�

Their relationship quickly becomes unhealthy: Ali follows him to his job at a construction site, while he lurks outside her apartment. Though Jersey says they are 鈥渂abies in grown-up bodies,鈥� the reality is Knuck is in his 20s, while Ali has just barely passed the. Their relationship reaches a boiling point when Ali sneaks Knuck into her apartment when her mother鈥檚 not home. Though Knuck knows he shouldn鈥檛 be there, the musical portrays Ali as the sexual instigator: 鈥淸Jersey鈥檚] at work, we got plenty of time,鈥� she tells Knuck. 鈥淟et鈥檚 do it, baby.鈥�

When Jersey walks in on them, she calls the police, who arrest Knuck without explicitly charging him with a crime. Since Ali supposedly didn鈥檛 tell Knuck her actual age and Black men, including Knuck, are overpoliced, Jersey鈥檚 actions are framed as a betrayal. 鈥淓very time she [Jersey] tries to speak to me, I remember what she did to Knuck,鈥� Ali says.

In her angst, Ali turns to her piano teacher, Miss Liza Jane (Kecia Lewis), who belts a heart-wrenching tribute to her son and all the Black people who have been murdered by the police. However, juxtaposing Jane鈥檚 son鈥檚 murder with Knuck鈥檚 arrest feels manipulative, especially considering that .

Both realities can be true: Knuck鈥檚 history with the police is dehumanizing, and Ali鈥檚 unspoken trauma in her problematic affair with him (and within systems) also matters. By prioritizing one struggle over another, Black women鈥檚 traumas, triumphs, and stories are silenced. In essence, Ali becomes an audience member鈥攁 vessel for the people and systems around her rather than a stand-alone character. I left the theater asking, 鈥淲ho鈥檚 Ali? Why was she portrayed that way?鈥�

Theater鈥檚 Minstrel Show Roots

Theater鈥檚 depiction of Black women has deep roots in that reinforced Jim Crow segregation and reduced Black people to stereotypes. In a 2011 paper, historian , Ph.D., writes that these shows fueled negative characterizations of Black women in theater and broader culture, including perpetuating stereotypes such as the oversexualized, aggressive 鈥渏ezebel鈥� and the 鈥渕ammy,鈥� who鈥檚 a 鈥渘atural caretaker.鈥�

In the 1960s and 鈥�70s, Black women playwrights began producing plays that resisted these dehumanizing characteristics and offered a more layered worldview. 鈥淲omen playwrights of the Black Arts Movement followed a tradition of Black women intellectuals who actively resisted controlling images of Black womanhood,鈥� writes La Donna L. Forsgren, Ph.D., in her 2018 book, . Rather than reinforcing 鈥渄istorted images of Black womanhood,鈥� these playwrights, including Pearl Cleage and Ntozake Shange, used art to challenge and complicate the portrayal of Black women as 鈥渟capegoats for the ills within Black communities.鈥�

Forsgren argues that through plays such as For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide / When the Rainbow Is Enuf (1976) and Mad at Miles: A Blackwoman鈥檚 Guide to Truth (1990), playwrights began focusing more on Black families rather than solely Black men while also revealing hidden truths about Black women鈥檚 traumas and joys.

There might be no better example of this approach than The Color Purple, an award-winning play adapted from Alice Walker鈥檚 Pulitzer Prize鈥搘inning 1982 book that explores three Black women鈥檚 experiences with sexism, racism, and intimate-partner violence. While the book鈥檚 film adaptation in 1985 for its portrayal of Black men, remains a touchstone for Black women seeking understanding of themselves and their experiences.

鈥淲hen it was first released in 1985, The Color Purple was a cinematic outlier,鈥� NPR host Aisha Harris notes in a . 鈥淔or the first time, many Black women saw a movie that reflected their own experiences at home. Characters like Celie and the free-spirited Shug, who鈥檚 played by Margaret Avery, or Sofia, the self-assured force of nature who鈥檚 played by Oprah Winfrey. They were women who had seen or experienced abuse firsthand and pushed to seek happiness in spite of it all.鈥�

Yet even plays that don鈥檛 feature explicit stereotypes about Black women can be harmful. In the musical Hamilton, Sally Hemings, the woman Thomas Jefferson enslaved, was only portrayed briefly caring for Jefferson. Also, the young Maria Reynolds (white in real life, but not in Hamilton) seduces the older Hamilton鈥攂efore trapping him in a scandal, the very epitome of the 鈥渏ezebel.鈥�

While not all theater characters require tragic backstories, plays should depict Black women as layered鈥攏ot foil characters.

Trauma-Informed Theater Practices

Though musicals purvey joy, there鈥檚 also a responsibility to be trauma-informed. Theater productions should consult mental health professionals, scholars, and even members of the production itself. In May, , Hell鈥檚 Kitchen鈥檚 lead actor, publicly revealed her battles with depression. 鈥淚 wasn鈥檛 getting out of bed,鈥� she told The New York Times. 鈥淚 was missing class 鈥� it got really bad.鈥� Imagine if Moon, with this lived experience, helped write Ali鈥檚 journey. 

Broadway plays haven鈥檛 often done this work, though the jukebox musical Jagged Little Pill is an exception. In 2021, after the play鈥檚 producers , they and revisited the script. They also with mental health organizations, recognizing the impact that theater has on trauma. 鈥淲e are very proud of the show we made and its transformative power,鈥� the lead producers said in a statement. 鈥淚t is precisely because we have made this show about these charged and nuanced issues鈥攁 show about radical empathy and truth-telling, about protest and vulnerability鈥攚e have to hold ourselves to a higher standard.鈥�

Even if Hell鈥檚 Kitchen鈥檚 writer, Kristoffer D铆az, isn鈥檛 solely responsible for Ali鈥檚 character arc, playwrights should be trained to understand trauma responses so they can better be conveyed onstage. Perhaps Ali made these choices because women often blame themselves for trauma鈥攂ecause it gives them control when the world feels out of control.

Imagine if Miss Liza Jane told Ali that she wasn鈥檛 responsible for Knuck鈥檚 trauma and suggested support beyond the piano? What if playwrights held characters like Knuck accountable and showed how systems and environments inform a character鈥檚 choices? 

There are some organizations, coalitions, and producers attempting to address these issues, including , , , and

In 2020, after the murder of George Floyd, more than 300 theatermakers of color released 鈥�,鈥� a statement demanding 鈥渁 more equitable and safe space for BIPOC communities in our nation and inside of the American Theater.鈥� The statement鈥攚hich holds the theater industry accountable for actions such as dangling 鈥渙pportunities like carrots before emerging BIPOC artists 鈥� at the expense of [their] art and integrity鈥濃�攐ffers a number of demands. One such demand is for productions to 鈥減rovide therapists or counselors on site for the duration of a rehearsal process and production run when producing/programming content that deals with racialized experiences, and most especially racialized trauma.鈥� Another demand asks for theater companies to diversify the plays they offer by not having the BIPOC plays in any given season centered solely on 鈥渢rauma and pain.鈥�

If Hell鈥檚 Kitchen is any indication, theater is still struggling to meet these proposed standards more than four years later. While more than 100 theater organizations have 鈥攎aking changes that lessen the harm BIPOC performers, producers, and directors experience鈥攖here is still more work to do to create a more equitable theater industry.

Theater professionals don鈥檛 just imitate life鈥攖hey shape it. Keys said she crafted Hell鈥檚 Kitchen , so its writing should remind audiences that women鈥檚 inner 鈥溾�� of bright colors shouldn鈥檛 dim because people around them are struggling to find theirs.

Since the 1960s and the election of President John F. Kennedy, younger voters have supported Democratic candidates, while older voters leaned Republican. But , and now, in 2024, large numbers in both groups are bucking traditional assumptions about their political affiliation.

This shift challenges the age-old political adage that youthful idealism gives way to conservative pragmatism with age. As pollsters and pundits scramble to explain the phenomenon, one intriguing theory emerges: It may .

The Unhappy Vote for Change

I am an  and the co-founder and co-director of the . Our lab investigates and analyzes public opinion and political trends nationwide. With the upcoming election, I鈥檝e been specifically examining the potential influence of happiness on voting patterns.

Research worldwide indicates that happy people prefer keeping things the same, and they . Voters who aren鈥檛 as happy are more open to anti-establishment candidates, seeing the government as a source of their discontent.

These findings may help to explain the Democratic Party鈥檚 waning support among young people.

This group is still reliably blue. Vice President Kamala Harris , with 50% favoring her over former President Donald Trump鈥檚 34%. U.S. voters ages 18 to 35 mainly prefer Democratic views on  and . Yet they are more likely to vote Republican than they have been in the past, especially young men.

Youth Are No Longer Carefree

Declining life satisfaction and happiness levels among young Americans may help to explain their changing political preferences.

Our  found that 55% of respondents ages 18 to 34 reported dissatisfaction with their lives, compared with 65% of the general population.

These findings, , challenge the common belief that young adulthood is one of life鈥檚 happiest periods.

 suggests that older voters, long a Republican base, are trending blue in 2024. As of September 2024, Harris leads among older voters, with somewhere between 51% to 55% favoring her over Trump.

These happy seniors appear to be concerned about sweeping changes that could occur under another Trump administration, like . The Supreme Court鈥檚 overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022 erased what was seen as a major milestone and accomplishment for that generation.

Older Americans are also focused on retaining , a Democratic priority that Trump has wavered on, and maintaining lower prescription drug costs. Both of these programs help keep older Americans happy and healthy. They barely register for young people.

Polls are notoriously slippery, and they鈥檒l keep changing. But, increasingly, age is no longer a very good indicator of party affiliation.

Happiness Matters at the Ballot Box

I am not suggesting that happiness drives all voting behavior or explains changing political preferences in the United States. But I am saying that it should not be ignored.

My research indicates that to understand why people vote the way they do, it鈥檚 essential to examine happiness alongside other key factors like the economy and personal experiences. By studying how happiness connects with age, life experiences, and engagement with social media, researchers can gain clearer insights into the changing voting behavior of both young and old voters.

The 2024 presidential candidates seem to have intuited this. The Harris campaign is all about 鈥渏oy鈥� and . The Trump campaign adopts an angrier tone and a grievance-filled approach.

Ultimately, happiness is more than just a mood. Just as much as ideology, the literal pursuit of happiness may be shaping decisions at the ballot box.

This article was originally published by听. It has been republished here with permission.听

Yet, in stark contrast to this thriving collection of lives, quiet, depleted areas of the forest and old logging trails tell a different, darker story. The wild beauty of this place used to expand to every horizon before it met a violent history of colonialism. I was raised in the woods of western Massachusetts, not far from here, but my feelings of innate connection to the environment were profoundly altered when I learned the history of this stolen land. My sense of belonging was replaced by questions about my place in the world as someone whose ancestral roots stretch to Scotland and the Middle East, among other lands shaped by colonization and dispossession. 

If you鈥檙e not on the land and part of the land, then who ultimately speaks for the land?鈥� 鈥斆�dhamh 脫 Broin

When my partner and I purchased Mount Owen two years ago, the idea felt like a grotesque misnomer: a false claim of ownership over life impossible to possess, since plants, fungi, and more-than-human animals inherently belong to themselves. Trying to figure out the right word to describe the uncomfortable transfer of 鈥渙wnership鈥� we were negotiating, my partner and I landed on the word 鈥渟tewardship.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

While the word expresses our intent to nurture the local ecosystem, it doesn鈥檛 acknowledge the land鈥檚 original guardians. Today, we hold a land title rooted in a legal system that views land as property, not as a living entity with inherent rights. It is a title linked to historical theft, genocide, and dispossession. Mount Owen rises 1,500 feet above the traditional homeland of the Nipmuc Tribal Nation, stewards of this land for more than 12,000 years. We are working hard to move forward locally and culturally to dismantle colonial land laws and embrace a more respectful understanding of the living Earth. 

脌dhamh 脫 Broin, a friend and colleague dedicated to helping to decolonize the Gaelic people of Scotland through reconnection with Indigenous culture and language, highlights the importance of direct communion with the land. Without an intimate relationship, he argues, authentic advocacy for the land鈥檚 well-being is impossible: 鈥淚f you鈥檙e not on the land and part of the land, then who ultimately speaks for the land?鈥� 

On Mount Owen, we are moving slowly, learning from the land and its original stewards, and building community rooted in respect for Indigenous people and their knowledge. We are working toward a future where the land has been restored its rights and agency鈥攁s well as deep love.

