I mailed my ballot in today, and I was thinking of you when I did it.
I was thinking about my sisters-- one old enough to vote and one not. I don’t know their politics, and I don’t need to. I used my vote to do what I could to make a difference for them and their futures.
I was thinking about my friends, the ones from all different backgrounds. The women, people of color, and members of the LGBTQ community, and how something like the president and supreme court decisions could irreparably affect their lives. I voted for them.
I was thinking about the people I don’t know personally, but have come into contact with throughout my life in many different ways. I’ve met these people through podcasts, books, blogs, college, and the line in the grocery store. Muslim women wearing hijabs who may not have the same faith I was raised with, but they deserve the same freedom. Trans men who are afraid for their lives every day because they made choices as adults for their own bodies that others don’t agree with, and are therefore a constant target of hate and violence.
I was thinking about women. Women’s rights and reproductive rights in general are under attack. It’s easy to shout “abortion is murder” and “Christians don’t vote for abortions” as you cast your vote for the party that (from their own actions and words) doesn’t care about women as anything but baby machines and property of men. It’s harder to realize this is not black and white. Abortions are, first and foremost, healthcare. The majority of them happen in cases where babies will not survive outside of the womb, the mother’s life is in direct danger, or the woman is actually a child who has been violated and is now pregnant at the age of 10, 11, or 12. Women are dying because of these abortion bans. There are four women this year who have been confirmed to have died in direct correlation to being turned away from the healthcare they needed due to abortion bans, but there are most likely more that have not been confirmed. This is not the post I want to dedicate to researching and linking sources for women’s rights and the attack on reproductive rights and what that means for us, but I do want to also say that it doesn’t stop with making abortions illegal. IVF is now on the table. Birth control is on the table. I remember hearing when COVID was happening that we shouldn’t give in to mask mandates because “if we start giving the government one thing, they’ll take everything from us!” But the men who were saying that are very silent now. Or they’re the ones adamantly against reproductive health. So when it comes to women it doesn’t matter? Because it isn’t about you? It isn’t affecting you? It lines up with your religious beliefs so it should be law? The message is clear. But that’s a post for another time.
I voted for what I believe is right. I voted for what I believe is the blatantly obvious right choice between the two. I’ve had some trouble understanding why it’s so difficult to see the truth from the other side of things, even though that’s where I came from. I think there are a lot of factors at play here, and if you read more of my blog posts you’ll see that I’ve spoken about a lot of them. Ultimately, I think we all want the best for our friends and family. At least, I hope we do. I think the missing piece here is thinking outside of that bubble. The world doesn’t revolve around us. The nation doesn’t revolve around us. There are people affected by politicians and the decisions they make about peoples’ bodies and lifestyles. Even if you don’t agree with them, and even if you are not someone affected by these things, think about those who are.
It’s hard to teach empathy, especially when the mentality today is “Us vs. Them”. We are all guilty of it. I get so fired up and upset about these things because people are dying and hurting and half of the country doesn’t seem to care about anything but Donald Trump. No political party is going to save us. Kamala Harris is not going to save us. But it seems clear to me that there is one path that leads to more division and destruction for many years to come, and one that just may be a little brighter.
Everyone deserves to feel safe in America. Not just white, straight, MAGA Republicans. Gay people, trans people, people of color, people of different religions, refugees, illegal immigrants, and everyone else who does not fit the mold. Those of us who have the ability to help them should.
I voted for all of them and all of you. I hope you thought about who and what you were voting for, and I hope you will vote if you haven’t yet. Your voice should be heard, no matter what.
Comments