18 Comments
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Elizabeth Silleck La Rue, Esq.'s avatar

I'm going to drop a few links here that those wanting to emigrate (and those who want to discourage them) should read: https://open.substack.com/pub/theconscientiousemigrant/p/watch-who-youre-talking-to-stop-telling?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=1h269a

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Deborah Shell's avatar

Thanks for the valuable info.👍🏼Have a great holiday weekend!🇺🇸🇺🇸

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Elizabeth Silleck La Rue, Esq.'s avatar

You too!

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WTH Is Going On?! Chris Berrie's avatar

While I initially considered leaving the country, I was reminded again that people of privilege need to stay and fight on behalf of those who cannot.

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Walter Rhein's avatar

My wife and I thought long and hard on it after the election. As an immigrant, she's a target of the current regime. But we're in a rural area away from the action, and our kids are doing well in their school. She has a good job. We do carry our passport cards with us as proof of citizenship.

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Elizabeth Silleck La Rue, Esq.'s avatar

Well, we all have some privilege. I believe in everyone's right to migrate, irrespective of the reason. It's a natural and normal thing to do even without fascist forces driving you from behind.

If you have the capacity to stay and fight and choose to, that is a path that may be right for you. It doesn't mean others “need” to, and to be frank I think a lot of people use that as an excuse because they don't actually want to do all it takes to leave. I have seen people say they are staying and fighting, but all of their “fighting” takes place online (which can be done from anywhere).

I am not saying this is you, but I do want to point out for the sake of other readers that the choice about emigration is a highly individual one, and no one has the moral authority to guilt someone over that choice. The real question is, what will your impact be where you show up?

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Walter Rhein's avatar

Yes, I think that's a fair comment! Everybody has to do what they think is best for them.

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WTH Is Going On?! Chris Berrie's avatar

“Everyone must challenge the legality of every unlawful and unconstitutional action undertaken by Trump.

Standing up for the Constitution is always the right thing to do. If we don’t, who will?”

Robert Hubbell

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Janet A's avatar

Thank you for what you are doing. My daughter has many chronic illnesses and is in college trying to create a life for herself. If she has to leave the country to get medical care, I will go with her, and my first call will be to you for your services. Wishing you and your family all the best!

Janet

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Elizabeth Silleck La Rue, Esq.'s avatar

Thank you Janet! I am here for you and your daughter if you need me 🙏💞

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Janet A's avatar

What good information to have. Thank you for what you are doing. My daughter has many chronic illnesses and is in college trying to create a life for herself. If she has to leave the country to get medical care, I will go with her, and my first call will be to you for your services. Wishing you and your family all the best!

Janet

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WTH Is Going On?! Chris Berrie's avatar

I’m not guilting anybody. I’m reminding everyone of what’s at stake. Preservation of our Democratic principles and institutions is everybody’s responsibility. I believe that people with privilege, who are not directly affected in a highly damaging way, need to fight like hell. If we don’t, we WILL lose our constitutional republic. What if people refused to fight in World Wars 1 & 2? Everyone pulled together and made sacrifices to win those wars. I understand that each individual should decide their own path of resistance. But the price to pay for not participating in our own governance is steep. Many of us have long reaped the rewards the USA has to offer. We need to pay our debt. Posting on social media is the very least of what can be done. Join a national resistance group like Indivisible, 50501, Field Team 6, ACLU, etc. Volunteer for the local chapter and attend their events. Volunteer and donate to your local democratic campaign headquarters, canvassing, writing postcards, phone or text banking. Circulate petitions to enshrine civil rights protections into your state’s constitution. Call or email your MOC, state and local officials, and organizations daily to encourage or thank them for voting and/or demonstrating your values. This is not a complete list, but it’s a good start. I’m 70 years old and a non-affiliated voter. I’m extremely grateful that my privilege and retirement allow me to do all of these things and more. While I don’t expect that everyone do everything, I do expect everyone do something. Previous generations have fought and died for this country. If we are not willing to do that, we don’t deserve the privileges of being American. No matter your plight, it’s generally not worse than people in many other countries. The U.S. has many flaws, but it’s a damn sight better to live in a place where you can work to change things, than in many other regimes. Nowhere and nothing will ever be perfect, but the collapse of the US, as a democratic constitutional republic, will have major negative impacts across the globe.

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Walter Rhein's avatar

I think Chris means well and Elizabeth brings up important facts about marginalized groups. This is looking like a "thread misunderstanding." We're all on the same side and we're passionate about doing the right thing. Let's leave it at that. Thanks!

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