Like many people, I am horrified by the new world order that is being created by the current administration in the United States.
This is not to say that there aren’t injustices going on all over the world and in my own country.
This is, though, a wake-up call to pay attention to those who deliberately make rules for others based on their own pecuniary interests and prejudices. This is the ground being broken for something worse. This is hatred writ large, being disguised as a means of keeping people safe and protecting their rights to be white and privileged. This is a time for pushback.
Those of us who have read history, and heard the stories of those whose families fled for their lives, or indeed lost them, in the wake of fascist regimes cannot help but be horrified at the patterns we are seeing.
And it’s not just Trump we need to worry about. It is the coterie of mostly men who surround him. They are the ones who have agreed to join this unholy game. They are the ones who are putting themselves in greater positions of power to implement fearful ideologies at the expense of the most vulnerable in society. They are the ones who know exactly how to play a game of divide and conquer, shocking us into paying attention to their latest grenade and behind the scenes implementing more sinister moves.
We can’t all do everything. This is a battle to be waged on many fronts.
What I can do is give thought (and then action) as to how I can add to the resistance. This is the start of my list, my small contribution to a bigger pool.
1 In the year to March 2016, 1.01 million Australians visited the USA. I was one of them. I will not travel to the United States of America again until such time as this administration begins to understand and implement its own Constitution. As part of this action, I will inform the airlines I would normally choose to fly with, and continue to encourage others to consider this action. #boycotttravelusa
2 I will pay attention to the products I buy and the companies whose services I use in the context of their response to the hatred.
3 I will write to and call Australian politicians who are either being silent or mealy-mouthed about the politics of hate and discrimination, and how it impacts our own citizens and their families.
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