The other week, I saw the most unusual cloud formation. It was like a sideways funnel cloud. (See photo I captured in above header image.) I don’t recall ever seeing clouds quite like that before. Mesmerizing, yet I knew a storm was coming. And from past experience, some of the most alluring cloud formations ended up delivering the worst storms.
While that storm passed us by with very little wind and rain, everyone is becoming more attuned to weather patterns and severe weather warnings. Red sky at night…sailors delight. Red sky in the morning…sailors, take warning. Every morning, it seems we wake up to “red sky” news. Some new crisis or revelation that sets our jaws clenching or our hearts racing.
The storm is coming.
Almost a year ago, I wrote a blog post called Divided We Fall, United We Stand. In it, I talk about how a simple act of defiance, a choosing NOT to be divided, can make all the difference. And I still believe that, especially now in the aftermath of the politically motivated murders of Minnesota Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark, and conservative activist Charlie Kirk. However, what is emerging in our collective consciousness is something deeply disturbing.
The storm is here.
This past week, I have had multiple conversations with longtime friends and family who are often on the opposite side of politics. I say politics because when we actually discuss policies, like the need to curb rising utility rates and lower property taxes without harming local budgets and increasing access to affordable healthcare, we can easily agree on the problems. The solutions may differ slightly, but for the most part, those “kitchen table” issues are pretty universally agreed upon. What we do not agree on is largely what comes across our social media feeds. And by not agreeing, I mean, we are not seeing the same thing at all. Literally. Not the same “Breaking News” stories, not the same influencer hot takes, not the same anger and fear turning folks to embrace mistrust or even downright hatred of the “other”.
In this time of algorithmic radicalization (and we can debate who benefits from those algorithms and who benefits from the radicalization of an entire generation), it feels like an herculean task to stay committed to unity. But here’s the thing. Unity without Justice is a false comfort. It is a whitewashed story that refuses to see the reality of a situation, instead trafficking in the status quo or the mythology of a former “great time” to be alive. The truth is, there has never been a “great time” to be alive. There has only ever been the present time where we are alive. Every generation has had its unique struggles to overcome. Some generations more than others. We seem to be entering into such a season. Or rather, like hurricane season, the season is upon us. Many call it apocalyptical - a revealing - because what has formerly been hidden in the dark is now being revealed. Injustice is collapsing under the weight of itself.
What I will say is that this season has been made more difficult, not because of some “radical left agenda” but because an ever-decreasing number of people control an ever-increasingshare of global wealth and power. Injustice. We see this evidenced every day as more cuts are made to healthcare, education, and housing to benefit tax breaks for the wealthiest, while local governments scramble to cobble together viable budgets amidst property tax cuts and tax abatements. These decisions of false scarcity are an injustice. In fact, to a person made homeless due to soaring rental costs or an elderly person hospitalized because they chose food and electricity over their medicines, we see evidence of another form of political violence every single day. We must denounce political violence in every form. And we must demand just policies that put people, no matter their race, gender or creed, first. In doing so, we resist authoritarianism and fascism. In doing so, we retain our own humanity. It really is the only way forward through this storm.
“Apart from the intelligence, the only human faculty which has an interest in public freedom of expression is that point in the heart which cries out against evil. But as it cannot express itself, freedom is of little use to it. What is first needed is a system of public education capable of providing it, so far as possible, with means of expression; and next, a regime in which the public freedom of self expression is characterized not so much by freedom as by an attentive silence in which this faint and inept cry can make itself heard; and finally, institutions are needed of a sort which will, so far as possible, put power into the hands of men who are able and anxious to hear and understand it.” - Simone Weil
Let’s Do This Together!!
My name is Michelle Higgs, and I am running to represent House District 60. If you want a different voice in the Statehouse, someone who champions people over profiteers or partisan politics, please consider me your next State Representative. Follow me on social media (@MichelleHiggsHD60) and subscribe to my mailing list "Mondays with Michelle".
