#lovestilltrumpshate

We who believe in freedom cannot [and will] not rest. 

Friday, November 11th

Tonight, I went to the Love Rally in Boston Common with a number of my fellow Wellesley siblings.  It was a wonderful experience.  We had an open venue to discuss and vent our fear, our anger, our broken hearts, our experiences facing prejudice, and more.  We also got to share our hopes, our dreams, and our will to fight for a better future where our civil rights will be protected instead of attacked and degraded, as the Trump administration threatens to do.  We spoke of peaceful protest and the importance of civil disobedience.  We spoke of offering love when others offer us hatred.  Many shared stories.  I heard from a bisexual Latina woman who studies peace and justice as she strives to become a police officer.  I heard from women doctors and medical students that promise to work hard to keep Planned Parenthood open and accessible to women and families in need of their services.  I heard from hard-working LatinX folks that fear deportation when they came to this country with a dream of equality and opportunity.  I heard from many women that experienced sexual assault, only to not be believed by law enforcement.  I heard from straight white cis-men who recognized their privilege and offered to be allies to other communities that don’t have as much privilege.  I heard from an amazingly brave disabled young women who spoke of how her classmates now fear coming to school as members of the LGBTQIA+ community and also reminded us about how Trump mocked the disabled community—she was thirteen years old.

Trump does not represent myself, any of these people, or the vision of America that I hold so dear.  We are a country of immigrants, first and foremost.  We should be a nation that accepts and cherishes diversity rather than one that uses hatred to marginalize those who are different than us.  Government of the people, by the people, for the people is that government which only governs with power derived from the consent of the people governed.  As a citizen who studies history and nation-building, I do not consent to his rule and consider it illegitimate, at least in my heart and the freedom of my mind.  He is #NotMyPresident, nor will he ever be, for I will not accept a man that regularly degrades my gender and the people that constitute the citizenry of the United States of America.

I would like to offer my thanks to the police officers of Boston who kept us safe during this peaceful rally for love.  I’m grateful for their presence.  In the spirit of thanking the officers, I would also like to thank the many men, women, and non-binary soldiers that have served and are still serving our country to give me the freedom to rally and protest.  I hope you have a good Veterans Day, and I am thankful to you.