Countering Settler Ecologies

How can we transition from exclusionary, extractive practices to a system that honors Traditional Ecological Knowledge and prioritizes the well-being of Earth? This is one of the questions I posed to Irus Braverman, author of . Her book explains how 鈥渄ispossession of Palestinians in the hands of the Zionist settler state occurs, centrally, in the ecological realm.鈥�&苍产蝉辫; She coined the term 鈥渟ettler ecologies鈥� to describe the oppressive situation, arguing that the territorial reach of Israel鈥檚 nature protection advances the Zionist project of Jewish settlement and the corresponding dispossession of non-Jews from this place.

Just as olive trees embody Palestinian identity and deep connection to place, pine trees represent Jewish claims and settlement expansion.

The environmental damage and confusing arguments surrounding 鈥渘ative鈥� and 鈥渘on-native鈥� species add another layer of devastation. Non-native species are ; some like plantago major provide ecosystem services like improved soil quality, erosion control, habitat, and food sources for wildlife. Plus, a fixation on their potential negative impacts can overshadow other, perhaps greater threats facing native species, like habitat destruction and pollution. Braverman describes how these arguments, mirroring the human struggle for land and belonging, position various creatures鈥攆allow deer, gazelles, wild asses, griffon vultures, pine trees, and cows鈥攁s Israeli 鈥渟oldiers鈥� against their Palestinian counterparts鈥攇oats, camels, olive trees, hybrid goldfinches, and akkoub. 

Just as olive trees embody Palestinian identity and deep connection to place, pine trees represent Jewish claims and settlement expansion. 

The Aleppo pine has become a tool of erasure, obscuring the ruins of Palestinian villages beneath a green veneer. Braverman describes pine forests as being central to the earlier Zionist mission and 鈥渢he imaginary of the European forest.鈥� While the Aleppo pine is native to the Mediterranean region, widespread planting in areas where it was not historically present has led to ecological concerns. The trees鈥� aggressive growth and dominance in certain ecosystems has raised questions about whether it should be classified as . 

To complicate and confuse matters, olive trees are sometimes labeled 鈥渘on-wild,鈥� which in turn legitimizes ecological violence toward them, such as their uprooting from nature reserves, even with evidence that olive tree cultivation dates to the Chalcolithic period (3600鈥�3300 BCE). Where exactly does the timeline for 鈥渨ild鈥� and for 鈥渘ative鈥� begin? More than just crops in Palestine, olive trees are woven into the fabric of the culture. Yet hundreds of thousands of trees have been destroyed in recent decades to make way for Israeli settlements and for the separation wall, threatening livelihoods and the environment. 

When people are distanced from land, they lose the intimate knowledge necessary to be effective stewards.

Throughout the world, this pitting of native and non-native organisms and species harms not only plants and other animals, but also displaced humans seeking refuge in new lands. In a , Charles R. Warren, a professor of environmental management at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, argues such labels are outdated and misleading and that they ignore the dynamic reality of ecosystems while promoting a view of nature as static and unchanging. The focus, as the article suggests, should be on how species interact within the environment, not their origin. He writes, 鈥淭he native/alien paradigm purports to be about flora and fauna, but actually it is all about us鈥攐ur perceptions and preferences about where other species belong and our ethical judgments about how to treat them.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

To Forage Is to Connect

Foraging is one of the many ways people have interacted with their environment for generations. Beyond a means of sustenance, foraging for specific herbs and ingredients represents a cultural connection to the land. Layla K. Feghali, author of , emphasizes this point, stating that ancestral landscapes of the SWANA region in Southwest Asia and North Africa have 鈥渋nspired every aspect of our relationships, rituals, beliefs, and identities.鈥�

But throughout the world, fines and arrests for trespassing sever this vital connection. In the United States, the right to forage began to erode in the mid-19th century, leading to the dispossession of Indigenous peoples and those who lived close to the land. In 1977, Israel enacted laws that criminalized foraging on designated nature reserves. Criminalizing foraging divorces people from local flora, weakening ecosystems and unraveling cultural traditions. And of course, when people are prevented from foraging, they must often buy plants that the earth gives freely; leading to unnecessary economic burdens.

When people are distanced from land, they lose the intimate knowledge necessary to be effective stewards. So how can we navigate this? In spaces we inhabit, how can we protect plants, fungi, and other animals we don鈥檛 know or understand? How will we recognize their absence if we don鈥檛 notice their presence?  

鈥淩ecentering our relationship with the earth can begin to transform the traumatic wounding of colonial ruptures,鈥� Layla K. Feghali writes. 

On Mount Owen we鈥檙e exploring ways to develop a reciprocal stewardship framework that honors the land鈥檚 rights as well as those of humans, who are also part of the ecosystem. Effective stewards know, love, and understand their local ecosystems. That is why my partner and I are working to foster an emotional connection to the land so we don鈥檛 lose sight of whom and what we鈥檙e protecting.

CORRECTION: This article was updated at 10:02 a.m. PT on Oct. 1, 2024, to correct the spelling of 脌dhamh 脫 Broin鈥檚 name. Read our corrections policy here.

The upcoming presidential election will be critical for these growing unions and their workers. The candidates offer contrasting approaches to engaging with organized labor and regulating the world of work. While former president Donald Trump and his running mate, Ohio Senator JD Vance, have tried to fashion themselves as , experts, including those leading some of the nation鈥檚 largest unions, call this rhetoric bogus.

鈥淸We鈥檝e] seen what a prior Trump administration did for workers, like replacing an Obama overtime rule with a less protective version, trying to make it easier for employers to take workers鈥� tips, and making it easier to misclassify employees as independent contractors鈥攖aking away their rights to minimum wage and overtime,鈥� says Rajesh Nayak, a fellow at the Harvard Center for Labor and a Just Economy. 鈥淭hose policies can undermine organizing by making workers feel like the laws are stacked against them.鈥�

Nayak says he expects more of the same anti-worker policies from Trump if he were reelected this November. 鈥淵ou can see it in Project 2025, which promises to undo many of the pro-organizing positions taken by the Biden National Labor Relations Board [NLRB],鈥� he says.

Project 2025, the presidential playbook drawn up by the Heritage Foundation, to which at least contributed, promises to disrupt labor agencies, including the NLRB, a low-profile but high-impact government office tasked with enforcing labor laws in relation to collective bargaining and unfair labor practices. 

President Joe Biden made pro-union appointments at several federal agencies, including the NLRB. Under Biden, the board has that make unionizing easier for workers, including widening the scope of protected organizing activities and implementing a more protective threshold for determining whether employees have been misclassified as independent contractors and are being denied their rights. 

A second Trump administration is expected to reverse this momentum. Project 2025 calls on Trump to fire the NLRB鈥檚 Biden-appointed general counsel after taking office, despite precedent that the general counsel serve the remainder of their four-year term even under a new administration. (Biden was actually the first to break this long-held precedent when he in January 2021, 10 months before Robb鈥檚 term would have ended, to replace him with a candidate who would be less hostile to unions.)

Project 2025 also calls for cutting budgets at labor agencies 鈥渢o the low end of the historical average.鈥� While the NLRB has been stronger under Biden than it was during Trump鈥檚 first term, it still it needs to fulfill its mission. Additional cost-cutting could weaken its enforcement powers further and heighten barriers for workers and unions to seek recourse for unfair labor practices or access other essential support. 

Nayak also expects a second Trump administration to bury unions in paperwork, for example, by reinstating duplicative reporting rules that in 2021. 鈥淧roject 2025 threatens to repeat a long-running anti-union playbook of layering more and more reporting requirements on unions that go well beyond transparency and just serve to slow them down,鈥� he says. 

It鈥檚 not only Project 2025 that promises a hostile approach to workers and unions. Trump offered a grim preview of his labor policies during his first term in office, appointing anti-union officials to labor agencies, rolling back , and selecting the conservative Supreme Court justices who would go on to rule that the nation鈥檚 entire public sector is 鈥渞ight to work.鈥� That decision in made a in the member-fees-based revenue of public sector unions. (Though it should be noted that the ruling has as much as the anti-union firm that argued the case might have hoped.)

If he were reelected, Trump is expected to take aim again at unionized public sector workers. Project 2025 urges the administration to 鈥渃onsider whether public-sector unions are appropriate in the first place鈥� and promises to revive a trio of executive orders that Trump was unable to force through in his first term. The orders would shorten the timeline for unions and agencies to negotiate contracts, reduce the time workers would be allowed to improve their performance before being terminated, and reduce the hours that union representatives are allowed to spend doing union-related activities on government time.

Doreen Greenwald, national president of the National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), which represents tens of thousands of federal workers across 35 departments and agencies, says these executive orders 鈥渨ere designed to decimate federal employee bargaining rights and the ability of unions to represent them.鈥�

The highest-profile threat that a second Trump administration poses to federal workers is an executive order called . If passed, it would remove civil service protections for many federal employees and reclassify them as at-will appointees who can be fired for any reason. This policy would allow candidates in critical government positions to be hired and fired based on their partisan leanings and willingness to follow orders rather than their qualifications and skill sets.

鈥淭he policy makes it easier for politicians to push bureaucrats to act in ways that allow them to violate the law and undermine the public interest,鈥� explains Donald Moynihan, a professor of public policy at the University of Michigan鈥檚 Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy. 鈥淐ivil servants take an oath to serve the Constitution, but Schedule F would force them to choose between serving that oath and serving whoever occupies the White House,鈥� he continues.

Trump tried implementing Schedule F at the end of his first term in 2020, but it was never fully realized. 鈥淚f Schedule F had been fully implemented in 2020, thousands of employees could have , been fired at will, and replaced with partisan loyalists,鈥� warns Greenwald. 

The policy could have wide-ranging effects far beyond the federal workforce. Many people would experience this in the breakdown of vital government functions that are often taken for granted, such as enforcing food or workplace safety regulations. If qualified experts are forced out of regulating agencies in favor of appointees who are politically aligned with the administration, those agencies will become less competent and less able to deliver results.

Moynihan says Schedule F is a dangerous policy under any administration鈥擠emocrat or Republican. However, under Trump, it carries unique risks. 鈥淭hat is because Trump has shown himself to embrace authoritarian positions, ignoring the rule of law and wanting to use state power to suppress dissent and attack his enemies. With Schedule F, he would be able to do what authoritarians in other countries have done to consolidate his power鈥攑urge the bureaucracy of anyone who opposes democratic backsliding.鈥�

To refuse the hostile anti-worker and anti-democracy policies of a second Trump term, many of the nation鈥檚 largest unions are backing Kamala Harris for president. As soon as she announced her candidacy, Harris gave the keynote address at the . That union and almost every other major union nationwide has . 

The groups aren鈥檛 just opposing Trump, they are also bracing for a potential second Trump term. In July, Gwen Mills, president of Unite Here, which represents workers in the hotel and food service industries, told that she expects her union to be forced to 鈥減lay defense鈥� if Trump is elected. 

For Greenwald of NTEU, the best defense is a good offense. To help protect employees against future implementation of Schedule F, NTEU proposed a new rule reaffirming that employees keep their rights even if they are involuntarily reclassified. The Office of Personnel Management earlier this year. 

NTEU is also renegotiating contracts now to avoid having to do so under a possible Trump administration. 鈥�Our experience from President Trump鈥檚 first term is that his administration did not negotiate in good faith when contracts came open,鈥� Greenwald says. 鈥淚t only makes sense that employees would fare better if there are fully and fairly negotiated contracts in place and not subject to renegotiation during a second possible Trump term.鈥�

Nayak urges other federal employee unions to do the same. He also suggests that all unions and other labor organizations be informed about what the candidates鈥� platforms offer to help their members understand the possible outcomes and make informed decisions at the ballot box.

He offers one silver lining: 鈥淚f President Trump wins this November, he鈥檚 not going to automatically reverse the very real momentum that unions have had in this country. We鈥檝e seen it both in public opinion surveys and on-the-ground organizing activity, and it鈥檚 not going away that easily.鈥� Greenwald agrees, saying union leaders are 鈥減repared to fight鈥� if the next administration is anti-labor.

As both a facilitator and a participant in group experiences, I鈥檝e witnessed firsthand the transformative power of well-held containers. I remember one particularly memorable session when I unintentionally triggered traumatic memories for some participants. That was a wake-up call for me. It underscored the importance of taking people only as far as I鈥檝e gone, and being mindful of my social location and privileges and their potential impact on group dynamics. It reiterated and the need to create resilient and supportive spaces for all, in ways that honor everyone鈥檚 identities and prioritize their well-being.

I鈥檝e also experienced the profound benefits of well-held containers. A guided visualization that asked me to imagine saying final goodbyes to loved ones was particularly transformative. In that session, the facilitators created a sacred space among us participants and gradually increased the risk we took while building trust. This showed me the power of building trustworthy relationships, facilitated rituals, and consensual boundaries in fostering deep exploration and growth.

