Category: COVID-19, Politics, Social Justice Issues and More
In my series “Life During COVID-19” I discuss what’s happening in my life and how the pandemic affects me, the U.S., and the world. I also reflect on politics, social justice issues, and national or world news.
This year has sucker-punched me so often on so many different levels; I’m not celebrating Independence Day.
A bad taste in the mouth.
Black Lives Matter protests and the fight against police brutality distorted into criminal acts by those that oppose it (I do not deny there are riots, I’m emphasizing how those against the protests are discussing the peaceful demonstrations). I live in a country where the government and its leaders have continually failed to fight the spread of COVID-19. Now other countries are banning travelers from the U.S. What does that say about how the rest of the world regards America? And The POTUS continues to try to cause even more division in this country with dismal speeches.
Yeah, I’m not feeling it.
Give me hope, give me peace of mind.
We need leaders that unite and fight to protect the health, safety, and well-being of the citizens.
Prove me wrong, please. Stand up and take action. Care for one another, wear a damn mask, and fight against injustice.
Is it so hard to care about people?
Since this post is just a bundle of joy, here are some positives that have made my week a bit better.
Freelancing on Fiverr, I made over $450 this month with my Beta Read Gig
Getting back on Medium, I will be writing content (about writing) just for Medium
Working on my novel, revising and editing
Balancing out my Literary Internship, Job Search, and Freelance Work
Coping with the George Floyd Protests
As you can see I’ve been pretty busy and I feel like I’m making progress. I’d love to hear from you all and know what you’ve been up to and how you are coping with everything happening right now.
Here are some links to the work I talk about in this session:
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Alina Happy Hansen May 2020 Photo Credit: Dallas Basta
It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything. To be honest, it’s because I am swamped with freelance and internship work. And I’m having a hard time processing the unrest and events that are happening in the U.S. right now on top of COVID-19.
Besides my freelancing, internship, and revising my novel, I am struggling to have hope for the future. Last night I read about Robert Fuller and the three other Black Americans that were found murdered, hanging from trees.
THIS is happening in 2020. What year are we living in? Horrifying. Devastating. I was trying my best not to cry last night, and I need to stop checking the news before I go to bed but, I’m glad I found out. It is heart-breaking.
These murders are the same as lynchings; this vile inhuman act represents the worst of humanity. I am in shock and I am afraid. Black lives matter and my deepest sympathies go out to the family and friends of the murdered, the dead.
I struggle to keep hope that things can change. That there is some light at the end of it all, at the end of this year, but this is too much. I think I may be hitting a breaking point. I feel useless, helpless, unable to do anything. How can I? I am just one white woman, one privileged white woman.
But I have to keep doing something. I’ve been signing petitions and donating. I’ve donated almost $100 to various Black Lives Matter organizations and George Floyd’s family. I’m signing and sharing petitions every single day. I just know I can do more.
On top of it all, Trump’s blatant acts, his rally, the timing, and the place, disgusting. Racist, cheat, lying, crook. This is not a leader for our country; this is a tyrant who wants to be a dictator.
I have the deepest hatred for Trump. He continues to use rhetoric that actively aims to obliterate the validity of the existence of my friends, my family, me, EVERYONE who is not a wealthy white male.
I have to stay strong, stay healthy, stay safe. I have to keep going, and so should you. We can’t give up hope. We can’t give up now. We have to keep fighting for the future, for lives yet lived.
And I’m exhausted.
My brain feels fried and I am worn out.
On a lighter note, updates about my work…
Besides freelancing, I’ve been working on my novel. I have an amazing opportunity with my literary internship. My editor has offered to read and help me edit my novel. She is doing this because helping me work on edits for my own novel will help me hone my skills as a developmental editor for the publishing house.
This is amazing. I spent the week working on revising the first three chapters. I added detail to my manuscript (MS), tightened it up, and even wrote a rough draft of a book blurb and my best query letter to a literary agent. This is such an incredible opportunity for me, and I am still in shock at my luck.
