This past April, I helped organize an interfaith service commemorating seven years of war in Syria.
Thinking of a title for the event was not easy. Our committee had never imagined that this brutal war would still be claiming lives and displacing millions of people. Worst of all, it appeared that the reign of Syria’s brutal dictator, Bashar al-Assad was not going to end anytime soon.
Our thoughts turned to the courageous acts of Syrians who refused to give up their efforts to bring democratic reforms to their country. In spite of the bombings, chemical attacks, sieges, and detentions, Syrians are at work building civil society, creating schools, rebuilding bombed hospitals, opening rehabilitation clinics and women’s centers, and preparing to someday rebuild their country.
The title for our service, “Keeping Hope Alive,” reflected the determination of so many Syrians to hold onto their dreams of freedom.
I have thought a lot about keeping hope alive in my own country. Donald Trump’s judicial appointments, executive orders, attacks on our allies, and hateful speech are an affront to those who treasure freedom and liberty for all.
The inability of Republican leaders to challenge his authority can leave us in a perpetual state of anxiety and dread for what the future holds. Our country does, indeed, appear to have been hijacked by self-serving bigots led by an impulsive and immoral madman.
Many of my older adult peers bemoan our perception that things have never been this bad, but for many Americans, freedom has always been elusive. Institutional racism has always been the norm for African-Americans. Treatment of refugees and immigrants has been influenced by xenophobia. Women have had their bodies abused and regulated by discriminatory policies, and children have always been victims of government abuse. Native Americans, religious minorities, those with disabilities have also been oppressed in a country founded on the principle that all white men are created equal.
The United States has lived through many eras of darkness, even in modern history. The epidemic of mass shootings, police murders of African-Americans, and record levels of income inequality plagued the U.S. long before the 2016 election. We can throw up our hands in defeat or, like those in Syria, we can choose to “keep hope alive,” guided by the belief that change is possible.
Counting sheep or psychopharmacology will not relieve Trump-induced insomnia. Instead, make a mental list of the many reasons for hope that have emerged since the inauguration of 2017.
Young women are running for political office in record numbers this year. A majority of those in the United States support gun control, abortion rights and gay marriage.
An increasing number of state and local governments are refusing to turn over to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement the names of undocumented immigrants stopped by police. The American Civil Liberties Union convinced a judge to order the federal government to reunite parents and children forcibly separated at the southern border.
Thousands of Americans are supporting the work of faith-based organizations that have given sanctuary to those facing imminent deportation. Those who publicly make racist statements or sexually harass are publicly chastised.
Twitter and Facebook have turned social media into a powerful weapon against hatred. When I compare Trump to Hitler, I remind myself that Hitler succeeded because of passivity in the face of evil.
Today, we do not remain silent in the face of injustice. Dozens of resistance groups are enlisting hundreds of thousands of Americans to fight for democracy by holding their elected officials accountable, supporting progressive candidates, registering voters and getting them to the polls, and publicly demonstrating against oppression.
In our own community there is an active movement to prevent nuclear war, to establish improved Medicare for All in Massachusetts, to fight for workers’ rights and to protect immigrants. Young people are speaking out against gun violence and sexual harassment. All of these groups are joining forces at the state and national levels to create powerful movements for social justice.
The Trump administration will be defeated from the bottom up by millions of Americans who refuse to succumb to passivity in the face of fear. We are in a war to save the soul of our nation. It’s an uphill battle that will take time and commitment.
When Donald Trump’s presidency ends, this country is going to look a lot different than it did in 2016, but it doesn’t have to become the nightmare that keeps us awake at night.
Those of us who have been involved in helping to keep hope alive in Syria have gotten people across the country to send letters and cards of hope to remind those suffering in Syria that the world hasn’t forgotten them. During these dark times in the U.S., we need to compose letters of hope to ourselves to strengthen our resolve to transform this country into a haven for humanity.
Hope will be kept alive if each of us imagines an undaunted vision of democracy restored and takes an active role to make this vision a reality.
Sara Weinberger, of Easthampton, is a professor emerita of social work and writes a monthly column. She can be reached at opinion@gazettenet.com.