I so miss my boxing days but you can’t hit pads with social distancing. Still, the lessons I’ve learned still remain including – “fight when you’re tired.” Photo taken in Brooklyn, NY at the famous Gleason’s Gym. #activism #equality
For me, and perhaps for you other Americans as well, this July 4th has been very different from all the others. I miss being able to travel from “sea to shining shore” to see fireworks, to have BBQ’s that include more family and friends. I miss the president whose mission was to unite us instead of divide us. Tonight before bed, I will watch Hamilton then clothe myself in strength and wake with the determination that America will secure for us a better tomorrow.
There has to be a loophole
for us who still believe
in justice, freedom and our rights
amidst dishonesty.
This gap won’t last much longer
for together we’ll encroach
to fill the sinkhole with the hearts
we’ll never let them poach.
Hands united, standing tall
we’ll show a greater strength
than those who are unwilling
to detect our common link.
Photo one credit
Photo two credit
via Loophole
I was never a fan of George W. Bush when he was our U.S. President. In fact, I was very angry with him at the time. Time changes things.
Five or so years ago, I saw him and President Clinton speak together at a forum about education. Bush was not only likable but funny and quick witted.
“Our identity as a nation, unlike other nations, is not determined by geography or ethnicity, by soil or blood. … This means that people from every race, religion, ethnicity can be full and equally American,” he said during remarks at the George W. Bush Institute in New York City. “It means that bigotry and white supremacy, in any form, is blasphemy against the American creed.”
“We’ve seen nationalism distorted into nativism — forgotten the dynamism that immigration has always brought to America,” Bush said. “We see a fading confidence in the value of free markets and international trade — forgetting that conflict, instability, and poverty follow in the wake of protectionism.”
“Bullying and prejudice in our public life sets a national tone, provides permission for cruelty and bigotry, and compromises the moral education of children, the only way to pass along civic values is to first live up to them,” he said.
He never mentioned the current President by name. But it was there, between every line.
Way to go, Mr. Bush. Way to go!
To see the speech, click here.
Dear Boston,
Tomorrow, you have a choice. The far-right has scheduled another rally. Some may be your citizens, some may come from other places.
Some of you will oppose the rally.
Yes, the far-right has a right to speak. Perhaps, if you are like me, you will continue to “fight” for justice and equality for all people. But please “fight” with words.
Regardless of your “side”, I know how tense passions are – how they can escalate to the rise in blood pressure, to teeth grinding, to clenched fists. But please, put down your shields, your torches, your tear gas. In fact, don’t bring them at all.
Sincerely,
Carolyn D-W
“Justice will not be served until those who are unaffected are as outraged as those who are.”
– Benjamin Franklin
On a scale from one to Ten on the happiness meter, I’d say that I’m a fairly consistent eight. But, unfortunately, the needle of my frustration o-meter’s is perilously close to the danger zone. Why?
My core belief system, my moral code has not only been challenged, but also marginalized by the flip of a narcissistic man’s hand.
Anyone who has read some of my past blogs know who I am and what I stand for. And, what I acknowledge as my truth, isn’t about to change now. In fact, now, that select politicians have dipped their poisonous swab into my ideology canal, the results will come back as they always have, and this time, with a vengeance. I will continue to fight for the oppressed, for the rights of humanity and stand up against tyranny.
It has come to my attention that many folks did not understand the reason for the “Women’s March.” That’s okay. Hopefully, after so much has been written, they now understand. It wasn’t a protest against, but a march for. A march toward a better place for all humans.
How is that a bad thing?
Yes, I heard that somewhere in the world, there were acts of violence at the women’s march. The one I read about was of a pro-life supporter who was spit upon for her beliefs. Outrageous, in my opinion. I am not pro abortion in any way. I would have done (and tried) anything to have given birth to my two wonderful children who have made me a grandmother.
I am for the right to choose. I know, some of you might not understand this, and it’s too hard to explain in this post.
I also believe that some of the signs carried at various marches were “inappropriate.” Yet the ones who carried them had as much right to do so as the pro-life marchers.
Because, in that march, there was room for everyone, Republicans and Democrats alike who believed in the rights of humanity.