Creating a transformative container鈥攁 space where magic can unfold and meaningful change can occur鈥攊s something I approach with deep intentionality, wisdom, and an understanding of the principles that guide such a process. For me, it鈥檚 not just about setting the stage; it鈥檚 about cultivating an environment where individuals can safely explore, grow, and transform. Here鈥檚 how I approach this work:

1. Set a Vibe鈥攁nd Keep It Going

The energy I bring to a space sets the tone for everything that follows. Whether through lighting, music, scent, or even the way I greet participants, I am creating an atmosphere that signals what鈥檚 possible. Setting a vibe isn鈥檛 a one-time act; it鈥檚 an ongoing practice throughout the experience. I work to maintain that energy, ensuring that it aligns with the goals of the session, and I adapt as needed to keep everyone in the right headspace and heartspace. For instance, I鈥檝e found that a carefully chosen playlist can guide the emotional flow of a session, from energizing participants at the start to creating moments of introspection and reflection later on.

2. Reveal the Context and Beware of Assumptions

Transparency is critical in creating a container for transformation. I make it a point to reveal the context鈥攚hy we鈥檙e here, what the goals are, what鈥檚 at stake鈥攖o help participants understand the bigger picture and feel more connected to the process. This helps to minimize misunderstandings and assumptions that could lead to tension or disengagement. I strive to be clear about my intentions, the purpose of the session, and any background information that could influence the direction of our work. The more context I provide, the more equipped participants are to engage fully and authentically.

3. Containers Need Boundaries to Be Able to Contain

A container without boundaries can鈥檛 hold the energy, emotions, and transformations that occur within it. I believe boundaries define the space鈥攑hysically, emotionally, and energetically. They create safety by delineating what is acceptable and what is not, allowing participants to explore and take risks within a defined framework. Clear boundaries prevent the container from becoming chaotic or overwhelming, ensuring that the energy within is focused and purposeful.

4. Consent Is Key 

For boundaries to be effective, there must be mutual consent. Everyone involved needs to agree on the rules of engagement. I usually start sessions by co-creating explicit agreements, where participants commit to respecting the space, each other, and the process. This ensures that everyone is on the same page and feels respected, which is essential for maintaining trust and safety within the container. Without consent, boundaries can feel imposed and restrictive rather than supportive and empowering.

5. Face the Tensions in Justice-Loving Ways

Transformation often involves surfacing tensions鈥攗nspoken conflicts, buried emotions, or systemic injustices. I see these tensions not as obstacles but as opportunities for growth and healing. To navigate them effectively, I prepare myself to face them with love, justice, and a commitment to liberation for all. This means creating space for difficult conversations, acknowledging power dynamics, and addressing issues in ways that honor the dignity and humanity of everyone involved. Justice-loving practices ensure that the process of transformation isn鈥檛 just about personal growth but also about collective liberation.

6. Shape Change and Be Changed

I鈥檝e learned that transformation isn鈥檛 a linear process but an emergent one. It evolves as the group evolves, adapting to new insights, challenges, and opportunities. I draw from the principles and elements of emergent strategy, which emphasizes the importance of being responsive and flexible in the face of change. Rather than imposing a rigid plan, I allow the process to unfold organically, shaping change as it happens. This requires me to be open to being changed myself鈥攍earning from the process, adapting my approach, and growing alongside the participants. It鈥檚 about co-creating the path forward, guided by the collective wisdom of the group.

7. Bring Everything and Everyone With You

When I鈥檓 creating a transformative container, I bring all of myself鈥攎y knowledge, experiences, skills, and even my personal quirks. This includes everything from my outfit selection to my playlist, my understanding of feng shui, my knowledge of Indigenous circle practices, and my love of Latin root words. Each element I bring adds richness and depth to the space, making it uniquely mine鈥攁nd uniquely capable of holding the transformation that needs to happen. By bringing everything and everyone with me, I create a space that鈥檚 not only authentic but also inclusive, where every aspect of the self鈥攂oth mine and others鈥欌�攊s welcomed and valued.

8. Be Trustworthy

Trust is the foundation of any transformative container. Participants need to know that they can rely on me to hold the space with integrity, care, and consistency. Being trustworthy means showing up fully, honoring my commitments, and being transparent about my intentions and limitations. It also involves creating an environment where participants can trust each other, fostering a sense of safety and mutual respect. Trust allows participants to take the risks necessary for deep transformation, knowing that they are supported and held throughout the process.

9. Practice Till Presence

Presence is the ability to be fully in the moment, attuned to what is happening within the container. It鈥檚 about listening deeply, observing closely, and responding authentically to the needs of the group. Achieving this level of presence requires practice鈥攃ultivating mindfulness, grounding myself, and honing my ability to stay focused and connected. The more I practice, the more naturally presence will come to me, allowing me to be fully available to the group and the process. Presence is the key to facilitating transformation with grace, fluidity, and impact.

As I reflect on these principles, I encourage you to think about how you can incorporate them into your practice鈥攚hether you鈥檙e creating formal containers for group participation, or informal ones as you build and co-create community. What unique elements do you bring to the table? How can you cultivate a sense of trust, presence, and adaptability in your work? By integrating these principles, we can create containers that not only hold space for transformation but actively foster it, allowing magic to unfold and change to take root in profound and liberating ways.

A forget-me-not wildflower bloomed in the clearing. This is where the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians have been restoring their oak savanna meadows, after decades of fire suppression and the removal of large, fire-adapted trees under federal management.

In addition to land they bought from private owners, in 2018, the Tribe received 17,519 acres of land from the U.S. government for the Tribe to manage under its own authority. This came as part of the ; this bipartisan legislation in trust in order to return the restoration of these lands鈥攁nd the related economic activity and job development they created鈥攖o the Cow Creek Umpqua and the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw Indians.

The Cow Creek Umpqua government hired foresters to study the landscape, which was dotted with decades-old Douglas fir stumps from clearcuts. They discovered that before the area had been overtaken by conifers, it was historically an oak savanna meadow, a pocket in the Willamette Valley that stretches the length of the Cascade Mountains and the Oregon Coast Range. This finding matched Tribal elders鈥� stories about a time when game was abundant, and grasses thrived as the tribe practiced cultural burning.

鈥淲e are not living the way that we want to live,鈥� says Jackson, Cow Creek Umpqua member and education coordinator for the tribe. His ancestors, the Nah谩nk拾uotana, moved seasonally between homes in the foothills and in the valley. When leaving their summer camps in the foothills of the Cascades, or Umpqua mountains, they would burn the land before moving down to their winter camps at lower elevations. They did the same when coming back up as the weather warmed. The Nah谩nk拾uotana would return to each place to find healthy soils enriched by the charcoal left from the fire, which came from burned wood and plant debris that acted as a natural fertilizer.

鈥淲e are a burn culture,鈥� Jackson says. 鈥淲e would say that we burned here since time immemorial. Anthropologists or archaeologists would say that we burned here 20,000 to 40,000 years.鈥� In any case, Jackson says, the feds have 鈥渕essed up鈥� that legacy in the past 200 years by not continuing these age-old land practices.

The U.S. Forest Service鈥檚 fire suppression policies began in the early 1900s and to the tribe鈥檚 current struggle with wildfires that burn larger, hotter, and out of control. To reduce this risk鈥攖o both the Tribe and the nearby city of Roseburg, Oregon鈥攁nd to revitalize their cultural resources, Cow Creek Umpqua is blending Western science with traditional ecological knowledge to manage the landscape and safely reintroduce fire. Despite the challenges posed by climate change in finding suitable conditions for burning, outcomes from the managed areas so far are promising.

But to bring fire back, they first needed their land back. 

The Knowledge to Thrive

Despite the historic theft of the Tribe鈥檚 land, many members, like Jackson鈥檚 ancestors, never left. 

When the Treaty of 1853 was signed, the Cow Creek Umpqua viewed it as a government-to-government agreement between two sovereign nations. In exchange for land 鈥渙wnership,鈥� the U.S. government would provide the Tribe with health care, housing, and education. However, the U.S. government didn鈥檛 follow through on its promises. Rather, it claimed more than 500,000 acres of Cow Creek Umpqua鈥檚 land, and while the agreement was to pay the Tribe just $0.02 per acre鈥攁 fraction of the $1.25 per acre the government charged settlers who quickly moved in鈥� they never received even this low sum.

Many people of Cow Creek Umpqua resisted the U.S. government鈥檚 efforts to relocate them to reservations, and instead lived in seclusion. They held onto their culture and continued to hold council meetings as they had for countless generations. 

In 1954, the Cow Creek Umpqua pursued justice with the U.S. government. After being forcibly terminated under the , the Tribe filed a land claims case, resulting in its recognition as a sovereign tribal government and a $1.5 million settlement in the 1980s.

In the following decades, the Tribe started buying its land back. In 2018, the Bureau of Land Management returned around 3% of the Cow Creek Umpqua鈥檚 ancestral lands under the Western Oregon Tribal Fairness Act. It was returned in trust, meaning the federal government holds legal title, but the beneficial interest remains with the Tribe. Elected leaders who supported the passage of the law called it an in righting the injustices toward Indigenous peoples.  

Then, in 2019, a wildfire came through. 

The Milepost 97 wildfire destroyed nearly a fourth of what was returned to the tribe: 3,634 of their 17,519 acres. The fire raged when it reached the burn scar of the 1987 Canyon Mountain wildfire. Years鈥� worth accumulated snags and thick brush prevented firefighters from quickly accessing the area and added dangerous fuel to the flames.

鈥淲hen I first went up there, it was like an atomic bomb had gone off,鈥� Cow Creek Umpqua Chairman Carla Keene this year. 鈥淭he trees were gone. It was just black, and it was just the most depressing sight I鈥檇 ever seen.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

The Cow Creek Umpqua Tribal Board of Directors resolved to restore the forest, initiating efforts to salvage and repurpose the charred logs. Today, that lumber is showcased in the construction of the Portland International Airport and the Tribe鈥檚 remodeled government office. These structures display the tribe鈥檚 principle that forests and people are meant to have a hands-on connection. 

鈥淔or people that have not had their voices heard at many tables for a long time, our [Tribal] voice is starting to be heard and starting to be cherished,鈥� Jackson says. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e starting to see Western scientific knowledge and traditional ecological knowledge start to do this, like they should.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

After the fire, the Tribe hired Wade Christensen, an enrolled member of Choctaw Nation, as a forester. He was trained in silviculture鈥攁 practice focused on managing forest health and growth to meet specific land management objectives, such as ecosystem restoration through thinning and burning. He creates detailed maps and work plans focused on cultivating the oak savanna and reducing the conifer monocultures that had been introduced for timber.

To make this happen, Christensen coordinates closely with the Forest Service and neighboring landowners for prescribed burns. Foresters like Christensen refer to it as a 鈥減rescription鈥� because, much like a doctor treating a sick patient, they are writing a plan to restore the land to health. 

Early in his time working for the Tribe, Christensen was following a prescription on land the Tribe had purchased from a timber company. As he began marking trees for removal, he quickly realized the plan didn鈥檛 account for the meadow ecoregion. Within it were Oregon white oak trees, a species with thick bark that can survive fire. Moving forward, he knew he had to adapt. He worked to gain a deeper understanding of the landscape, not only to reduce wildfire risk, but also to promote cultural resources like berries, native grasses, and 鈥媘edicinal plants that flourish in recently burned soil and under an open canopy.

鈥淚鈥檝e got this understanding of the benefits of burning in the forest, and I鈥檓 all in on prescribed burning,鈥� says Christensen, who has a degree from Oregon State University in sustainable forest management, 鈥渁nd I work for a Tribe, so I鈥檓 learning why it is important to the Tribe.鈥澨�

That learning is ongoing. Christensen recalls hearing a speaker at a conference say that he knows to light the trees when the acorns drop: 鈥淚 was like, I am not at that man鈥檚 level.鈥�

Christensen was listening to Frank Lake, a Karuk Tribal descendant and leading research ecologist with the Forest Service鈥檚 Southwest Station, who explores social-ecological frameworks to understand the impact of colonization鈥攍ike fire suppression policies鈥�. Lake鈥檚 research underscores that between federal agencies and tribal nations is essential, something Christensen understands well.

鈥淵ou really got to dig deep with these guys and spend a lot of time with them,鈥� Christensen says. 鈥淚鈥檓 using [fire] for fuels reduction, and hopefully I do things right, and we have other benefits. I am trying to get to where I understand where we can apply it to help a plant that we gather off of, but that takes time, and that takes a lot of conversation.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Healing Cultures and Landscapes

In an era of climate change, government agencies across the U.S. are increasingly recognizing the need to actively apply traditional ecological knowledge to mainstream land management practices鈥攂alancing these institutions鈥� often short-term, extractive values with an intergenerational perspective. 

