I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t stressed out about all the craziness going on in our country right now.

Gun violence

Book banning

Attacks on voting rights

Overturning of Roe v Wade

Attacks on LGBTQ rights

1,000,000+ deaths from COVID

Inflation

Russia’s war on Ukraine

Climate change

The threat to democracy

There are days when I am overwhelmed with anger and frustration, and other days when I just want to stick my head in the sand, stay away from social media and the news, and pretend none of it is happening.

There are days when I act like an optimistic sports fan and tell myself it’s going to be okay. Cheering from the sidelines and keeping my fingers crossed for the midterm elections, and the 2024 election. After all, there is always next season, right? If we can just elect the right people, they can fix it all for us, right?

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Is that how you are handling things, too?

S T O P !

Maybe, just maybe, we all need to do more.

Because Democracy is a team sport. WE are on the team, and we all have to play to win.

So how do we do that?

Sure, go ahead and be sad, or angry or frustrated. Take a break from the news and social media. Take time for self care.

But then pick the ONE THING you care about the most, decide to get involved and take action. Ranting on social media isn’t really changing anyone’s mind. Putting a bumper sticker on your car or a sign in your yard isn’t going to have much impact either. But there are plenty of ways you can make a difference.

Start Local

Educate yourself on the bills being discussed by your state legislature. Figure out who your representatives are, and call or email them to share your opinions. I’m not always happy with the responses I’ve received to my e-mails, but at least I know they heard me!

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Join With Others

Concerned about gun violence? Join Moms Demand Action

Concerned about voting rights?
Check your voter registration and make a plan to vote.
Talk to your family and friends and make sure they have plans to vote.
Sign up to work on voter registration drives in your local area.
Sign up to be a poll worker.
When We All Vote is a great resource.

Concerned about women’s access to health care, including abortion? The National Network of Abortion Funds has been advocating for women for a long time, and will continue to to so whether Roe v Wade is overturned or not.

Disturbed by book bans? The group Red, Wine and Blue has a great resource called Book Ban Busters!

These are just a few suggestions to give you a place to start. If you have other ideas, I’d love to hear about them in the comments below!

But please, find a cause, get involved and speak out! We can’t be silent and hope “they” are going to fix for us.

Our democracy depends on it.

Carrie

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