Links: For those left behind ...

[sonia]

... when a young person is murdered.

How an Astonishing Holocaust Diary Resurfaced in America by Robin Shulman. Beautifully written, heart-wrenching story of Polish-Jewish teen Renia Spiegel, her diary during the Holocaust until she was murdered, and her surviving family. Via minoanmiss.

Teenager Jadun Byrd Fatally Shot While on FaceTime Call With Mother by Anders Anglesey. My friend knows Jadun's mother. He told me about being with a group of people as they all watched the video of Jadun's death on Facebook. He said to them, "For the love of all that is good, don't act like you didn't just see that. Take all the time you need."

So I said to him, "What does it look like for you to not act like you didn't just tell me about this." He took some time to sit with how it felt ("It sucks!") and I did too, rather than being "fine" and moving on to the next thing and burying the shock and grief of a young Black man's murder and a whole community's loss.


What to Do When the World Is Ending by Yotam Marom.

But beyond strategy, there is also just the simple, humble, profound task of being authentically alive on this planet in a time of collapse.

Comments

[minoanmiss]

oh God my heart.

I hate it so much that I am so relieved I never bore a dark-skinned child in this horrible country.

*hugs you*

[sonia]

<3 <3 *hugs you back*

I hate it with you that it makes sense to be relieved. I wonder how many potential beloved dark-skinned children never were because of this country's racism.

[silveradept]

It would certainly be more heartening and help with despair if there were more clear victories. Even if they were small. But it seems like one victory is countered by a hundred defeats. But we still keep fighting.

[sonia]

Have you read Rebecca Solnit's "Hope in the Dark"? Her argument is that the victories are small and on the margins, until suddenly something big shifts "suddenly." I'd like to see her write about the ensuing backlash, though. Oh yeah, her next book came in for me at the library! I'll have to pick it up and see if she did write about that.

[silveradept]

I haven't, but I have a poster with a quote attributed to Mandela: "It always seems impossible until it is done." I assume that Solnit would agree with that idea, as well as a lot of other people who research great changes and see how it takes a lot of small things coming together and then it seems like there's a sudden rush where everything changes all at once.