To mobilize, the National Science Foundation to launch its Center for Braiding Indigenous Knowledge and Sciences last year. The center has set up hubs from the Pacific Islands to the Northeastern United States. 

Leaders in the Land Back Movement have relied on a limited set of policy tools. For example, the Department of the Interior for the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, a similar trust structure that returned land management to Cow Creek Umpqua. There鈥檚 also co-management agreements鈥攍ike Forest Service with tribes in the Midwest and Western states鈥攁nd conservation easements鈥攍ike the one Oakland used to in the hands of the Ohlone people. 

Critics argue that while these actions may return land to tribes, they often do so under federal, state, and municipal terms that in managing their lands.

That鈥檚 where purchasing lands outright comes in鈥攁 strategy the Penobscot Nation used in 2022 when nearly 30,000 acres of private forest lands went up for sale in Maine. The Nation worked with Trust for Public Land, . Trust for Public Land, a nonprofit organization focused on expanding outdoor access, has collaborated with more than 70 tribes and Indigenous groups to help them acquire and preserve their homelands and culturally significant sites. The organization tries to facilitate a tribe or nation鈥檚 right to self-governance. To do so, it has adopted internal policies that don鈥檛 require legal agreements that limit land use to conservation. 

鈥淲hen you impose restrictions or conservation easements or those types of things on the property, then you鈥檙e really not supporting the tribal sovereignty,鈥� says Ken Lucero, director of tribal and indigenous lands at Trust for Public Land. Lucero is a member of the Pueblo of Zia, who historically practiced dry farming and waffle gardening, which harnesses the little bit of rain that falls in the Southwest desert. 

鈥淏y having Indigenous knowledge and land back be at the center of the new definition of conservation, then we have a lot of good things that can come of that,鈥� he says. 鈥淚f we can put land back, land return, and Indigenous knowledge at the center of conservation 鈥� we really can support a global solution to climate warming.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Indigenous peoples are considered by dangerous weather brought on by climate change, though they have contributed the least to the greenhouse gas emissions driving it, according to the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs. Public health researchers stress that climate justice, as exemplified by the Land Back movement, requires addressing the harms of settler-colonialism past and present. 

鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of healing that has to happen,鈥� Jackson says. 鈥淚鈥檓 one of the few that was never ripped off these lands. That鈥檚 why I live here, and why it鈥檚 very special to me.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

In May, Jackson visited an 800-year-old Douglas fir called the Grandmother Tree for the first time since the U.S. government gave the Cow Creek Umpqua back some of their land. The tree is a few miles away from where Christensen and the Tribe鈥檚 forestry team have been restoring the meadows. 

So far, finding a time to burn has been tough. Challenges like climate variability from season to season limit how much they can burn each year. But near the grandmother tree that day, there was a glimpse of what鈥檚 to come. 

Jackson turned to a patch of wild strawberries and pulled out a leafy green that smelled like a mix of eucalyptus and mint. The plant in his hands is native to the Pacific Northwest and commonly known by its Spanish name, yerba buena, which means 鈥済ood herb.鈥� Jackson, whose grandmother Dolla was one of the last medicine women and healers in the Tribe, called it a perfect example of a medicinal plant that returns with fire, growing abundantly in sunlight. 

As Jackson鈥檚 traditional ecological knowledge tells him, this is the kind of growth the landscape will see again as the Cow Creek Umpqua manage fire for open and clear savannas, benefiting the land and people there for generations to come. 

This story was produced in collaboration with . Reporting for this story was made possible with a fellowship from the nonprofit Institute for Journalism and Natural Resources.

CORRECTION: This article was updated at 11:24a.m. PT on Sept. 24, 2024, to clarify that Christensen attended Oregon State University, not University of Oregon. Read our corrections policy here. 

The that started shortly after the debate and continued through the weekend forced evacuations and closures of government buildings, hospitals, a university, and schools in Springfield. Although Trump鈥檚 words have imperiled Haitian immigrants, he has not withdrawn his claim; he has doubled down on it. On Sept. 12, while campaigning, he suggested Haitians had ruined 鈥渂eautiful Springfield鈥� and were not in the city legally, although Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said . Trump also insinuated the immigrants are involved in sexual violence against 鈥測oung American girls,鈥� continuing his pattern of linking immigration to the  

The targeting of Haitians in the small-town Midwest has led to an outcry of support from the public, policymakers, and immigration advocates. The National Parents Union, a women-led organization made up of parent advocacy groups fighting for equity in education, criticized 鈥渢he reckless and irresponsible comments鈥� from Republican leaders and announced that it 鈥渟tand[s] with the families of Springfield鈥� in a statement on Sept. 13. 

But no one empathizes with Springfield鈥檚 Haitian community like Haitian Americans themselves. The 19th spoke with scholars and immigrant advocates, mostly women of Haitian heritage, about the repercussions of Trump鈥檚 words. They contend that his claim鈥攁nd the hate before and after it鈥攁re nothing new: Due to the unique ways race, religion, and resistance have intersected in Haiti鈥檚 history, immigrants from the Caribbean nation have experienced a specific brand of xenophobia in the United States, even as Black immigrants in this country lack visibility.

鈥淭his kind of narrative has been going on since at least the middle of the 19th century,鈥� said Danielle N. Boaz, professor of Africana Studies at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. 鈥淲e can connect all of this back to the thing that Haitians did that was unforgivable to people of European heritage, which is they had this … rebellion that started in the 1790s and culminated in what historians have sometimes called the only successful slave rebellion in history, where they were able to defeat not only the French but other foreign powers.鈥�

The 1804 creation of Saint-Domingue, later Haiti, left slaveholding societies terrified that the human beings they held in bondage would also rebel. For securing their freedom, Haitians were demonized, with the often used to make wild claims against them, Boaz said.

鈥淪o, over the years, the narrative just kind of increases about how Haiti is this barbaric place,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 run only by Black people.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Trump reinforced the barbarism messaging by implying that Haitians are 鈥渟avage criminal aliens.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Despite Springfield Police denying any 鈥渃redible reports or specific claims鈥� of Haitians abusing animals or committing other crimes, Trump鈥檚 allegations have reverberated nationally. Christopher Rufo, who has led the national push against in schools and is a trustee for the New College of Florida, where hundreds of books on gender and diversity were discarded last month, offered a $5,000 鈥渂ounty鈥� to anyone with evidence of . In Florida and New York鈥攖he states with the largest Haitian American communities鈥� condemned Trump鈥檚 remarks and of Ohio. 

The bomb and shooting threats targeting Haitians disproportionately place pressure on mothers, said Taisha Saintil, senior policy analyst for the UndocuBlack Network, which advocates for Black immigrants. Often children鈥檚 primary caregivers, women rearrange work schedules, stay home, or make childcare plans when schools close, losing household income in the process.

鈥淲omen are often the ones managing the day-to-day fears, picking up and dropping off children, and trying to shield them from the psychological trauma of these threats,鈥� Saintil said. 鈥淭his gender dynamic adds another layer to the stress, as women feel pressure to keep things normal for their families while silently shouldering the weight of their own fear and frustration.鈥�

Having immigrated to Florida from Haiti in 2006 at age 9, Saintil said that she feels for Springfield鈥檚 Haitian community. Before moving to diverse Fort Lauderdale, Florida, she briefly lived in a white community where she said her classmates taunted, spat on her, and called her a cat-eater. 

鈥淚 remember … the fear, waking up every single day knowing that I鈥檓 going to get bullied, nobody wanting to talk to me, sitting at the lunch table by myself,鈥� Saintil said. 鈥淲hen I compare it to what is happening now to the newly arrived kids, I think about just how … the bullying will mark them for the rest of their lives.鈥�

Lured by manufacturing jobs, an estimated 15,000 Haitian immigrants have settled in Springfield鈥攁 mostly white town of just under 60,000 people鈥�. Before then, Springfield experienced an economic downturn caused, in part, by population decline. Then, the immigrants arrived, .

Valerie Lacarte, a senior policy analyst with the Migration Policy Institute鈥檚 U.S. Immigration Policy Program, said that immigrants typically settle in areas because they know they can find reliable employment or their ethnic community already lives there. Springfield wasn鈥檛 previously home to a Haitian community, but state officials reportedly advertised the city鈥檚 livability and jobs, news that attracted migrants.

鈥淵ou have employers who are hiring these people, so from the job-market perspective, that鈥檚 a good thing. You have a match,鈥� Lacarte said. 

But this mutually beneficial development did not prevent tensions, which worsened last year after a Haitian immigrant crashed into a school bus, killing one child, Aiden Clark, and hurting nearly 30 others. Still, Nathan Clark, Aiden鈥檚 father, spoke out at a city commission meeting last week to denounce . Anti-immigrant residents, meanwhile, have complained that Springfield lacks the infrastructure for population growth.

鈥淚t鈥檚 tempting to think the growth of immigrants, that鈥檚 what鈥檚 causing the problems,鈥� said Karthick Ramakrishnan, coauthor of Framing Immigrants: News Coverage, Public Opinion, and Policy and a University of California, Berkeley, researcher. 鈥淚t鈥檚 the politicization of immigrants, and especially in places that have significant Republican voting populations, the scapegoating of immigrants tends to be higher. This is an issue we鈥檝e seen time and again in the American heartland, places that are depopulating, places that are short of workers, that actually benefit from immigrant workers, but you have people … tapping into these national dynamics, when it comes to race and xenophobia, to win elected office.鈥�

Officials must 鈥渂e intentional about social cohesion鈥� to avoid conflict between the longtime residents and the Haitian transplants, said Lacarte, the daughter of Haitian immigrants. It鈥檚 important to make sure that both the U.S.-born and foreign-born community members get the attention and resources needed to grow together as a diverse community.

Longtime residents may misunderstand why people who look and sound different from them are moving in, Lacarte said. They witness the demographic shift, but they don鈥檛 realize these changes can be helpful. Then, bad actors deepen anxieties by spreading disinformation about immigrants. 

鈥淚mmigrants have been not only filling these jobs and helping grow the economy. They have their own demand for goods and services,鈥� Lacarte said. 鈥淭hey send their kids to school. They even, in some cases, create businesses … and that grows the economy.鈥�

During the presidential debate, Trump did not portray foreign-born workers as a positive but as a threat to Americans, accusing . This framing overlooks that immigrants fill jobs the native-born population doesn鈥檛 pursue, Lacarte said, and that more workers are needed as birth rates decline and the white population ages. It also belies the fact that Black immigrants exist. 

About , the Pew Research Center reported in 2022. Africans have driven Black immigrant growth; their population increased by 246% between 2000 and 2019. In 2005, The New York Times reported that than at any time since the . Today, Africans make up 42% of the Black foreign-born population, while Caribbean immigrants make up 46%. Of the latter, most come from two countries: Jamaica and Haiti. 

After in Del Rio, Texas, went viral in 2021, Saintil said she received multiple messages disclosing, 鈥淚 did not know there were Black immigrants. Where did they come from?鈥� She assumed, due to her profession, that people knew the United States had Black immigrants.

鈥淢ost of my work now has been to raise visibility of Haitian and Black immigrants,鈥� Saintil said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e the most detained, the most placed in solitary confinement. Our bail bonds are higher. So, the same things that are happening to African Americans in the criminal justice system are happening to Black immigrants in the detention center. Our asylum claims are the most denied because immigration judges don鈥檛 trust our pain.鈥�

Long before the debate, Trump disparaged Black immigrants. In 2017, he reportedly said that   The following year, he labeled Haiti, African nations, and El Salvador 鈥�.鈥� In Springfield, local Republicans have echoed Trump鈥檚 remarks. In addition to the pet-eating allegations, they鈥檝e accused immigrants of being in gangs, spreading disease, and practicing 鈥渧oodoo鈥� rituals, claims police have denied.

As Haiti became the yardstick for measuring whether Black people could participate in society equally, attacks on its character escalated. By the 1880s, stories spread about Haitians engaging in cannibalism and human sacrifice, especially of white children, Boaz said. Told repeatedly, these stories inform the rumors about Haitians in Springfield today, and they may jeopardize women.

鈥淗istorically, women in marginalized communities, whether immigrants, ethnic minorities, or refugees, have been specifically targeted for intimidation,鈥� Saintil said. 鈥淭his may be because some view them as 鈥榚asier鈥� to attack or harass than men. … In this context, when Haitian women are being targeted for threats, harassment, or even racial slurs in public spaces, the consequences are far-reaching. This not only creates an atmosphere of terror for women but can also ripple through the entire family.鈥�

Haitian American anthropologist Gina Athena Ulysse, a professor of humanities at the University of California, Santa Cruz, said that she鈥檚 tired of defending her personhood and identity. Following the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Ulysse wrote a book called because she found the dehumanizing remarks about Haitians then disturbing. 

