On Saturday, May 30, as Denise and I watched the protesting and
rioting that occurred in many cities throughout the U.S., fear swept over me.
In my lifetime, I have seen this before, but I never was as frightened. I imagined the President
declaring martial law and ordering curfews enforced throughout the country. In
my mind, I saw the military forcing people to comply with the lockdown. I
envisioned the President using the pandemic and the rioting as an excuse to "postpone"
the November election.
The protests were
unquestionably justified and very much needed. The horrendous, horrifying
killing of a Black man named George Floyd by a white police officer pressing
his knee into Mr. Floyd's neck for 9 minutes as other police officers just stood
by and watched, could not be ignored or tolerated. Hearing the President talk about
using vicious dogs and enormous might of the military brought back memories of Holocaust
events my parents experienced. Politicians
who asked for patience and calmness ignored the fact that Americans have been
too patient for many years.
Now is the time that Congress must demonstrate that they
represent their constituents. They must show us their ability to work swiftly,
decisively in a bipartisan manner. They need to model how they can effectively
compromise and create win-win proposals. Legislators' ability to collaborate with
all colleagues should be more important than their loyalty to a president or a
party.
There are many ways Congress can demonstrate leadership
abilities. Gun control and immigration reform are areas that most people agree need
to be changed. Being sheltered-in-place for months has shown that access to the
internet must be available to everyone. The pandemic has vividly highlighted
the need for health-care-for-all, including long term community-based support
services. High unemployment offers the government the opportunity to
create many new jobs by investing in building the new nation's climate-friendly
infrastructure. Ensuring that anyone can afford excellent personal assistant
services, medicine, durable medical equipment, and therapy they need can also
create jobs and enable many people to live life the way they want.
Now is also the time to take a hard look at systems that may
not be working for us. It is perhaps the best time to implement new innovative ways
to operate. Are all the tax loopholes helping or hurting? The prison systems
need major overhauling. Surely a way to educate all children and young adults
can be developed. Has the two major political party construct outlived its
usefulness? Should the public be able to vote on every piece of legislature,
giving legislators and all of us a clearer idea of what people want? Can there
be a government civil service branch that enables everyone, regardless of race,
ethnicity, economic status, or disability, to work and positively contribute to
society?
Society is at a critical juncture. We know that going back
to the way we were functioning before the pandemic is not an option. We can
allow society to disintegrate, or we can grab this opportunity to reshape our nation
so that everyone can pursue the life they need and want. The choice is ours.
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