Fair warning: this will be a somewhat photo-heavy diary.
Trump is turning out to be the great uniter after all: millions of us are united like never before in universal disgust and outrage at the leadership of our country and the complicity of congressional Republicans in this truly embarrassing chapter in our nation’s history.
On the one year anniversary of the most shameful and disgraceful inauguration in our nation’s history, protestors in Fort Worth joined with their sisters across the nation in a repeat performance of their outrage at what is happening in their country.
Events like this are a breath of fresh air for those of us in red states, for we often live our lives like agents of the resistance in hiding: we timidly keep our political opinions to ourselves while conservatives loudly bloviate whenever and wherever they please, confident in the notion that everyone agrees with them and unafraid (or uncaring) of anyone being offended at their words.
Liberals like us, meanwhile, furtively seek each other out and upon finding a kindred spirit, it’s treated like a great secret being shared. I’m surprised we haven’t started issuing decoder rings and perfecting secret handshakes and symbols, so carefully do we hide ourselves day to day.
Saturday was different, though: it was a chance to make yourself heard, be proud of who you are, and let everyone know that we are here and what we think. It was a glorious celebration of nasty women, unruly and unwilling to behave themselves, know their place, or above all tolerate yet another request to “smile please”. There was plenty to be proud of, from unafraid Dreamers making their presence heard, to the surprisingly large number of male allies out in solidarity. Perhaps most encouraging were the many young girls, already learning that being a woman with an opinion and a voice is something to be proud of, not stifled for fear of hurting mens’ feelings or egos.
It’s hard to pick out a favorite T-shirt or poster from among the many that were there, but I did my best to pick the ones that seemed to get the most laughs, cheers, and pointed fingers. Here’s a few of those now:
We in the Ruby for Congress campaign were out there marching with the crowd. It was a really energizing event: we met local voters who both had heard of Ruby or seen her on the news and others who hadn’t but were eager to learn more about a local woman of color they could vote for in the midterms. We also met local activist groups who were out to meet other groups and candidates to invite, and we met other local Democrats running for offices local and statewide. If you live in a red state I cannot recommend strongly enough that you attend the next march or rally like this: it’s truly invigorating to realize you’re not the only liberal for 100 miles. It gave many of us, exhausted from a year of Trump, the boost we needed to get back into the fight. Our candidate Ruby Faye got a chance to meet with everyone from local supporters….
...to local Dreamers….
...to fellow candidates for office, like Steve Riddell (TX State House, District 92):
We’ll be adding more photos and updates to our campaign website as it undergoes a makeover this weekend, meanwhile Ruby will be appearing at a candidate meet & greet today at a meeting with a local Democratic activist group (360 Corridor Democratic Action).
Here’s to another year of #RESIST and watching the clock tick down until midterms and Mueller Time! See you on the streets and at the ballot boxes!
I am the communications coordinator for the Ruby Faye Woolridge for Congress campaign in the Texas 6th Congressional District. You can donate or volunteer to support Ruby at our website, www.vote4ruby.org, or donate via our ActBlue account HERE or CrowdPAC HERE. Right now we’re asking for everyone who can to donate $6 for our “Six for the Sixth” campaign, ahead of March 6th’s primary vote!