鈥淲e鈥檙e always having to refute as opposed to having an identity that is an affirmed one,鈥� Ulysse said. 鈥淭here is a profound disappointment that in 2024 that I am listening to someone who is running to be the president of the highest nation in the land say something this surreal, this absurd. But I鈥檓 also someone as a Black woman, as a social scientist, as someone who understands race and racial construction, [knows] what that is meant to do, and that is to paint Haitians as the ultimate 鈥榦thers,鈥� cannibalists, and otherwise, so that it can keep fueling this narrative that鈥檚 necessary to strip people of their humanity.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Ulysse said that the broader immigrant community faces xenophobia, too. One study concluded that the level of today rivals , a period that restricted Chinese immigration. Chinese immigrants have also been accused of consuming dogs and cats, insults revived during the onset of COVID-19, which Trump called the 鈥淐hina virus.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

鈥淗e鈥檚 gone from talking about Mexican immigrants as predominantly being criminals and rapists to then talking about immigrants as vectors of disease and now using similar kinds of dehumanizing language to talk about … not just what they eat, but the kind of the social threat they supposedly pose to American society,鈥� Ramakrishnan said. 鈥淚 think the kinds of emotions it鈥檚 supposed to evoke are emotions of disgust, of othering and reduced empathy, and also support for drastic measures like rounding up and deporting people who are not deemed to be American.鈥�

If Harris becomes president, she would not only be the first woman in the Oval Office but also the first person of South Asian and Caribbean heritage. Might that change perceptions and policies related to Caribbean immigrants? 

鈥淣o matter how well-meaning one person may be, they鈥檙e part of a social structure and a system that makes decisions,鈥� Ulysse said. 鈥淪he鈥檚 not going to make decisions by herself, so what difference does it make that she鈥檚 from the Caribbean? She鈥檚 got advisors. She鈥檚 got to think about Congress. She鈥檚 got to think about the Senate. She鈥檚 got to think about geopolitics and history.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

When Trump took aim at Haitian immigrants during the debate, Harris laughed in apparent disbelief but did not rebuke him. Ulysse finds it disturbing that many people laughed at Trump鈥檚 claims because, as absurd as they are, they鈥檙e endangering Haitians. 

On Friday, President Joe Biden called the attacks on Haitians 鈥�simply wrong,鈥� noting that White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre is 鈥渁 proud Haitian American.鈥�

Along with being terrified and traumatized, Saintil said the Haitian children and parents impacted by the threats and smears likely feel betrayed. 

鈥淵ou鈥檙e getting it from a country that you thought you could be safe in,鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e getting it in a country that you鈥檝e been hoping to be in because you thought your life would be better, but now you鈥檙e being treated worse than dirt. You鈥檙e being called a savage. … How do you go on from there?鈥�

This story was originally published by and is reprinted here under a Creative Commons license.

self-portrait as the ocean or Fofie鈥檚 wisdom听

study the tides of
the ocean shored by your skin 
each ripple each wave

know not all water 
is meant to quench dry throats or
to be waded through

know not everything 
that is left in the waters 
is an offering

reminders for my (impatient) selves听

don鈥檛 force what won鈥檛 come
what is for you is either
coming or waiting

closed mouths (and full ones)听don鈥檛 get fed

ask for what you need
ready yourself to receive
as well as release

a lesson learned from June听

i been wrong…and still
wrong ain鈥檛 never been my name
pronounce me correct

pronounce me (w)hol(l)y
won鈥檛 answer to all i鈥檓 called
act accordingly

train your timid tongues
sound out all my syllables
i been a mouthful

you are your own听

because you were both 
the cost and the one who paid
a terrible price

But even as she galvanizes this new wave of political energy, . The ongoing U.S.-backed Israeli genocide remains a focal point for young liberals, presenting a challenge that Harris will have to navigate, both on the campaign trail and, if elected, in the Oval Office. Furthermore, many are looking for her policy specifics, beyond TikTok memes.

From the start, Harris鈥� campaign ignited a wave of political engagement, particularly among young voters. The launch of her campaign led to a notable surge in voter registrations in Maine, a state where  according to the Center for Information & Research on Civic Learning and Engagement鈥檚 . In July alone, signed up to vote鈥攖he largest number since November 2023. Nationwide, the impact was even more stark; to vote in the two days after Biden dropped out, representing a staggering 700% spike. More than 80% of these new registrations were among people between the ages of 18 and 34.

Lauren Barton, a 19-year-old from Tennessee, shares, 鈥淥ne of my friends is especially excited. She was going to register to vote, and I feel like this finally pushed her into doing it.鈥� Daijah Wilson, also 19 and from New Jersey, spent this summer registering voters. 鈥淎 lot of my family members were not going to vote because they felt like it was the same thing again鈥攍esser of two evils,鈥� she said. 鈥淣ow that Kamala is running, I know a couple of my cousins who have registered to vote, and they said they keep encouraging their friends to vote. … People who were on the fence are now jumping off the fence.鈥�

Suraj Singreddy, a 20-year-old from Georgia, another state that YESI identified as a key battleground where young voters could significantly influence the 2024 presidential race, expressed that a common frustration had been the redundancy of Trump against a moderate white Democrat. 鈥淚 think in 2016 and 2020 people were tired of being told, 鈥極h, wait for the next election cycle; there鈥檒l be better [candidates] available,鈥� and then that constantly not being the case.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

The fact that Kamala represents something new鈥攁t least, on the surface鈥攊s exciting. Claire Sorge, a student at the Hawai鈥榠 Conservatory of Acting, shares, 鈥淚鈥檓 glad it鈥檚 a woman of color. I鈥檓 glad it鈥檚 not an old white man.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

But Barton brings up that 鈥渢here鈥檚 obviously the huge elephant in the room鈥攈er stance on the genocide in Palestine … [but] the idea of our first female president is exciting.鈥�

For young Americans of color, the fact that Harris is multiracial is Wilson, who is Black, planned to vote third party when Biden was on the ticket because of his ceaseless support of Israel, but now plans to vote for Harris. She explains, 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think representation is our savior, but it is a move towards progress to see a woman, a Black woman, a multiracial woman, lead this country and be the face of America for the next four years.鈥�

Another break from the democratic electoral monotony of the past several years is simply that Harris is fun in a way Biden and Hillary never were. Whether she鈥檚 soliloquizing on or proclaiming , .鈥� Singreddy believes Harris is finally a candidate with a magnetism that can rival Trump鈥檚. 鈥淭rump is entertaining, but in a way that makes you go, 鈥楿h… .鈥� Harris has just been so unintentionally funny … it makes her seem genuine.鈥�

鈥淧eople are going to vote for the president that they鈥檇 want to sit down in a bar with and share a drink with,鈥� he adds. 

and the creative team behind Harris鈥� hugely popular TikTok account, , which constantly churns out clever content, have captured Gen Z鈥檚 spirit of 鈥渂rat summer.鈥�

Barton explains, 鈥淪he鈥檚 very relevant right now in all of the [TikTok] audios and the memes.鈥� While Barton characterizes young voters鈥� enjoyment of such s as partially a humor-based coping mechanism for the fact that Harris鈥� policies are not ideal, she acknowledges it is genuinely appealing. 

Wilson adds, 鈥淭rump has a hold on Twitter/X. I feel like Kamala or her team has tried to strategize by taking over the app that actually has a lot more [young voters].鈥� Referring to how Harris鈥� TikTok videos humanize her, she points out, 鈥淲e want to see that; it鈥檚 about looking past the facade of the politician.鈥�

On the other hand, Harris risks infantilizing and alienating her young voter base if she doesn鈥檛 offer them something more substantive to hold on to. Some already feel that relying too much on internet trends and memes could 鈥淚 feel like it could very quickly turn and become too much, in the same way that 鈥樷�� did in 2016,鈥� Singreddy says. 

Singreddy also feels that because Harris and her campaign have focused on pushing mostly vibes in their messaging to young voters, it is unclear what Harris鈥� actual policies are. 鈥淩ight now, I鈥檓 in a place where my interest is piqued, but I still don鈥檛 understand exactly who I鈥檓 voting for or what her policies are. … I just wonder how she鈥檚 going to get that out to people because it鈥檚 not as easy as viral trends and memes,鈥� he adds.

Unfortunately for Harris, the issue that young voters seem most aware of is the situation in Palestine and Israel. Wilson, Sorge, Barton, and Singreddy all cite her role in the current administration and its involvement in the ongoing as a significant deterrent in voting for her. 

Additionally, when Singreddy thinks about the policies he would like to see, he says, 鈥淔irst and foremost, it is trying to negotiate a cease-fire in Gaza. After that, it鈥檚 the status quo Democrat [policies]: protecting the right to abortion, health care, and general stuff.鈥� Wilson adds that even while she plans on voting for Harris, she will continue attending protests and rallies to push for a cease-fire. 

Harris can鈥檛 take her , and there is a concern that she 鈥淜amala has a chance [at winning the election], but only if younger people vote for her,鈥� Sorge says.

For nearly two centuries, working-class, pan-Asian immigrants were the majority of migrants coming to the Western Hemisphere: , , , and in California and the Southwest, or the indentured servants in British South American and Caribbean colonies. These were all poor, working-class immigrants from across the Asian continent. 

Working-class, pan-Asian communities have historically been integrated and in solidarity with Black and Brown communities. For example, in , , and the , South Asian migrant workers integrated into Puerto Rican, Dominican, Black, and Mexican families and communities for protection against white supremacist violence and economic exploitation.

In California in the 1970s, Chinese immigrant students and families fought alongside Latine families for language access in public schools, which resulted in a favorable . 

Japanese and Filipinx farmworkers fought side-by-side with Mexican farmworkers in the .

Southeast Asians and settled in largely Black, Puerto Rican, and Mexican communities in Massachusetts, New York, California, Wisconsin, Louisiana, and Minnesota, forming shared struggles around equitable education access. 

This is a very different reality than the that pan-Asian communities include mostly wealthy business owners, doctors, and engineers who are actively working to assimilate into whiteness. White Americans, particularly within academia and mass media, have perpetuated the model minority myth to weaken the organizing for racial and economic justice by Black and Brown communities and create further roadblocks for working-class Asian people to contribute to those struggles. 

The Current Political Moment

We are experiencing the in white supremacist, Zionist, and Christian nationalist forces in decades. These forces are joined by multiple Asian right-wing forces emerging internally from our own pan-Asian communities, such as the Chinese American Right and South Asian Hindutva (Hindu supremacists). More and more, for right-wing forces across the U.S. in a multitude of contentious political issues. Despite Asian communities鈥� long histories of working-class and multiracial solidarity, these Asian right-wing forces have a dominating influence on public narratives about pan-Asian communities. While Asian conservatism in the U.S. has long existed, groups like the and have become more effective in how they organize and mobilize Asian communities and more strategic in how they create powerful alliances with white supremacist, Christian nationalist, and Zionist agendas. 

There are many examples of these strategic allyships across the nation. White supremacist groups convinced Chinese American plaintiffs to join their Supreme Court case to . In California, Hindu supremacists have pushed for the , and throughout the state. Christian nationalists have recruited conservative Asian faith-based groups to . Wealthy Asian landlords have worked alongside corporate real estate lobbyists to . Most recently, Hindu nationalists both and . have made public their deep ideological and political alliances with Zionist forces in Israel.

The growth of these proto-fascist movements has serious consequences for all people in the U.S., regardless of race, ethnic background, and class, but the connecting line is clear: The most systems-marginalized, the most poor and working-class parts of all our communities are most negatively impacted while also being misinformed and recruited by right-wing formations.听

White supremacists, Christian nationalists, and Zionists are once again using pan-Asian communities as the driving wedge against social justice movements, making it more difficult to retain historical, hard-earned, progressive wins. This is once again creating division and hindering progressive organizing and multiracial solidarity. We are the co-directors of (GAR), a national network of 34 grassroots organizations rooted in working-class, pan-Asian immigrant and refugee communities. Our member organizers are directly dealing with the ramifications of the right-wing鈥檚 growing power. We know that if we want to win the material changes our communities need and deserve, we need to build a movement powerful enough to make justice inevitable.

To deepen our collective understanding about the growing contingents of right-wing forces within Asian and Asian American communities, GAR has facilitated to share their experiences. Through this, we uncovered the vast infrastructures of right-wing forces and seen how far their influences have reached within Asian communities. Many organizers raised concerns about the prevalence of right-wing ideas in our communities through in-language content, local ethnic media, and cultural and religious community spaces. These are the spaces that many people flock to in order to build relationships and have a strong sense of belonging.  

