TransPreacher

Wednesday morning in America. Twenty four hours ago many of us stood in long lines filled with hope and the promise of history that the first Woman of Color president would lead us in to a new era of progress and civility. This was supposed to be the moment that embodied the saying, love wins.

After a restless night, the darkness of human nature has shown its face. In this moment, fear eclipsed trust, tribalism overpowered diversity, perception of scarcity conquered the reality of abundance.

My phone buzzes with messages of pain and shock and concern for my safety. We believed the hype of the polls and thought we had outgrown our heritage of patriarchy, white supremacy, and colonialism. Today we are reminded that these powers will not quietly fade away with the birth of the next generation.  Power will never freely loosen its grip. We can’t expect the systems we live under to reform themselves. 

So what do we do now?

We keep showing up. In all of who we are. In our marginalized bodies and with our naive hope, we keep showing up. 

We carry each other. This morning the barista at Starbucks complimented my hair. We see each other and lift each other up and support each other in our shared pain.

We double down on who we are. The government was never going to bring justice on its own. In the face of hatred, we continue to love. In a world of xenophobia we continue to welcome the stranger. In a world of injustice we continue to lift up voices unheard until they cannot be ignored. 

We will overcome. Today was not that day. Today hurts. The next four years might really hurt. But I do believe, we shall overcome someday. 

Until then we do justice, practice mercy, and walk in love. It is the ethic of love that is the only force that will transform the world in to its full potential. We are the ones who will bring this vision to life. 

As Beyoncé proclaims: “I’ma keep running Cause a winner don’t quit on themselves” 

Keep running. It doesn’t always get worse. Rise above.