The feels are big right now.
I don't know about you, but for me, the past few days have been...intense.
Friday's decision by the US Supreme Court, while not unexpected, sent shock waves through my nervous system, my relationships, my communities. You've probably had a similar experience.
Often, when I (we?) experience huge waves of intensity like this, I (we?) want to go straight to what we can do. And we must figure out what we can do for sure (Below are some resources).
That said, it's also in our interest to feel what we are feeling—and to feel it together.
Here we are, the first Monday after this really hard weekend. It can be really tempting to go into a "it's not appropriate to bring our feelings to work" mindset. It is, after all the way we've been conditioned.
Goodness, if I had a nickel for every time I heard, "I'm sorry I'm (fill in the emotional blank here)," who knows how many nickels I'd have. A lot.
Friends, I hope that we'll be willing to continue to allow ourselves to process what we are experiencing. I hope that we can give one another grace if these next days and weeks are a bit rocky. I hope that we can disrupt the idea that it's possible to shut off our feelings at work. It's just nonsense.
And if you are a man who is thinking that Friday's decision doesn't affect you, I'd encourage you to consider watching this short video. It's a short (and humorous) reminder of how everyone is impacted by reproductive freedom.
I hope that you have people to help you process whatever is alive for you. If you have the capacity to help others, I hope you can find the space to do so.
Take care of yourselves and each other. Please reach out if you need to.
. . .
As you are considering how you might want to contribute to the ongoing fight for reproductive justice, here are some great resources to learn from and donate to (thank you to my spouse, Melinda, Director of Communications at the Washington State Budget and Policy Center for making me aware of these):
Surge Reproductive Justice mobilizes communities to build a world where all people can make powerful, self-determined choices for their bodies and the future of their families and communities. Their work centers Black women, women of color, and queer and trans people of color for a movement that rises from the bottom up.
SisterSong is a Southern based, national membership organization; their purpose is to build an effective network of individuals and organizations to improve institutional policies and systems that impact the reproductive lives of marginalized communities
The Northwest Abortion Access Fund is an abortion fund serving Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and Alaska. Trained, compassionate volunteer advocates run their toll-free hotline. They help people pay for their abortion care and they also help people get to and from the clinic and make sure people traveling for care have a safe place to stay.
Pro-Choice Washington, formerly NARAL Pro-Choice Washington, is a grassroots advocacy organization for reproductive freedom in Washington state. They believe every person deserves equitable access to affordable, unbiased, quality reproductive and abortion healthcare within their community.
Planned Parenthood of Greater Washington and North Idaho and Planned Parenthood Great Northwest, Hawaii, Alaska, Indiana, Kentucky help people make responsible decisions about their sexual health. They proudly fight for people to be able to get the sexual and reproductive health services they need.
