Losing sight of what made us great
Sorry for being radio silent for so long but we needed to take a “pause” to really think about what has been happening in our country in the last two weeks. We fought our initial reaction to take to social media with outrage but instead chose to wait and craft a more thoughtful response. We saw a man take office as our President who won the electoral college but lost the popular vote, we saw this same man make good on campaign promises that meant much to half our country but terrified the other half. We at Theatre for Humans find it impossible to not take a stand or position. For years we have been advocating for basic human rights. We firmly believe that every woman, man and child has the right to live in peace and harmony. The actions taken by our President threaten this belief by further dividing an already divided nation and world. The United States is a country built by immigrants and refugees. We would not exist as a nation without the contributions of people from all over the world. We, as a nation, have chosen to place a symbol in New York Harbor that reflects our identity. That statue happens to have been a gift from France, and the words that echo our united sentiments happen to have been written by an American woman, a poet of Jewish decent with parents who immigrated from Germany and Portugal. Her words are as true to day as when they were first written “Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free. The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
So let’s not forget Lady Liberty and what we as a nation stand for. Let’s celebrate our diversity and continue to welcome immigrants and refugees to our shore. Let’s have our national debate so that we can come together but let’s hold this debate, with civility to each other and with tolerance and understanding for both sides of the issue. Let’s resist the pull of fear and hatred of our fellow citizens and of those wishing to come to our country. We are better than that. We are better when we stand together. We are better when we love rather than hate. We are better when we stand united.
