Friend,
This last week has been a grueling one for people of color and immigrants in our country.
ICE raids are potentially looming across a dozen major cities, including Denver (which does not cooperate with ICE requests). Donald Trump has once again degraded the presidency by hurling racist and xenophobic tweets at women of color in Congress, then defending his supporters’ chants of hate at one of his rallies.
As I watched the video of those chants, I couldn’t help but think of one of our own newly-elected members of Congress: Joe Neguse, who represents Colorado’s 2nd District and is himself a son of Eritrean immigrants who arrived in this country as refugees of war.
Trump’s behavior, and the behavior he has unleashed, goes beyond those he specifically named in his attacks. It harms us all.
We are in a severe crisis of division, fueled by this president and intensifying by the day. It has to end, and the way to end it is by making a discipline of listening and learning—to commit ourselves fully to absorbing and empathizing with the experiences and needs of communities of color.
This weekend it was my privilege to sit down with the Congressional Black Caucus to discuss voting rights and the epidemic of voter suppression in our country, as well as to spend time with the tireless fighters at the NAACP, talking about how to move our country forward.
I even saw Joe himself, and we got a chance to catch up, trade stories about his first months in Congress vs. my months on the campaign trail, and recommit to the fight to see our country through this crisis of division.
I’ll sign off with these words: It’s more important than ever that we reach out across differences of background and culture and origin, and stand together as one.
Check in on your neighbors; call your friends and colleagues for dinner. Check if there’s a way to help refugees in your community.
Donald Trump may not choose different words any time soon. But each and every day, we can choose to stand tall, together, against hate and division.
If you believe in this message and would like to help us keep getting it out across the country, every contribution helps, as well.
Warmly,
John
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