Now, here is my frustration. Four million plus people across the world marched to show their support for equality and since then, my mind has returned to vague memories of the sixties and the more prominent ones in the seventy and eighties. So why didn’t the ERA (Equal Rights Amendment) pass? The Equal Rights Amendment (ERA) was a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution designed to guarantee equal rights for women .
“Gender equality, also known as sex equality, gender egalitarianism, sexual equality, or equality of the genders, is the view that everyone should receive equal treatment and not be discriminated against based on their gender.[This is one of the objectives of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which seeks to create equality in law and in social situations, such as in democratic activities and securing equal pay for equal work.” (see wikipedia for more info on the 9th amendment to the constitution and also the 14th which finally gave rights to same-sex couples.)
The National Organization for Women, N.O.W., founded in 1966, worked toward equal pay for women. How has that worked out so far?
I recently turned, gulp, sixty. Do I really have to do this all over again?
They showed from every corner
From sea to shining sea
And set their sights to ameliorate
The key of democracy.
And, across the globe they crowded
Lifting wings of strength, declared
the rights of all humanity
Shall no longer be impaired.
Yes, on that day, they gathered
Determined, forged ahead
awareness in a tapestry,
made from four million thread.
-CDW 1-22-17
Please have a look at these related posts:
Jill -a lie by any other name is still a lie.
GC’s, “Yes gentlemen , the oft labelled “weaker sex” demonstrated to the entire world that they had more spine and political savvy than many of the top gun politicians around the world.”
And marches around the world.
This blog post is dedicated to strong women and the men who love us.
In history, although suppressed by politics, there have always been strong women. In the 1800’s women couldn’t fathom the idea of breaking, or even reaching a glass ceiling. I know. We’re closer today, but…
Seventy years after the American Revolution, a different kind of tea party took place. A woman named Elizabeth Cady Stanton was one of the invitees. Here, at this tea in 1848, Ms. Stanton spilled out her discontent on the status of women in America.
They planned a convention.
Stanton’s “Declaration of Sentiments” is drafted.
Let’s not forget. African American women had it much worse.
(Today, we have fast-forward buttons- FF>. But in this case, I’ll use FFS> as in fast forward slow. It took us a LONG time to get where we are!)
FFS> to 1920. Seventy-two years later, we get the right to vote.
FFS> to 1936, a Supreme Court decision declassified birth control information as obscene.
FFS> The Women’s Rights Movement began in the 1960’s
FFS> In 1972, the Equal Rights Amendment, which had languished in Congress for almost fifty years, was finally passed.
It’s almost 2017. We have accomplished much but why have we fast-forwarded so slow?
This is what I do know. In this new political climate, WE WILL NOT REWIND AND GO BACKWARDS.
If you choose to go inside…
Madam Fannie Porter will answer your knock, her head tilted back and a hand on her protruded hip. If you are a customer, she’ll first point out her list of rules and if you don’t follow them, the ratchet of a shotgun will show you the way out.
Then, she’ll point to one of her soiled doves –Chubby Greta from west Texas with her big brown eyes and no nonsense attitude; timid Lillie who grins but rarely exposes the gap where her tooth had been knocked out by a brute; Sassy Sarah with her flaming red hair and ample bosoms. Then there’s Sadie. Well, Sadie …
If you are a lost young woman steered to the wrong “boarding house,” Madam Fannie will keep you safe. She might also offer you a job as the bordello’s pianist.
But perhaps you choose not to enter.
You may be against vice, the Social Evil, the Grand Wrong. Then go to the public forum in Alamo Park. Hear Minnie Fisher (Cunningham) speak out on women’s rights. Listen to Women’s Christian Temperance Union‘s Texas president, Helen Stoddard, speak out against prohibition. But prepare yourself. Texans likes their beer.
Whichever choice you make, know this. The Last Bordello is not a novel about what goes on behind closed bedroom doors (okay, perhaps a tad), nor is it merely a whodunit. It’s about powerful women at the turn of the twentieth century who fought for their standing in life. While some found prostitution to be their only means of survival, other women fought for equal rights.
The Last Bordello depicts the struggle and determination of both sides.
Oh, and I suggest NOT entering Southwestern Insane Asylum.
It is 1901. So, would you enter or not? Are you curious about what’s inside? Appalled? There’s no wrong answer. There’s no right one, either. I’d love to hear your response and a reason or two why you chose to go in or stay out.
All the best,
Carolyn
Carolyn Dennis-Willingham 