Ruth Bader Ginsburg: a national treasure

(Elle article)

We lost a national treasure this weekend and the loss will impact our lives for a long time. She’s been on our minds for awhile now as she went in and out of the hospital, we feared for her with Covid + her own health issues. Over the years she kept working even though it must have been tough and painful – in this she is like our Black Panther hero Chadwick Boseman. I am sure that Ruth had a hero’s welcome when she arrived at the gates of heaven. I’m still struggling with this loss and I think about her family and how they are feeling. We may see her as an icon for human rights but they’ve lost a mother and grandmother, a leader of 

During the very first part of the pandemic my husband and I caught up on some movies and series that we’d missed and one of them was the RBG documentary on Netflix. If you’ve not yet watched this take time to do watch or re-watch it to remind yourself of what an amazing person she was. We need her passing to light a fire in each of us to do whatever we can and then some more to first insure that our current leadership team not pick a new Supreme Court Justice until we’ve had a change in said  leadership. Fair is fair and they set the rules on this with President Obama and second insure that as many democrats win across our states, local races and presidential. We need to right the falling tower as quickly as possible. DT is not a president to everyone; he picks and chooses, ridicules, often siding with racists people and ideas. 

I don’t know how to get through to people who really, really love him yet we can talk to our friends and neighbors who might be undecided about voting for Biden. Biden was low on my list as was Kamala but this race is vital in so many important ways and those of us that are strong, fervent Democrats need to help others see why it is so important to vote by mail or vote in person; just VOTE for the Democratic ticket. I cannot image another four more years of this man unleashing his own curriculum, his stance against all things science related, voting down everything that we’ve worked hard for like voting rights and women’s rights. We need the Black Lives Matter movement to continue to make change all the way to the White House with someone ready to really help us find a more equitable future. We need our leaders to understand better what we are looking for in our police community; one of working with people without force, to see all people in need of help and understanding  Just like George Floyd became a catalyst for change so to should our grief over Ruth Bader Ginsburg propel us forward into serious  action. After all it is our country we are trying to save. 

My husband recently showed me a video of Trump supporters sharing why they believe Trump was sent by God to help the nation and it makes me wonder how we became so divided as a country. I grapple with understanding how a wide array of Christian people feel that Trump represents them. 

Find a way to stand up for our country and honor Justice Ginsburg with action. Refer back to my earlier voting post to find people to support with donations or volunteer time. 

Make your VOTE count

The presidential race is really just around the corner. We will vote for a new president before we have a vaccine for this virus and before we all make out our Christmas wish lists so it’s important to stay educated on what matters. There are a lot of smaller but important races happening around the country and it is crucial to pay attention to these races AND donate to help them stay in the race. Let’s start small-right here in Black Hawk County. I’m going to give you a link for all the candidates on the progressive side so you can find out more information and/or donate to their campaigns. I’ve donated a ton this summer because I’m not out shopping or eating out so you can do it too. These are the ones I’m paying attention to; let me know if there are others you think are crucial.

Kelly Dunn vs LeaAnn Saul : this race is for Cedar Falls City Council and Kelly needs to win because she will make a positive difference in our community while Ms. Saul is homophobic and narrow-minded.

Theresa Greenfield vs. Joni Erst : Greenfield has the endorsement of the League of Women Voters, is against Citizen’s United and will be a good senator for Iowa. We really need one!

J.D. Scholten vs. Randy Feenstra (he won Rep ticket against Steve King and shares his views) : this is a very important race and it is crucial that J.D. win this one. He was close in 2018; let’s hope this is his year.

Sara Gideon vs. Susan Collins : Maine Senate race, time for Collins to go.

John Hickenlooper vs. Cory Gardner : It would be great to see Colorado flip blue.

Jaime Harrison vs. Lindsey Graham : It’s been time for Lindsey to go…

Amy McGrath vs. Mitch McConnell : We definitely need Amy to win Kentucky!

Jon Ossoff vs. David Perdue : Georgia needs Jon Ossoff.

And the top of the mountain is of course Joe Biden. I caucused for Pete Buttigieg and I’m still a major fan.  I am not a huge Joe fan but I am happy to vote for him because I know he will right the shipwreck we are in right now. Encourage others to vote too so we don’t end up with the non-voter apathy we had in 2016.

And if you are interested in Black Democratic candidates running right now, check out this state-by-state list in Marie Claire.