BY SHARON MARTIN
This administration isn’t as bad as I thought it would be; it’s much worse. A Soviet-style dictator and an autocratic crown prince direct the president, whether by flattery or by what they hold over him. Putin applauds as we pull out of Syria. Mohammed bin Salman gets away with murder.
A troll farm spreads chaos, and the president tries to stop the investigation into Russian interference because it casts a shadow on his “big win,” an electoral college win orchestrated by big data and internet trolls and abetted by gerrymandering and curtailed voting rights.
On the news recently, a mouth for the administration explained why they were rolling back civil rights protections for students of color who are much more likely than other students to be suspended or sent to detention.
“These people,” she said, “come to school with issues.”
I don’t suppose it occurred to her that addressing the issues of poverty and second-rate education might be more just, never mind more economically sound.
She also cited school safety as the main reason for the suspension numbers.
So, we have to kick brown kids out of school to keep young, white males from shooting up the place?
More than civil rights are being rolled back.
The nationalist in the White House can’t let stand any progress made by the black statesman that preceded him, even if it destroys the country. Even if it destroys the planet. Even if it pushes Iran closer to nuclear weapons. Even if it dashes all hope for a two-state solution in what was once Palestine.Even if children are orphaned by our immigration policies. Or tear gassed. Even if it destroys NATO and the European Union that stymie Putin’s ambitious plans to remake the Soviet Union.
Where’s the hope in all this?
We, the people, are the hope.
We took back the House in November, but that isn’t enough. We have to keep standing up to the bully standing behind the biggest bully pulpit of them all. We have to protect the weak, protest the shredding of our Constitution, and keep on keeping on.
The only antidote to this toxic administration is our action. The wannabe dictator and his handlers won’t win because we won’t let them.
Here’s wishing all of us hope and strength for the fight in the coming year.
– Sharon Martin lives in Oilton, OK and is a regular contributor to The Oklahoma Observer. Her latest book, Not A Prodigal, is available through Barnes and Noble. Her recent children’s book, Froggy Bottom Blues, can be purchased in hardcover or paperback from Doodle and Peck Publishingand in paperback from Amazon.
