This is Robert talking. I hip-checked Etiquetteer off the podium, and he is standing in the corner stabbing me with his eyes and his little rapier. He’s going to get in the way of what I have to say.
Friday night’s news of the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg shattered any calm people might have found for themselves in this horrible year - and, I hope, any complacency about the coming elections. Justice Ginsburg was a great American, a great lady, and a great example of dignity in public life. I love that she said "My mother told me to be a lady. And for her, that meant be your own person, be independent.” When most people think about “being a lady” it’s about deportment or how to wear gloves. No. Being a lady, or a gentleman, is much deeper than that. And now we have to call on ourselves to be lady and gentleman fighters for Perfect Propriety.
Justice Ginsburg also said "Fight for the things that you care about, but do it in a way that will lead others to join you.” But . . . but what is that way? It’s not Nelson Eddy singing “Stout-Hearted Men” any more! And it isn’t unbridled anger. Be angry, by all means. There is a lot to be angry about! But here’s the thing. We may vote politicians out of office, but we don’t vote anyone off the island. Often I fail at this. I have at times expressed anger about the Other Side, and a need for them to express contrition for the actions of the politicians they support. I have always ended up regretting it - and it didn’t change a thing anyway. Justice Ginsburg said something about that, too: “Don’t be distracted by emotions like anger, envy, resentment. These just zap energy and waste time.”
The phrase “Speak the truth, even if your voice shakes” has been appearing frequently, which led me to find its source: Maggie Kuhn, founder of the Gray Panthers. The whole quote is worth your attention: “Leave safety behind. Put your body on the line. Stand before the people you fear and speak your mind – even if your voice shakes. When you least expect it, someone may actually listen to what you have to say. Well-aimed slingshots can topple giants. And do your homework.”
The most powerful part is “Speak your mind, even if your voice shakes,” of course. But the most important part is “Do your homework.” Don’t just forward a link because it caught your attention, read the whole thing, and check its sources. And check out the organization publishing it, and its funding. I am certainly not the first person to forward something scandalous only to find out it’s from a news satire website, but it doesn’t help.
Fear and Apathy are our enemies. If you are feeling fear right now, you can’t let it immobilize you. What can we do about fear? Take action! That thought may make you afraid, too. That’s OK. Push through and past that fear, and get busy. William Lloyd Garrison, the great 19th-century abolitionist, has been much on my mind lately, and I was floored when I discovered that he wrote this: “The apathy of the people is enough to make every statue leap from its pedestal and hasten the resurrection of the dead.” Doing nothing is not an appropriate tribute to Justice Ginsburg - or the late Representative John Lewis, for that matter.
Speak out. Speak truthfully. Speak from a place of knowledge. My words are not perfect and my voice is shaking. But Trump is an enemy of Decency, and he and those who enable him must be voted out. It’s that simple.