Please Scroll down for info regarding the upcoming rallies and the march.
Perhaps
you share the sense that one chapter of our National Nightmare is coming to a
close, but another is just beginning? Do you feel stuck in a bad dream you
can’t get out of; feeling frozen in place, seeing danger approach but unable to
move?
Well,
we at Peaceworks are not asleep at the switch. We are awake, clear of mind and
not willing to accept a passive role. Rather, we aim to come together and, to
as great an extent as possible, create our shared destiny. And we will do this
through active engagement, addressing frontally the challenges we face. And we
will reach out to our neighbors and our fellow citizens to build a progressive
majority that can turn things around. We invite and encourage you to join us in
this effort.
Some
have asked, “Why not give Trump a chance?” The answer should be obvious.
First,
we have watched this man campaign for a year and a half. We have seen an
abusive individual who treats others with profound disrespect. He has the
personality of a thin-skinned, self-aggrandizing tyrant. Donald Trump shows zero
respect for women. Rather, he objectifies them constantly. He belittles those
with disabilities; scapegoats minorities; bullies those who disagree with him;
and tries to cow the media into subservience.
Trump
launched his campaign with xenophobic ranting about Mexicans being rapists and
thieves and nonsensical visions of a Great Wall. He released a list of
prospective court nominees that is enough to make any civil libertarian’s skin
crawl. He has talked about banning Muslims and now says he’s seriously
considering a Muslim registry. He’s claimed that Climate Change—arguably the
greatest threat to our survival—is a hoax, and has embraced the sick notion
that nuclear weapons proliferation is OK, while endorsing the pursuit of a new nuclear
arms race.
But,
let us be clear, it is not just his campaign rhetoric or his abusive,
disrespectful style, his anti-intellectualism or his grandiosity that troubles
us. Rather, it is the people he’s appointed to lead the executive branch of our
government and their track records that makes it crystal clear that his agenda
is wrong for our nation on just about every front.
While
space does not allow a thoroughgoing review of his appointees, we should note
that his cabinet, as nominated, is chocked full of extreme views and extreme
wealth. It is top-heavy with generals/militarists. And, ironically, after
campaigning against Goldman Sachs, he’s appointed three from this financial
behemoth to top positions in his administration.
Many
Trump appointees have either no experience in the area their agency operates
in, or, worse yet, have actively campaigned against the agency’s mission.
Several have actually called for abolishing the sector of government they will
soon be in charge of, unless their nominations are stopped.
Knowing
the positions they embrace and the biases they carry, we can say, from the
get-go that a big part of our mission will be actively speaking out against
what they are aiming to do. We must convince as many of our elected officials
as possible to put the brakes on their efforts to steamroll through so-called
“reforms” that actually represent the destruction of so much of what we value
and need.
We
are talking here about everything from healthcare/ACA, Medicare, Medicaid and
Social Security to the funding of education. We’re looking at huge, windfall
tax cuts for the 1% that will leave our government without the funding to pay
for essential services. We’re deeply concerned about the possible deportation
of millions, dividing families and tearing apart communities.
We’re
speaking out against the commitment to dramatically increase military spending,
the bellicose approach to some countries including Iran and China, and the
misguided promise to move the U.S. embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, something
almost certain to put the kibosh on any efforts to peacefully settle the
conflict there. And, of course, we’re talking about the Climate Crisis and
Trump’s stated intention to end the EPA Clean Power Plan and withdraw from the
Paris Climate Agreement.
If
you’re feeling small, and if reading this leaves you feeling overwhelmed, we
understand, but this is no time to throw up our hands and give up. No, not at
all. Now is the time when redoubling our efforts is essential. Now is the time
for us to be out marching in large numbers. Now is the time to be holding
public meetings; to be going to town halls and to the offices of elected
officials. Now is the time for door-to-door outreach. Now is the time for
public education; for agitation; for organizing; for impressing upon our fellow
citizens what it is we truly need and for working night and day to achieve it.
Now is the time to build coalitions. Now is the time for activism; for active
resistance.
Now
is the time to build a culture of resistance and of mutual respect. Now is the time to embrace and celebrate our
diversity. Now is the time to be respectful of nature and the ecological
balances. Now is the time to see the worth in all, even the humblest among us.
Now is the time to respond to each other with kindness, not derision. Now is
the time to respect our neighbors; those down the block, as well as those
around the world. Let us be an example to others and, in the process, let us
win over those who today support Donald Trump. Let us follow that old adage,
“Keep hope alive!”
Let
respect, kindness and hope flourish.
See
you at the rally!
