“One of the most thought-provoking questions I pose is, ‘Have you ever considered what you might have done during the civil rights movement of the 1960s?’ It’s a question that doesn’t require speculation. Your actions today indicate what you would have done in that time. You’d either be advocating for progressive ideals, striving to make the United States a nation where ‘liberty and justice for all’ are a reality, or you’d be resisting change, clinging to outdated notions in an attempt to quell your fear of progress.” So, think about what you are doing now… because that is what you would have done then.

Today, we find ourselves in another defining moment in history, where the choices we make will shape the future of our country. Whether this second tier of the civil rights movement began with the Tea Party movement or the tragic murder of George Floyd, only history will reveal. However, one thing is certain: what we are doing right now is shaping history, just as those before us did during the civil rights movement. What we are not doing, in the aggregate, is also shaping history and that is the focus of today’s writing.

I often find myself repeating the phrase, “I never thought our Democratic Republic would be threatened like this in my lifetime.” The backbone of our democratic republic is facing unprecedented challenges, and the rights and freedoms we once took for granted are at risk. But not enough people are responding by taking action to stop it. I predict that if more people don’t take action soon, we will witness the end of the great experiment called the United States of America. For all its imperfectness and all its potential to be amazing… it will be over.

It is essential to recognize that today’s political landscape is vastly different from what it once was. The debates we engage in are no longer about policy; they are about fundamental human rights, progressiveness versus regression, and hate versus humanity.

The question is, “Will our children be living in a country with less human and civil rights than we were afforded?” Unfortunately, unless we unite to support the basic tenets that this nation was founded upon, the answer will be a very sad yes.

Extreme binary thinking has divided our nation into those who fear and those who hope. Those who fear seem to be not just afraid but paralyzed with fear. It’s as if their ability to use critical thinking skills and basic analysis has been thwarted by some fabricated danger that consumes them.

However, there is a third group, often overlooked, who may be too busy, uninformed, or feel powerless to make a difference. Maybe they are struggling to make ends meet. Maybe they are shy or have anxiety. Maybe they are so consumed with everyday life that they are not able to keep up with the fast pace of our news cycle, politics, communication technology, etc. They may be vaguely aware that our rights are being stifled. But the daily struggle of just getting by is too overwhelming for them to tend to anything more.

It is within this group that the fate of our nation lies.

These are the people who will decide whether we watch helplessly as the twilight of our democracy falls to darkness as a sinister dictatorship continues to form, taking on a life of its own.

It is within this group that we find the largest number of our citizens of voting age who will simply not vote or who will vote blindly down party lines, giving no thought to saving our democratic republic.

There may be some in this inactive, but crucial group who think the idea of a dictatorship is appealing. They are under the false ideology that their group will be the one to benefit from such an authoritarian takeover.  

Today’s issues in the United States are by no means for the faint of heart. There are great changes taking place in every area of life, and the choice to engage and try to make a difference may still be in the hands of “the people”.  

But we need to make noise is greater amounts.

We need the people to believe neutral is NOT an option. We need people to step up and decide whether this great experiment lives to see another day.

For those of us who wish to be on the right side of history, being antiracist cannot be a hobby; it must be a comprehensive lifestyle. It cannot be something in your own head that is kept private. It cannot JUST be a vow to treat others as you’d like to be treated. This is simply not enough.

It must be a lifelong commitment to continuous learning, introspection, and growth. It must be more than what you think and more than what you feel. It must be action. Systemic racism, islamophobia, homophobia, misogyny, antisemitism, anti-Blackness, and intolerance will not be dismantled through feeling bad about how things are going. They will not be dismantled by wishing things were different. They will not be dismantled by anything short of taking action, and that means finding our voices and fighting to keep our human and civil rights…

It means voting as if our democratic republic depends upon it…

We will have to start by stopping the threat to our democratic republic first because with a dictatorship, there is no vote, and “we the people” get no say in how things are governed.

By listening to and supporting Black voices, we can begin to dismantle the systemic racism that plagues our society. By listening and learning vicariously from people who do not pray, love, look, or identify with what we do, we can unite for progressive rights and humanistic values. It’s as simple as hope over hate. There is no reason this nation and the hope to “form a more perfect union” must die. It is up to the people… not some of us, but most of us to stand up and fight to keep going.

The question we must ask ourselves is: Do we have the sense and willingness to do the work and listen? The time for action is now.

To truly be on the right side of history, we must embrace the responsibility to actively dismantle racism and bigotry in all its forms. It’s not enough to passively oppose it; we must actively work to dismantle the systems and structures that perpetuate it. This requires ongoing education, introspection, and, most importantly, action. Everyone must vote to save our democracy. By taking personal responsibility for dismantling racism and bigotry, we can ensure that future generations inherit a more just and equitable society. Please do not let hate and fear win the day. Our children are watching. Will they live in an America where they have markedly less human and civil rights than our generation had? Will they wonder why you didn’t do more to save the nation they will inherit?