According to Pew Research Center, Asians are predicted to be the largest immigrant group in the U.S. by 2055, surpassing the size of the Latine population. Working-class, pan-Asian communities are rapidly growing in critical battleground states such as Michigan, Georgia, Texas, Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina. Various right-wing forces have already begun organizing in working-class, pan-Asian communities, including Christian nationalists from Asian churches, temples, and mosques and the Republican Party in ethnic enclaves with the hopes of swaying elections.

There are few grassroots organizing groups made up of directly impacted people leading and directing the work of providing social services or engaging in advocacy and policy in pan-Asian communities. This void is currently being peddling a proto-fascist agenda. 

Organizing is the clearest and most consistent tool we have at our disposal to change this dynamic, that has had the least investment. The ecosystem for community organizing in working-class, pan-Asian communities has to grow and meet the needs of the demographic trends across the U.S. Otherwise, we are left responding to one crisis after another, and with weak infrastructure for leaderful and powerful movements. 

If we want to build a multiracial democracy, which is needed now more than ever, our movements must that addresses working-class, pan-Asian issues. In fight after fight, we are witnessing the use of pan-Asian communities to advance right-wing and proto-fascist agendas. Building shared working-class interests is how we can build unified fronts for a multiracial democracy. If we don鈥檛, progressive causes will continue to lose. 

As a network, GAR is committed to nationally uniting local organizations to grow our capacity to effectively organize working-class, pan-Asian communities. This includes for in-language political education to raise political consciousness; strong, local organizations committed to building working-class membership bases; and political and strategy alignment in working-class pan-Asian communities. 

Asian Americans have a history of working-class struggles, anti-war movements, solidarity, and powerful organizing. With Asian communities growing across the U.S., we must remember our history of organizing for working-class interests and solidarity, and return to the roots of our working-class, migrant, pan-Asian communities. We must take continued action in the current political moment we find ourselves in. 

Our ancestors grounded themselves in their working-class interests when they built meaningful relationships and mutual solidarity with Black and Brown working-class communities and won important racial, immigrant, education, and economic protections that we all continue to benefit from. Let鈥檚 remember and continue this legacy. 

Maali鈥檚 family comes from the occupied West Bank. She says, 鈥淢y father is older than Palestine,鈥� when it was partitioned by the United Nations in 1948. Wearing a long keffiyeh-patterned dress that skimmed the grass, Maali was joined by several friends waving Palestinian flags and holding up posters denouncing President Joe Biden as 鈥淕enocide Joe.鈥� They were among 3,000 demonstrators that drew heavily from Chicago鈥檚 鈥�,鈥� the largest Palestinian community in the country.

When asked how the movement for Gaza could pressure Democrats and presidential nominee Kamala Harris to end the Israeli genocide, Maali says, 鈥淗old out our votes.鈥� She asks, 鈥淲hat else do we have besides our votes? That is our only power.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Nearby was Satnaam Singh Mago, who wore a T-shirt with a T. rex grasping a Palestinian flag. Like Maali, Mago has voted for Democrats faithfully all his life. Now, however, he rejects the idea of 鈥渢he lesser of two evils鈥� and 鈥渧oting based on fear.鈥� But he is also hopeful. 鈥淲e have the power to change an election. 鈥� What we are trying to tell Kamala Harris is you have to earn our vote.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

I interviewed a couple dozen people the week of the DNC and asked protesters about pressing issues like abortion rights, Project 2025, and the dangers of a second Trump presidency. Almost all protesters told me things like, 鈥淕enocide isn鈥檛 a single issue, it鈥檚 the only issue,鈥� 鈥淚 can鈥檛 vote for genocide,鈥� and 鈥淭rump is worse on some things, but there is nothing worse than genocide.鈥�

The protesters reflected my own thoughts. We have real power. The more voters declare, 鈥淣o arms embargo, no vote,鈥� the more pressure it puts on Harris to capitulate to our demands ahead of the election on November 5. 

Let鈥檚 not kid ourselves. Harris supports the genocide of Palestinians. On four high-profile occasions she has declared, 鈥淚srael has a right to defend itself鈥�: after with Benjamin Netanyahu in July, during , during , and , when she also reiterated the widely debunked claim that mass rape was committed by Hamas during its attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. American politicians have long  In the context of Israel wiping out Gaza in the name of 鈥渄efending鈥� itself from Hamas, that phrase is a dog whistle for genocide.

It鈥檚 hard to accept that we are complicit in genocide. It鈥檚 easier to say that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is to blame, that we are not responsible, that Biden cannot end arms transfers with a phone call, that Harris will end them after she is elected.  It鈥檚 also easier to treat genocide as a transactional issue: Gaza is bad, but the threat to abortion rights and democracy and Project 2025 are bigger risks. Or, Trump will enact a worse genocide in Gaza.

We need to hear other perspectives. Outside the DNC I talked to one woman, who didn鈥檛 want to give her name, who told me she had lost more than a hundred relatives in Gaza to Israel鈥檚 attacks. She said, 鈥淓very morning I wake up in anguish. I don鈥檛 know who survived last night. Many days I can鈥檛 get in touch with anyone. I have cousins whose families have been wiped out. One aunt is in a wheelchair with a heart condition. A cousin has diabetes and can鈥檛 get medicine. They鈥檙e dying.鈥� She burst out crying while speaking to me.

Can we honestly tell her to vote for the party slaughtering her family? Why is it that we won鈥檛 save her from a violent America, but we expect her to save us from a different face of that same violence? If this was happening to you, would you be telling people to vote for the party wiping out everyone who knew and loved?

In Chicago, protesters showed us what solidarity looks like. It means seeing the world through the eyes of the people you are supporting, and to work to achieve their goals. Palestinians are being crushed by the American empire. We benefit from the empire in terms of wealth, power, jobs, and lower-cost goods and resources. Solidarity means putting the needs of oppressed peoples before our own.

The defeat of the American empire by the Vietnamese inspired international solidarity movements of all types. A mass movement of Americans in solidarity with the people of Central America  Reagan from invading Nicaragua. The anti-apartheid movement helped bring down the brutal Afrikaner regime in South Africa. 

Now we need to be in solidarity with Palestine and say, 鈥淓nd the genocide immediately.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Genocide is the worst political act possible: the extermination of an entire people. 鈥淣ever again鈥� does not mean 鈥渘ever again except for Palestinians.鈥� If we think we can鈥檛 stop this, then we are nihilists. We are saying politics is useless.

It starts with hope. Student protesters for Gaza last spring had a rock-solid conviction they could force universities to divest from Israel. While have divested so far (it is always a trickle before it is a flood), the protests worked. They triggered an of and , , and that have made Israel an . With students returning for the fall, pro-Palestine protests are despite universities new methods to free speech and assembly. 

By continuously emphasizing ironclad support for Israel, Harris is revealing that support is actually fragile. This gives us an opening to force her to earn our vote by making it contingent on an arms embargo and an end to the genocide. This is hardball politics. It鈥檚 what billionaires do. They cut million-dollar checks to candidates and demand much more in return. Harris recently to from billionaires to drop a proposed tax on the ultrawealthy.

We have something more precious than dollars. There are horrified by the genocide and who want it to end immediately. But many of us are scared to use our power. Right before the DNC, of nearly in Arizona, Georgia, and Pennsylvania. It found that 34% or more of voters in those states would be likelier to support Harris if there was a permanent cease-fire or an arms embargo on Israel.

In Chicago, a protester named Chris, a member of the Starbucks Workers United union, says, 鈥淚t鈥檚 a genocide happening in real time, and people don鈥檛 want to call it that.鈥� Still, he plans to vote for Harris, saying, 鈥淚 will make sure to hold her accountable the whole time she鈥檚 in office.鈥� When asked how he can hold Harris accountable after the election, Chris says, 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know. It鈥檚 tough.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

This is the problem. Instead of using our power over the Democrats before the election, when it is most potent, we surrender to them. It鈥檚 because they have perfected a formula to terrorize us. Every four years they hold a gun to our heads and say, 鈥淭he world will end if you don鈥檛 elect us.鈥� The name on the gun changes鈥擥oldwater, Nixon, Reagan, Bush 1 and 2, McCain, Romney, and Trump鈥攂ut the threat remains the same.

The Democrats have trapped us. We vote them in. But then not only do we get nothing in return, they do the dirty work of Republicans. And we ignore it.

This strategy was honed during the 1964 campaign with the infamous 鈥�.鈥� The commercial shows a little blonde girl plucking petals off a flower as she counts. She freezes as a loudspeaker at a test site starts counting down. A thermonuclear blast fills the screen, and President Lyndon Johnson intones, 鈥淭hese are the stakes. To make a world in which all of God鈥檚 children can live. Or to go into the dark. We must either love each other. Or we must die.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Subtle, it wasn鈥檛. Johnson was saying a vote for Barry Goldwater was a vote for annihilation, and that he, in contrast, was the candidate of love. Except exactly one month before the ad aired, Congress handed Johnson a for a U.S. war that eventually killed 5 million people in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos. 

They have been using this trick for 60 years. Democrats have us so terrified of the right that we will sign off on any atrocity as long as Team Blue does it. Bill Clinton , Obama supersized the war on terror, and Biden is to blame for the Gaza genocide, not Trump. 

Democrats have sat in the White House for 20 of the past 32 years. They Wall Street, after it blew up the economy, and criminal bankers from prosecution. Democrats climate change accords and a historic and boom that has baked in climate catastrophe. They , passed , the far right to the courts, mass incarceration, the 鈥渕ost intrusive surveillance apparatus in the world,鈥� and a massive immigration prison system.

Harris promises more of the same: more border cruelty, more global warming, more genocide. More of the same threats we hear every election: 鈥淭his election 鈥� is the most important of our lives.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

Instead we should beware that Gaza is a threat of genocides to come.

I have reported from border cities such as Tijuana and Matamoros that have become killing fields as a result of our policies that have spawned brutal wars, criminal cartels, and climate chaos. By 2050 climate refugees could number 1.2 billion, according to . Harris鈥� vow to be 鈥溾�� than Trump on the border means more violence, deaths, and racism. Ratcheting up anti-immigrant policies as their numbers increase could bring genocide to our borders.

We cannot throw 90% of humanity under the bus. If we don鈥檛 end the razing of Gaza, we will throw open the gates of hell. Genocide is like COVID-19 and climate change: Borders won鈥檛 stop it. 

We can succumb to defeatism and believe Harris will never agree to an arms embargo and permanent cease-fire. 

Or we can remember that every movement that has made the world better鈥攍abor, the abolition of slavery, women鈥檚 suffrage, LGBTQ rights鈥攈ad an absolute belief they would win. They refused compromises, half measures, and surrendering. 

There can be no compromise in the fight for Palestine. If not now, when?

This article is part of U.S. Democracy Day, a nationwide collaborative on Sept. 15, the International Day of Democracy, in which news organizations cover how democracy works and the threats it faces. To learn more, visit听.

What she was looking for wasn鈥檛 an accountability process for her abusive ex-boyfriend, however, but a means of addressing the trust broken by her friends who didn鈥檛 believe that the abuse was real.

Space for Change is a collaborative program that aims to hold community members accountable for domestic violence, provide education to prevent future violence, and offer healing circles that bring the survivor together with loved ones who were not supportive when the survivor needed them. It was this last option that Trixie needed.

Trixie鈥檚 case is not a rare phenomenon. Because social isolation is such a common side effect of domestic violence, and because loneliness is one of the most cited reasons why people end up returning to unsafe relationships, we advocates saw a great need for ways to heal the harm that can ripple out from these situations. Often, friends and family who don鈥檛 believe survivors, who side with the abuser, or who walk away when they are needed most can lead the survivor to feel like they do not have the emotional or logistical support to leave the relationship.

Several of Trixie鈥檚 friends didn鈥檛 believe her when she first told them about the abuse in the relationship. She was 鈥渏ust overreacting,鈥� they said. Her boyfriend was 鈥渟uch a great guy.鈥� 鈥淗ow could he be responsible for the things she claimed he was doing?鈥� they asked.

Now that she was out of the relationship鈥攁nd without any support from those friends鈥攕he wanted to know if there could be a way to salvage those friendships, or if she should give them up as a casualty to the abuse so that she could move on.

How to Set Up a Healing Circle

Our Space for Change program is a collaboration between our domestic violence organization and the Conflict Resolution Center of Santa Cruz County, another local nonprofit. Using restorative justice approaches to domestic violence is relatively new for social service nonprofits, so we鈥檝e found that having our domestic violence advocates work alongside experienced mediators in general restorative justice programs, neighborhood courts, and juvenile re-entry programs is an effective partnership. Each organization is able to fill in the gaps of the other鈥檚 knowledge and skill sets.

