The world has been on fire!
It is hard to even write this blog post when so much is going on…
Racialized bodies under attack.
Anti-Indigenous racism and anti-Black racism.
Police violence.
Violence against women and children.
Hate crimes.
More opioid deaths, less homes and safe shelter; more crisis, less services and resources.
Fires, storms, flooding, earthquakes – natural disasters on all fronts.
A pandemic that continues to isolate each of us away from our loved ones and our dear communities of friends and family.
A pandemic that is keeping women and children in unsafe homes, living in fear and literally at risk for their lives.
And the contested election across the border that has fuelled hatred and emboldened all that is unkind and toxic in the world.
And even as the final result of that election has come in, what has emerged is an awakening (for some) about how fragile and easily displaced notions of justice, equality, dignity and humanity are in the world, as well as how systems of oppression interlock and build on each other to create inequity and disadvantage through generations.
There is so much resistance to acknowledging and accepting that much inequity is actually built into the fabric of institutions, like systemic racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, classism, ableism and violence against women and children.
The U.S. election is a good example of thinking it was just about one man, one “bad apple”, one leader, but millions of votes later, a nation is dealing with the stark reality that it is not just about that one man. That one man’s beliefs could be held firmly by your neighbour, your colleague, your co-worker, or someone in your community, congregation or intimate circle. That realization has made the ground less certain for moving forward; even if that man is no longer there, the beliefs have foundation to live and grow. That will be the challenge.
This awakening is not new.
I see the same dynamic when working with women survivors of violence in family law.
- There is reluctance to accept or acknowledge the systemic reality of violence against women.
- Even though abundant research exists that shows women and children disproportionately
experience violence, we still systemically do not name this reality. - In family law, the predominant fiction continues that these are just isolated private acts of
violence.
If there is anything we can continue to learn and be reminded of at this particular time in the world, it is that it is rarely about just one man.
The power rests in each of our voices, collectively for the good of all, to always demand accountability and truth.
