Nope, We STILL Don’t Get to Give Up. Reposted from Hot Take
By Mary Annaïse Heglar
Back in January, when we got to go places and do things, I moderated a climate justice panel with impressive women of color to a very fancy crowd in downtown Manhattan. It was one of those events with wine and snacks and even lots of art. I could tell that lots of the ladies, and it was mostly ladies, in the crowd were those that “lunched” and “summered.” I even got a very fancy vintage dress out of the whole ordeal.
Anyway, it all fell apart when an old white man took advantage of the question and answer period to lecture us all on how everything we were doing about climate change was wrong (after admitting that he himself had done it all wrong for 30 years). That, somehow, led to a white woman responding to him to announce that unless Trump is removed from office, it was all hopeless and we might as well give up. While I agreed with her that removing Trump was of paramount importance, I reject the idea that “giving up” is ever an option. She stormed out and I moved the panel on.
I regret nothing.
I bring this story up now because it’s truer now that it’s ever been: we do not get to give up. No matter who wins which election. Not today, not tomorrow, not ever. It might get harder, costlier, scarier. It doesn’t matter.
Regardless of who the next president is, the work is just getting started. Rest if you need to, but then roll up your sleeves. Do what you can and then go do something else. In between, take care of yourself and take care of each other. We’re in this and we’re in it together.