A Grateful Activist

In spite of these uncertain times, I am beyond grateful for so much; to live in rural Ontario, to have enough hand sanitizer to share and for virtual goodnight visits with my grandson. I am grateful too for this moment in history as we witness the world on the cusp of, what I have to believe will be, radical social change.

Hardship has not been part of my own experience of the pandemic. Inconvenience, yes. There have been brief bouts of panic, fear, emotional ups and downs and worry about family certainly. But being able to connect through technology with a small but mighty circle of dear ones has kept me afloat. I have been able to work while quarantining and have a two-person isolation bubble and a full cupboard. These are but a few examples of how my privilege enables me to weather this storm unscathed thus far.

Hardship and heartache are indeed the experiences of so many people world wide and we recognize the roles that inequality, oppression and poverty play in countries’ varying abilities to fight this common enemy. 

Social media has given us front row seats of late to scenes of extreme systemic racism in Canada and internationally. It is also acknowledged that racialized, lower income communities have been more severely impacted by COVID. I can’t fully articulate the connection between the pandemic and the magnitude of actions being taken in response to those racist incidents but it seems people have reached a breaking point and may feel they have nothing left to lose. And they are united with supporters from every background and culture.

Albert Einstein said ‘In the midst of every crisis lies great opportunity’. This is the moment, the opportunity to encompass a critical mass of the population who are outraged enough to ensure that change will not be denied. 

Equality and justice are not given. They must be fought for and taken. This I know from working within the women’s anti-violence movement. It can be a hopeful time but the pendulum swings to extremes when the status quo is challenged. We must figure out how to be allies to those at the forefront and work to minimize the inevitable backlash. Two steps forward, one step back.

Today I feel determined to be part of the solution and to resist becoming complacent. 

A Marge Piercy poem, The Art of Blessing the Day, always inspires me and reminds me to ‘be glad for what doesn’t hurt’. Here is a favourite stanza:

         “Attention is love, what we must give children, mothers, fathers, pets,

          our friends, the news, the woes of others.

          What we want to change we curse and then pick up a tool.

          Bless whatever you can with eyes and hands and tongue.

          If you can’t bless it, get ready to make it new.”

The world appears to be paying close attention to injustices right now. May we all look back on this period and recognize it as a pivotal time of advancement in the movement toward equality for all peoples. 

An Audre Lorde quote with which to end:

      “When I dare to be powerful, to use my strength in the service of my vision, then it becomes less and less important whether I am afraid.”