Space for Change offers three avenues for restorative justice that participants can choose from: a community accountability process for the person who caused domestic violence, which is common in many restorative justice programs; community education, which aims to teach allies and loved ones of survivors about the dynamics of domestic violence so that they can be safer, more effective support people for their survivor; and healing circles.

When setting up a healing circle like Trixie鈥檚, there鈥檚 a lot of initial work from the service providers long before any meetings take place. Either a mediator or an advocate meets individually with the people involved to see where that person stands in regard to the situation at hand. Does everyone have the same understanding of what occurred? The timeline of events? The material facts of the case, setting aside personal emotions and interpretations about those events? A Walnut Avenue advocate might also be present at some or all of the meetings to address domestic-violence-specific concerns, such as correcting a misunderstanding about coercive control or offering peer emotional support for a moment of processing.

The purpose of so much work prior to actual group conversations is to gauge each person鈥檚 willingness to participate, their openness to having their perspective challenged, and whether their goal for a facilitated conversation (or series of conversations) is something both realistic and within our scope of service. Otherwise, we run the risk of inviting people with conflicting needs and agendas into a space where judgment, defensiveness, victim blaming, and re-traumatization are high possibilities.

A Path Forward

Trixie鈥檚 case is still ongoing. Unfortunately, some of her friends have chosen to side with her ex-boyfriend, and although it鈥檚 been painful for Trixie, she鈥檚 also expressed relief that at least she doesn鈥檛 have to wonder about those friendships anymore. She can grieve them and, eventually, move on. Other friendships appear to be salvageable, with time and careful communication. Although she has not found everything she鈥檇 hoped for, Trixie has expressed gratitude for the healing circle and how it has helped her clarify what she needs to receive from her loved ones to move forward and identify which people she wants involved in that healing process.

In crisis intervention, our focus is on the survivor and the person causing harm, and rightfully so. But this view doesn鈥檛 include the ways in which domestic violence ripples out into those two people鈥檚 family, friends, and community鈥攁nd this is where restorative justice could be one of the most useful tools we have for addressing the casualties of other relationships, mitigating isolation of the survivor and encouraging accountability for the person who caused harm.

I鈥檝e found restorative justice to be one of the most challenging approaches to domestic violence, but also the most rewarding when the people involved are participating with genuine desire to find a path forward. It allows personal autonomy and a tailored approach to justice that historically has not been a common experience with the legal system. This allows survivors, families, and communities to strengthen their own relationships together. I鈥檝e been honored to be a part of that process with survivors like Trixie.

This story was by , and is reprinted here with permission.

Harris walked directly up to Trump, extended her hand, and leaned in, even after it was clear that he had no intention of greeting her. In introducing herself, Harris pronounced her name, 鈥淐OMMA-LA,鈥� clearly and correctly, leaving him no excuses to ever mispronounce it again.听

Harris was confident, in control, and in command of the night.听

Gender dynamics were on display for much of the high-stakes debate, which Trump spent showing and telling his brand of masculinity to voters. He was divisive, demeaning, and distracting, much of his behavior a reminder of his four years in office and his continued words and actions on the campaign trail. During most of the 90-minute exchange, he ignored the two Black women on stage鈥攁voiding eye contact with Harris and rarely addressing moderator Linsey Davis鈥攊ntentionally choosing to largely engage the only other white man present, moderator David Muir.听

When Harris addressed Trump, she referred to him respectfully as 鈥渢he former president.鈥� But at no point did he address Harris by her first or last name, nor by her title. Instead, Trump made frequent references to 鈥渉er boss鈥� when mentioning President Joe Biden in an effort to diminish Harris鈥� leadership and agency. 

The candidates鈥� microphones were muted while their opponents spoke, a rule set when Biden was the candidate and one that Harris unsuccessfully fought to reverse. But her facial expressions, ranging from exhausted to incredulous to amused, did the talking as an often scowling Trump made various false statements on , , and his repeated claim that he won the 2020 election.听

He tried to control the stage鈥攁nd at times attempted to dominate Harris. 鈥淚鈥檓 talking now, if you don鈥檛 mind, please. Does that sound familiar?鈥� Trump said sarcastically at one point when Harris attempted to interject, referencing Harris saying 鈥淚鈥檓 speaking鈥� to Vice President Mike Pence in a 2020 debate after he tried to interrupt her. Toward the end of the debate, Trump essentially tried to shush her again, simply saying, 鈥淨uiet, please,鈥� during an answer on how he would handle the war on Russia. 

There was also no live audience at the debate, but the audience Harris was speaking to was clear. She had two goals on Tuesday: to speak directly to voters who may just be learning about her candidacy, which is still barely 50 days old, and to expose Trump to viewers, reminding them of his temperament and tone.

She did both with a smile and a laugh, which he has also ridiculed, while using Trump鈥檚 own tactics to draw him out. When asked a question about immigration鈥攁 thorny issue for her as vice president鈥擧arris鈥� response quickly shifted the subject from one that inflames voters to one that inflamed Trump: his rallies, and in particular, the implication that his crowds are starting to dwindle. 

鈥淗e鈥檚 going to talk about immigration a lot tonight even when it鈥檚 not the subject that is being raised,鈥� Harris said before proceeding to change the topic herself.

鈥淚鈥檓 going to invite you to attend one of Donald Trump鈥檚 rallies, because it鈥檚 a really interesting thing to watch,鈥� Harris said. 鈥淲hat you will also notice is that people start leaving his rallies early out of exhaustion and boredom. And I will tell you, the one thing you will not hear him talk about is you.鈥�

Instead of responding to Harris鈥� claims that Trump intentionally sabotaged federal legislation to reform immigration or attacking her record on the issue, before repeating a bizarre, racist, and false claim that Haitian immigrants are eating pets in small-town communities across the country. Contrast shown. 

Heading into Tuesday night, Trump had referred to his opponent as 鈥渃razy,鈥� 鈥渄umb,鈥� 鈥渃rooked,鈥� a liar, 鈥済rossly incompetent,鈥� 鈥渓ow IQ,鈥� and 鈥渨eak.鈥� While it was initially unclear whether he would show his contempt for Harris on stage, he was ultimately unable to resist.听

By the end of the night, Harris shut down every stereotype he has tried to pin on her. When he doubled down on questioning her Blackness, Harris pointed to the response as part of a stale playbook rooted in racism and sexism that should be a relic of our politics. 

Ahead of the debate, Trump insisted on Truth Social that 鈥渘o boxes or artificial lifts鈥� be allowed during the debate for the shorter Harris, implying that to do so would be a form of cheating. In the end, it was the former president, almost a foot taller than Harris, who came across as smaller.

This story was originally published by and is reprinted here under a Creative Commons license. This column first appeared in The Amendment, a by Errin Haines, The 19th鈥檚 editor-at-large.

Among the greenery, he has spotted an orchid: Dracula morleyi. Blotted in black with a flash of white at the center, it鈥檚 barely bigger than a fingernail. 鈥淭his place is full of so much biodiversity,鈥� he grins. 鈥淪cientists don鈥檛 even know about most of it.鈥�

Ovando is a guide at Los Cedros Protective Forest, a of cloud forest in the northwest Ecuadorian Andes, one of the world鈥檚 most biodiverse areas.

This tropical haven鈥攈ome to a , including the critically endangered black-and-chestnut eagle and brown-headed spider monkey, jaguars, endemic frogs, more than 300 species of birds, 600 kinds of moths, and 200 varieties of orchids鈥攊s at the forefront of a global movement to recognize the legal rights of the natural world.

The movement is rooted in the common Indigenous belief that nature鈥攆rom the Andean mountains to Amazonian rivers right down to a single soldier ant鈥攊s a system to which human beings belong and with which they must harmoniously coexist. The legal theory argues that these ecosystems and species have intrinsic rights that should be protected in the same way as those of humans.

鈥淭he idea that rocks, rivers, and animals are alive and so should be granted a legal status is a core aspect of Indigenous worldviews,鈥� says C茅sar Rodr铆guez-Garavito, professor of clinical law and director of NYU School of Law鈥檚 , an initiative attempting to further nonhuman rights and the larger web of life. 鈥淚ndigenous peoples have turned that belief into practices of reciprocity with nature, through ceremonies, use of medicinal plants, and more.鈥�

The planet faces a human-led that has already wiped out entire species and risks destroying whole ecosystems. This destruction would accelerate under authoritarian regimes and right-wing agendas around the globe, including Project 2025 in the United States. Los Cedros is the world鈥檚 leading example of how non-anthropocentric laws can be used to effectively defend the planet.

鈥淏y putting ourselves [humans] outside of nature, we鈥檙e hurting ourselves,鈥� says , an ecologist at the University of Oregon who first visited Los Cedros in 1998 and has since returned many times. 鈥淲e live within the system of nature, we rely on it, and it鈥檚 part of us. The rights of nature recognizes this in a way that old laws haven鈥檛.鈥�

WATCH: Does a Forest Have Rights? In Ecuador, It Does.

So-called 鈥渞ights of nature鈥� arguments, a novel conservation strategy dating back to the 1990s, have been lodged in 397 cases across 34 countries and even the United Nations, according to the . These cases have been brought from Bolivia to Brazil to Uganda, as well as Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. 

Some cases have broadly recognized the rights of , , , and even the entirety of , whereas others have focused on species like in the North Sea, in Panama, or a specific animal, such as , who was living in a cage in New York. In one particularly creative case this year, campaigners succeeded in getting music streaming platforms to .

In Ecuador, the groundwork was set in 2008 when, thanks to lobbying from Indigenous groups, the country that included the rights of Pacha Mama, in essence stating that Mother Nature has the same rights as people.

But Los Cedros鈥� story began much earlier. Today, the reserve is owned by the state, but in 1988, the land was purchased by Josef DeCoux, an American environmentalist who managed a scientific station at the heart of the reserve until his death in May 2024. Photo by Bitty Roy

Bit by bit, with the help of friends and nonprofits including Friends of the Earth Sweden and Australia鈥檚 , DeCoux bought land in the area in order to preserve it. For many years, he lived in a shack deep in the forest.

鈥淚 fell in love with the unique beauty of the place,鈥� said DeCoux, during a visit to the monitoring station in Los Cedros shortly before his death following a years-long battle with cancer. 鈥淚 immediately knew that I wanted to dedicate my life to this forest. And that鈥檚 what I鈥檝e done.鈥�

DeCoux worked with Indigenous communities in the surrounding Manduriacos Valley to build local support for the effort, resulting in Los Cedros securing state conservation status in 1994. 鈥淧eople stopped shooting all the monkeys,鈥� he added.

鈥淭hey appreciated the reserve and its value, and how it protects the watershed.鈥�

As a result, Los Cedros鈥攚hich ranges from 3,000 to 9,000 feet in altitude and is crossed by four rivers鈥攖hrived, in contrast to the suffered by the surrounding, highly endangered Andean cloud forest. Under an open-door policy aimed at raising the profile of the reserve, scientists came from across the world to study its wealth of biodiversity, with more than now published.

鈥淚 could spend time studying a single square meter of Los Cedros and still not understand everything there,鈥� Roy says. 鈥淲estern Ecuador is head and shoulders above the rest of the world in terms of amphibian, bird, and plant biodiversity.鈥�

However, conservation efforts hit a major stumbling block in 2017 when the government granted the state-owned mining company ENAMI EP rights to mining concessions for copper and gold in more than two-thirds of Los Cedros鈥� landmass.

This is where the rights of nature legislation came into play. Before extraction could begin, a legal challenge was tabled at the Provincial Court by the local government of Cotacachi, a region home to 43 Indigenous communities. After an appeal, the case was then taken to Ecuador鈥檚 Constitutional Court. The claimants argued that if mining was to proceed in Los Cedros, it would violate the forest鈥檚 constitutional rights, and they demanded the protection of its 鈥渞ight to exist, survive, and regenerate.鈥�&苍产蝉辫;

After a years-long legal battle, in December 2021, judges at the Constitutional Court finally annulled the concession that had been granted to the mining company, in effect turning a theoretical constitutional text into a tangible, real-world policy.

The unprecedented was one of the first times that any court in the world had ever recognized the rights of nonhuman organisms鈥攁nd the judges went as far as to state that the law not only applied to Los Cedros and to other protected areas, but, under the terms of the constitution, to any kind of nature within the country of Ecuador.

鈥淭here was no case before this, there was no precedent,鈥� added DeCoux. 鈥淚t was a case of science winning over extractive industries.鈥�

In Los Cedros, the miners were forced to remove their machinery immediately and the court banned all future mining and other extractive activities.

