Do one thing

I'm not really in the mood to have a birthday this year. My mom asked me what I wanted for my birthday and my response was "I guess cake?" Normally, I love celebrating my birthday, but it feels weird this year, not just because of social distancing. It's weird to think about celebrating when all I really want to do is burn things down (both metaphorically and literally). 

When I was thinking about this whole birthday thing this week, I thought "I should ask my network to do something for me. That would be cool." I don't like to ask people to do things for me on my birthday, but I'm making an exception this year. I feel like y'all can handle it. 

My request may seem simple, and in many ways, it is. BUT it's also not. It requires you to do some work and to be the good citizen I know you can be. You know how I love being a good citizen. Sometimes being a good citizen means putting your shopping cart in the shopping cart return area or wearing a mask in a public place. Other times, it means doing my favorite thing in the world:

VOTING

We are at a crucial place in history. The next several election cycles will have a substantial impact on the future of our country, up and down the ballot. The choices we make in these elections will impact all branches of the federal government in more ways than a president or members of Congress. You're voting for Supreme Court justices, federal judges, funding for programs that protect healthcare, immigration rights, civil rights, the fairness of our elections, and regulations that impact our planet. State and local elections have the potential to change the way policing works in this country, not to mention the impact on education and state economies. This is the reality of the next several election cycles. 

Are you registered to vote? Take the time today to ensure you are registered to vote. You can check your registration status by going to sites like Vote.Org or Rock the Vote (for all you 90s kids out there). You can also Google your state and voter registration to connect to your state's department of elections (or voter registration) to register. It takes under 10 minutes to register and you don't have to leave your house. 

Once/If you're registered to vote, make sure to confirm some additional items:

• Get the address of your physical polling place. For those of you who already are registered, check to see if it moved. This happens all the time, and can cause confusion when you go to vote. 
• Know the hours polling will be open - if you are in line before the end of polling hours, you can still vote. 
• Understand the identification requirements for your state.
• Check into mail-in and absentee ballot rules for your state. Not all states are allowing for mail-in ballots because of COVID-19. so you need to know what you're able to do and how to do. 
• Educate yourself on the ballot. You need to know what positions and ballot initiatives will be on the ballot. Find candidates that support your values and learn about initiatives because your tax dollars pay for them. 

All of this information can be found on your state's department of elections website. 

Don't let anyone tell you voting doesn't matter. We are where we are today because it does. The systems we have in place in the United States are designed to protect and benefit white people. That's the reality. If this makes you uncomfortable, well, too bad. Because of this reality, voting plays a significant role in how those systems work, are changed, are funded, and are dismantled. Because of this reality, our vote matters so much.

Let's use an example. 

Say you live in a town where the director of the town animal shelter is an elected position. On first glance, this seems like a pretty straightforward elected position. It should be an apolitical position; they're helping animals find new homes. You didn't take time to learn anything about the person running, so you vote for them because A. they're the only one on the ballot and B. it's the animal shelter - it doesn't matter that much. (Side bar: I adopted my pets from shelters, so please don't think this is me saying management of animal shelters doesn't matter. It absolutely does, but this is an example so go with it. Also, many people think this exact thought about local elections and local ballot measures - they all matter, but we don't treat them with the same gravity of voting for President.)

The newly elected animal shelter director takes office and seems to be doing a good job. Animal adoptions are steady. Pets are well taken care of. It looks like the shelter is an awesome example of a community resource. BUT long-time employees and volunteers are leaving at a much higher percentage than normal, most citing "culture" or "hostile work environment" as the reason. The applications for pet adoptions from black applicants are accepted at a lower rate than white applicants despite the application numbers being similar in terms of volume. While it's concerning, you don't think about the possibility of it being related to racism. Someone would have told you if the director was racist. You would have heard that before the election. It's probably just the newness of this person in the position, you think. It can't be racism. You move on with your day and forget about the election of the animal shelter director. 

A few years pass and we're at the next election cycle. The animal shelter director is now running for school board. Again, you vote for this person because they did a good job as director and you heard they wanted to improve class size and look at funding some after school programs focused on engineering. Those are good things, right? They win again, and now the school board is voting on a measure to omit black history curriculum from all schools. Guess who proposed that measure? That's right, the former animal shelter director. Debate gets heated, and the animal shelter director/now school board member uses a derogatory word to describe a black member of the board arguing against the measure and makes other racist comments. You're horrified - you didn't realize you voted for a racist. No one told you this person is racist. 

I get that this is an oversimplification of a very complex problem, but it illustrates my point. If you don't do the work to know who you're voting for, you've allowed someone to voice your opinion for you. You might not be a racist, but you voted for one whether you knew it or not. Not only did they do something racist in your name since you voted for them, you also allowed the system to continue to work in the way it has for centuries. When we don't exercise our right to vote or we don't educate ourselves about what/who we're voting for or we don't fight to make voting equitable for all citizens, we're allowing those in power to take more power from us. They're our elected officials...they work for us, not the other way around. I started working on political campaigns when I was 17, before I could vote. Those early campaigns taught me this. They taught me the true power of the people and why it matters that I exercise my right to vote.

Yes, I'm a white woman who grew up in the suburbs. I have a college degree. My parents aren't divorced. I'm in good health. My privilege is a big, flashing neon sign. I can't change those things about myself, but I can continue to educate myself and use the things that afford me privilege to change the way things are for the better. I can stand up for people who need it, AND I can stand up to people who are racist. I can spend money supporting black-owned businesses. I can donate to organizations that help drive these changes forward. I can boycott organizations and companies that don't or who actively promote racist beliefs (#notmycaptain for those of you from New Orleans). I can march and protest. I can vote. 

And so can you. 

So on this day, the start of my 41st year on Earth, in the middle of the weirdest timeline of my life, I ask you to do one thing: 

VOTE! 

If you're feeling excited and motivated today and want to take my birthday request a step further, here are a few more things you can do/read/learn:

• Take actions to bring Breonna Taylor's killers to justice. Taylor's killers have not been arrested, and it was reported yesterday that the police report regarding her murder was virtually blank. Really? 
• Side note: today is also Cate Young's birthday. She's the woman behind the action website. Happy Birthday, Cate!
• Donate! There are so many great organizations out there who need help right now. Here are a few to get you started:
• Black Visions Collective
• Black Lives Matter
• The Trevor Project - it's also Pride Month. The Trevor Project focuses on mental health support for LGBTQ youth. Check out their resources on helping Black LGBTQ youth. 
• Take a look at this article for a longer list of organizations, bail funds, and victim memorial funds you can support.
• Learn about racism from Elmo's Dad - if it takes a puppet to teach you why racism is wrong, then it takes a puppet.
• Join the NAACP. 
• Let Lizzo remind you that it's not black people's jobs to teach anyone about racism. Seriously, it's not. Do the work.  
• Follow some new voices on social media.
• Support black-owned businesses. Here's a list of Etsy shops and an article highlighting 75 businesses from Forbes. You can use Google to find more. 

Next week: Transient Suburbia returns! We'll pick up with chapters 14 and 15.