We Shall Not Go Quietly

People, it is time to organize, cooperate and reach out to like-minded allies. This is NOT the time to be individual heroes and/or have one person doing what a hundred other people are doing.

It is time to recreate the Underground Railroad. The History site gives helpful information on the Underground Railroad. You can read about it here: https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/underground-railroad Most of us know the name Harriet Tubman, but there were hundreds of others. Their names are lost to history but they were a crucial part of the movement.

The Underground Railroad grew out of the conviction that no person had the right to own another person.

If a new movement is to provide the network women will need, we have to get our convictions straight. If you are a person of faith, you have to get your beliefs straight. The only way coordinated efforts that reach to every corner of the country will get off the ground is through one committed person at a time. Margaret Mead wrote, “Never doubt that a small committed group of people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” This is no time for handwringing and feelings of desperation. This is a time to organize, speak out, protest and be counted.

Here are some points for consideration:

• The government has a long history of affirming individual freedom: “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” The government can assume no authority over women’s bodies. Women have autonomy to decide what is best for them. To deny this because it is not explicitly mentioned in the constitution is absurd. Driver’s licenses and car registrations aren’t mentioned either, but you can go to jail if you don’t have them.
• I believe this action by the part of the Not-So-Supreme-Court prevents me from practicing my faith in the way I see fit.
  • I believe God created us with free will, the capacity to choose and the moral agency to make decisions about our own lives. John Pavlovitz has a compelling argument about God being Pro-Choice. You can read it here: https://johnpavlovitz.com/2020/10/15/god-is-pro-choice/
  • We need people of faith to speak long and loud to shift the dominant narrative of the religious fanatics and make known an alternate position grounded in faith in a just God. We need an out-there-in-your-face witness to an alternate narrative that has its own validity and dignity.
  • We need courageous preachers to address these issues from the pulpit and put petitions out for people to sign at coffee hour. Ask your pastor to preach on this issue. If needed, I will send a ready-to-preach sermon that can be used in various settings, as long as proper citation is given. If s/he feels unable to address this from the pulpit, please comment on the blog site. I will preach for free in your church (CT, MA and RI) beginning in September. The joy of being a supply preacher is that you don’t have to care if you piss people off. The gospel is the gospel and sometimes it pisses people off. I’m good with that.
  • We need courageous preachers to help end the shame and stigma that women feel terminating a pregnancy. There are women in just about every church in this country who have terminated a pregnancy. Whether last week or twenty years ago, they are in need of care and freedom from stigma.
  • We need clergy to use the authority of their office and write letters to the editor.
  • We all need to stand up and be counted in our convictions.
• Associate Justices obfuscated or outright lied about their opinions on Roe v. Wade and how they would vote. Is there no repercussion or accountability for them?
• Write to the Justices. Thank those who voted to uphold Row v. Wade and castigate the justices who outright lied in their confirmation hearings. Call them to account for making the decision to strip women of their moral agency.
• Women of means will always have access to reproductive health care. This decision disproportionately affects low income women and women of color. The overturning of Roe v. Wade is first and foremost a justice issue.

The truth is I have no idea how to organize an underground railroad, but I do know this. If Harriet Tubman did it with no phones and no internet, we should be able to figure it out. There already are networks in place. This is no time to reinvent the wheel. Contact your local Planned Parenthood agency and find out how you can help.

Please share this blog on your Facebook page or forward it to your e-mail list. Leave a comment on my blog site. Comments are moderated. Obscene and disparaging comments will be removed. Let’s make this go viral and mobilize!

This is a time to be part of the solution.