Now, 24 hours a day, the reserve thrums with activity, from the early-morning roars of howler monkeys among the dense canopy to the afternoon squawks of toucans and the buzzes of nocturnal bats swooping after the many critters that fill the night sky.

鈥淚t is a great pleasure to observe the greatness of the animal kingdom here every day,鈥� says Ovando, as he watches a pair of yellow-beaked toucans in the distance. 鈥淟ife is calmer here now. The wildlife is more at ease.鈥�

Follow-up monitoring has also confirmed the early impact of the ruling. As part of a published by the More Than Human Rights Project in June 2024, Rodr铆guez-Garavito visited Los Cedros twice and found that mining equipment and staff had been removed from the reserve, which remained a 鈥渟anctuary鈥� for biodiversity thanks to the ruling. The report concluded that the enforcement of the rights of nature and rulings like Los Cedros 鈥渃an be effective tools to protect endangered ecosystems.鈥�

鈥淚 was positively surprised,鈥� Rodr铆guez-Garavito says. 鈥淓specially because Los Cedros is in the midst of the region with many active mining projects. It should not be taken for granted that these rulings will be properly implemented.鈥�

Proponents argue that the successful use of those rights to defend an ecosystem like Los Cedros has set a powerful precedent, and it is already influencing rulings in Ecuador and beyond. In July, the Indigenous Kitu Kara people won a claiming pollution violated the rights of the Mach谩ngara River, which runs through Ecuador鈥檚 capital, Quito. In March, Peru the rights of the Mara帽贸n River to be free of pollution after a lawsuit was brought by the Kukama Indigenous Women鈥檚 organization against the oil company Petroper煤. A recent claim relating to Ecuador鈥檚 Fierro Urco wetlands even .

鈥淚t鈥檚 a phenomenon that鈥檚 catching fire and that鈥檚 spreading very rapidly around the world,鈥� Rodr铆guez-Garavito says. 鈥淏ecause the Los Cedros case is a sophisticated and detailed judicial decision, it鈥檚 being referenced by other courts.鈥�

Nicola Peel, an who first visited Los Cedros in 1999 and testified during the Constitutional Court case, argues that the ruling marks a turning point in global conservation. 鈥淚 absolutely believe that the time has come for the rights of nature,鈥� she says. 鈥淭his feels like the natural progression for a new era.鈥�

However, plenty of concerns remain over the long-term success of the ruling in Los Cedros, and rights of nature cases more generally, in the face of powerful extractive industries and limited resources to monitor and enforce legal protections.

鈥淭he courts move on to new cases,鈥� Rodr铆guez-Garavito says. 鈥淏ut the argument behind my study is that researchers, policymakers, and advocates must continue paying attention to implementation. We need to follow what happens after.鈥�

The Ganges River, for example, which is considered sacred by more than a billion Indians, was by the highest court in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, which is home to part of the river, as a 鈥渓iving entity鈥� in 2017, but sewage and industrial waste has continued to pollute the river since then and it mostly .

Rodr铆guez-Garavito鈥檚 findings also highlighted other threats to Los Cedros: mining activities in nearby areas that risk a 鈥渟pillover effect,鈥� a growing problem with organized crime in Ecuador that could hinder efforts, 鈥済rossly insufficient鈥� resources for park rangers, and the passing of DeCoux, who led the movement.

An ongoing challenge is also maintaining the support of locals, some of whom鈥攊n situations of poverty, without alternative sources of income, and barely any support from the state鈥攈ave been tempted by the pay offered by mining. 鈥淐ompanies always offer them good jobs,鈥� Ovando says.

Others are concerned that the ruling could simply boost illegal hunting, logging, and mining outside of the reserve鈥檚 borders, which could result in mass biodiversity loss.

鈥淢y worry is that Los Cedros will become an island surrounded by private lands that get degraded,鈥� Peel says. 鈥淗ow can we ensure the protection of other areas too?鈥�

But few disagree that the case of Los Cedros, with its beguiling, mist-covered forest, has provided a vision of a future where the rights of the natural world are actively and effectively protected.

鈥淢ining isn鈥檛 going to happen here again,鈥� said DeCoux, in a typically direct tone that has driven the conservation success in Los Cedros. 鈥淧eople need to get that into their heads.鈥�

Around this time, my grandmother was poisoned in an inter-clan conflict. On her deathbed, she had a vision and told the family that if they followed the voices from the planes they would weaken, get sick, and die. My grandfather, devastated after her death and trying to avoid an inter-clan war, decided to heed the voices. 

My father was a small child then. He and some of my aunts and uncles have told me these stories since I was a little girl. They walked for a month, from the old lands, now Yasun铆, to the river where the bocachico fish run, now Pastaza. On the walk my great-grandfather, Nenkemo, had a dream. In the dream he abandoned his daughter-in-law, my grandmother who had died. The next morning he woke up, ate breakfast, and refused to continue on with the rest. He said that his knee hurt, but everyone knew that he wanted to remain in the forest he loved. The others kept going, and Nenkemo turned back with his spear and blowgun. 

My grandfather and his family had seen the metal machetes, knives, and pots left by previous invaders and thrown from the planes. My grandfather thought of the power of the metal blades that were so resistant and did not rot. Perhaps they will have more of these upstream. They walked to the missionary communities in Pastaza. There they heard the talk of the devil and God and salvation. And within six months, they began to die. 

My grandfather and his brothers, themselves sick and dying, were terrified and irate. They wanted war. The lead missionary, a white woman named Rachel Saint, convinced the Waorani women to break all the men鈥檚 spears. She offered them clothes and processed food like sugar and flour, and she preached. The men and women who got close to her got sick. They became racked with fever, many became paralyzed, and many died, including a number of my aunts and uncles. My father, only still a small boy, crossed the river and hid, surviving on raw shrimp. Rachel preached salvation. My father saw slow torture and death. Our resistance was born there. My father later said: We will pretend to go to her church, but we will not believe in her god. She killed our family.

I grew up in the missionary village of To帽ampare. My father told me these stories and taught me the beauty and bounty of the forest. At the same time, Rachel seemed to be everywhere, always scolding us, calling us savages, and trying to prohibit our songs and dances and sharing of dreams. Sometimes she would receive visitors from her world. My little brother and I would compete to see who could hear the approaching planes first. And we would sneak to the dirt landing strip to watch the people who seemed to descend from the sky. Once a young white girl visited and I thought she looked so pretty. I harmed myself terribly in a deluded attempt to look more like her. 

I became enchanted with the white people鈥檚 things and their promises of salvation. I wanted to learn to speak Spanish, to wear light cotton dresses, to have blue eyes and straight, white teeth. I wanted to know this god who offers eternal life and see what was beyond the horizon, the place that the planes came from. My worried mother tried to dissuade me, a tactic that rarely works with teenagers anywhere in the world. My gentle father did not approve, but did not stand in my way. My desire to learn led me into the arms of the missionaries, led me to face, survive, and escape from forms of abuse I had never imagined, led me to glimpse into the savior鈥檚 world and then, like my great grandfather, to turn back to my own.

And my world, the Amazon rainforest of Ecuador, was at that moment facing an existential threat. The government had auctioned off Waorani territory to multinational oil companies behind our backs. I joined other Waorani and people from distinct Indigenous nations, some of which had a long and disastrous history of oil exploitation in their territories, to fight the government and oil companies. I realized that they too promised salvation. Oil, they said, would save us and the entire country from the very poverty they created. 

My relatives had sickened and died from polio upon contact with the missionaries. I soon met men and women from Indigenous Kofan territories whose relatives died from cancer and whose children died from bathing and drinking water in rivers contaminated by the oil companies.

And then it hit me: The authors of our destruction are the very ones who preach our salvation. Salvation from what? From being Waorani? From living healthy and rich lives in the forest? From discussing our dreams in the morning? From being irreverently funny and laughing all the time? From dancing naked in our palm-thatched longhouses? From living in harmony with the very place they want to destroy? 

If you would like to invade our territory and destroy our home, our people, our language, and culture, have the courage at least to say so. Stop offering salvation to the people you want to eliminate. And allow me to be clear as well: We will resist. We will fight to continue to make our lives in the forest, to speak Wao Tededo, to share our dreams in the mornings, to laugh at you and each other. We will fight to keep your oil companies from poisoning our land and rivers. We will fight, it turns out, even for you, by stopping the global devastation brought on by climate injustice. We will fight to continue to be Waorani. And we will not be saved. 

This essay is inspired by Nemonte Nenquimo鈥檚 forthcoming memoir,

Almost no one has asked what men need to do in order to remedy the problem that the job has been off-limits to more than 50% of the talent pool since 鈥� forever.

At the 2024 Democratic National Convention, that changed. Democratic men made choices that were entirely new, or exceedingly rare, in support of a woman presidential candidate and in service to the nation. It was unprecedented.

As a , I鈥檝e argued that the biggest impediment to electing a woman as president is not a dearth of qualified woman candidates but a . The fault is not in the candidates but in American culture.

As it turns out, men in politics were also to blame.

When faced with competitive women as presidential candidates, many men historically have leveraged their power and privilege in ways that undercut women鈥檚 candidacies. But the Democratic convention was different.

For the first time in history, men in a major political party offered unified support for a woman candidate. They refrained from strategically deploying the stereotype that strong women are not likable, as .

They accepted the party鈥檚 overwhelming support for a woman candidate, instead of insisting on being , as Bernie Sanders did in 2016.

And they put their career on hold to support their spouse鈥檚 candidacy instead of undercutting it by offering support to primary campaign challengers, as Bob Dole did when .

鈥淩elinquishing Male Power鈥�

Rhetorical choices reveal the underlying motivations of individuals and groups. The messaging of Democratic men at the 2024 convention signaled that their party was finally ready to do something that no major party has ever done. They were not only nominating a woman candidate but relinquishing male power and privilege.

Biden surprised everyone when he pulled out of the race from flagging poll results, skeptical donors and party leaders, and nervous down-ballot candidates. Any resentment he may have felt, however, did not turn into pique or pettiness at the convention.

When the crowd chanted, 鈥淭hank you, Joe,鈥� he instructed, 鈥�,鈥� and promised to be 鈥渢he best volunteer the Harris and Walz camp have ever seen.鈥� He didn鈥檛 just give up his candidacy. He ceded his authority鈥攖o the people and the party, but also to Harris, specifically.

Although Secretary of Transportation and may still harbor his own presidential aspirations, he did not use his convention speaking slot to audition for the 2028 campaign. Instead, he performed the role that historically has been reserved for women at political conventions: pitching the party鈥檚 message via the perspective of a parent whose primary concern is 鈥�, .

The convention speech given by the presidential nominee鈥檚 spouse has historically been an opportunity for prospective first ladies to portray their husbands as patriarchs of an ideal American family. In his speech, second gentleman Doug Emhoff of a 鈥渃omplicated鈥� and 鈥渂lended family鈥� with no patriarch but two active partners, equally capable of professional success and deep commitment to family.

When Harris selected Tim Walz as her running mate, and the who deemed Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro the best strategic choice. Walz鈥檚 by one news outlet as the message of a 鈥淢idwest 鈥榤an鈥檚 man鈥欌�� and the 鈥渁ntidote to toxic MAGA masculinity.鈥� Even Ms. magazine touted it as a 鈥�.鈥�

But Walz did something Americans are not used to seeing 鈥渕an鈥檚 men鈥� do. He made it clear that he could work not just with, but for, a woman. And that everyone should.

After that the election was in the metaphorical 鈥渇ourth quarter,鈥� the team was 鈥渄own a field goal,鈥� and the offense was 鈥渄riving down the field,鈥� Coach Walz made it clear that, as in his high school coaching days, . Their leader was Kamala Harris, and 鈥淜amala Harris is tough. Kamala Harris is experienced. And Kamala Harris is ready.鈥�

Contented Second Fiddles

To be clear, Harris鈥� early success as a presidential candidate should be attributed, first and foremost, to her to a series of unprecedented events and to the of the Black women who have long sustained the Democratic Party.

But the men of the convention made a collective choice to embrace 鈥�,鈥� as an Axios reporter described it, and treat Harris like a commander in chief. That should be unremarkable. Women have been doing it for presidential candidates since 鈥� forever. But to see so many white men stepping back so enthusiastically for a woman of color was almost unbelievable.

Stepping back is not the same thing as stepping away. That鈥檚 important, because the broader message of the convention was about how to create an inclusive, democratic community. When you need to make a circle wider, and let more people in, you step back. That doesn鈥檛 leave you out of the circle. It makes your circle bigger.

The convention offered an expansive circle that includes , , and serve as , and .

It also includes a presidential candidate who looks like no other president in U.S. history. That鈥檚 a big step forward for the country.

This article is republished from under a Creative Commons license. Read the .