Being a Politically Active Mother

In light of the dumpster-fire happening in Washington right now, I feel like I should take this opportunity to discuss the issues that have been weighing on my mind since the November 2016.

On election night, I watched the early predictions pour in in favor of Hilary. I was confident. I had seen the polls saying she was a good 9 points ahead. I took my daughter to bed, and my eyes welled up as I laid her down and whispered, “Tomorrow you will wake up, and we will have our first female president. You can do anything.” My heart burned with pride in how far we had come.

Then you know what happened. The rural districts started reporting, and I started to panic. I initiated a Benadryl black out because I couldn’t watch. When Donald Trump won, I felt like I was in mourning. And in a way I was. I was mourning the triumphs we had made as a society, as I saw us take a giant leap backwards. For the perineum between the election and inauguration I did what we all did. I cried, I ranted, and I laughed a Biden memes. I tried to make sense of how this could have happened.  

I read the comments on social media from conservatives calling liberals crybabies. But I don’t think they understand what this win means to us. For me, as a child of the 90’s I grew up with the social narrative that we are all equal, that women can do anything  a man can do. We have the same opportunities, and you should never feel stepped on. The night Donald Trump won the election that narrative changed. I cannot tell my daughter she is equal in this society. I will tell her:  You will always have to be smarter, work harder, and go farther than your male counterparts. You can do anything, but you have to be better. You cannot expect the same treatment. But that is on them for being a shitty person, not you. You hold your head high. You must always have integrity and love yourself.

I attended the Women’s March in Cleveland. It was a powerful experience onto itself. Roughly 15,000 people in Cleveland alone gathered to show solidarity, and that helped me find energy. I watched the pictures from around the country of marches in solidarity, and I thought “We really have something here”.   

As I watch the absurdity unfold, I find myself becoming more and more filled with rage. I don’t understand the validation of “we need an outsider” for appointing someone like Betsy DeVos to the Department of Education. You want an outsider? Here’s a novel idea: hire a teacher. I think with the appointment of DeVos, the republicans have inadvertently awoken a sleeping army of angry moms. These mom’s aren’t always political, but you don’t fuck with our kids. This is a battle we will fight. And you will lose.

So here are a few thoughts I have gathered on fighting the good fight:

1.      First: Vote. Always vote. Even if you can’t win. People have bled and died for the right to vote. It is the most important American responsibility. This election has taught us this big time. November 6^th 2018 is the next mid-term election. 33 Senate seats, 435 house seats, and 14 governorships are up for reelection. Spread the word, this election is important, go vote.

2.      Write, call, tweet, and email your congressmen, senators, representatives, and governor. THEY WORK FOR YOU. Let them know what issues are important to you. I write a weekly letter to Rob Portman, I consider him my pen pal, though a bad one, since he never writes back. And take advantage of face time. Late this month Rep. Dave Greenspan will be at the Westlake Library for “Donuts with Dave”, we are bringing the kids to help us tell him the issues that are important to us.

3.     Use your children as motivation. In one of my first letters to Senator Rob Portman, I sent him a photo of my children. I told him I wanted him to look at the faces of the future generation and remember everything he does is for them. I have two Hispanic children (my husband is Puerto Rican); I will not allow them, or any other children, to be marginalized by a xenophobic society. This is where I draw most of my strength.

4.      Give money to organizations that do good work. I am fortunate enough to be able to give, so I do. I give to Planned Parenthood because I believe in women’s rights, I give to the ACLU because I want to keep the Trump Administration in check, and I give to NPR, because I believe in the integrity of journalism. Pick the ones you believe in, and give what you can.

5.      Stay active, but don’t burn out. The toughest pill for me to swallow is that we are going to lose. Until the mid-terms, the Republicans have the majority in the house and the senate, so despite best efforts; we are going to lose some big battles. It will be devastating. But you cannot allow yourself to succumb to angst. Pick the issues most important to you, and fight for them. But if you become a warrior for every bill, your sword will become dull.

6.      All politics is local. Stay active in your local government. Be aware how your city and state government works. Get to know your council people. This is where you can have direct impacts. Remember, the squeaky wheel gets the grease.

These are tough political times. If you are a ball of anxiety like I am, it is easy to become overwhelmed. But remember, you are not alone. Hillary did win the popular vote by over 3 million votes after all. We must live the ideals we voted for. We must be kind, and considerate of others. We must show integrity in everything we do. We must be better, because that is what us woman do… when they go low, we go high.