I am getting feedback and help with my novel, AND I am gaining invaluable work experience as a literary intern. It’s like everything that I’ve been working so hard for is finally starting to line up. The dominoes are in place, I just need the right push, and it’ll all work out perfectly in the long run. I’m sure of it.
Balancing my personal and work life with everything else that’s going on right now is incredibly difficult. I’m having to micro-manage my time and news intake because I have been so stressed out and anxious. It’s hard for many people right now but we have to keep going. And we have to keep fighting.
Stay strong, stay healthy, and stay safe my friends.
Much Love,
Alina
Black Lives Matter Resources/Info:
Linktr.ee has compiled amazing resources/info, you can find the link too all of them in my Lintr.ee profile:
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I’m trying to process everything that’s happening in the U.S. right now. The pain, rage, frustration; it’s infectious. Last week, watching the news, the protests and riots, I felt like I was falling.
Falling into an abyss of hopelessness. How many Black Americans have to die at the hands of police? This question has been repeating through my head every single day, over and over again.
In my last post “Life During COVID-19“, I talked about the growing tension emanating from the protests and riots and my fear that people would die. Sadly, people have died, people have been injured, and businesses destroyed.
What was weird, was that morning I wrote my blog post (May 30th) it crossed my mind about the possibility that there would be protests in Salt Lake City. I remember thinking, But would there be riots?
I watched this happen, live, on the news. I watched the riot less than a mile away from my home for over six hours that day. And I had a hard time sleeping. My fear, my worry, my concern for my friends, my family was so overwhelming, I felt like I was being crushed. Worried about the people in my life I care about being brutalized by police, or worse, hunted down and killed by white supremacists.
What’s happened since then?
I participated in #blackouttuesday. I didn’t post black squares on Instagram, I didn’t post on any of my social media profiles. I chose not to even go on social media all day. It was a day of reflection for me. A day to reflected on my white woman privilege, and my duty to my fellow Americans to be a better person.
What do I mean by “better person”? I mean, an individual who cares for others’ well-being, who believes in fighting for equality and creating opportunity for those our system directly oppresses and aims to obliterate.
I tweeted the next day my experience reflecting on my white woman privilege,
All I keep thinking is, How many have to die before change happens? I can’t give up hope, and I can do my small part to be a better individual, to speak up, to have conversations on race, and strive for making change in day to day interactions. #blackouttuesday#georgefloyd#BLM
My senior year of college, I was sickened by the consistent graffiti and posting of white supremacists propaganda on the U of U’s campus. I deconstructed and analyzed white supremacist rhetoric in this essay https://t.co/lTunInCWru#blacklivesmatter#georgefloyd
Words are powerful. Rhetoric is powerful. We can make change happen on the most basic levels of communication, our conversations with others, our friends, our families. We need to have conversations, utilize words as tools to build a better future. #blacklivesmatter#georgefloyd
As a white woman, I recognize my white privilege, my privileges as a woman. I ask, What can I do to make the future better, how can I utilize my words, my rhetoric to be a better ally, and inspires others to take action? #blacklivesmatter#georgefloyd
I encourage white women to reflect on their privileges. We cannot advocate for women’s rights, equality, spout feminist rhetoric, if we ignore our fellow Black Americans as they continue to suffer and die from the plague of systemic racism. #blacklivesmatter#georgefloyd
Since Trump was elected, not a day goes by that I don’t acknowledge white women put him in office. I cannot express enough how devastating this is to me. This action does not reflect all of us. Do not give up hope. Keep fighting. Stay strong. #blacklivesmatter#georgefloyd
Change starts at the most basic level, speech. Wise words from one can inspire others and change the world. We must obliterate the social taboo of discussing racism, we must have these conversations daily. Use your words, your rhetoric, speak up. #blacklivesmatter#georgefloyd
I feel strongly about the events that are happening all across the U.S. right now. The timing of it all, I think, makes sense. The devastation of the spread of COVID-19 across the globe, unemployment sky-rocketing, and the need for our society to dismantle and reconstruct core foundations on which the U.S. operates. This has to happen in order for the rotten roots of systemic racism to be pulled up and destroyed. We must strive for a future where Black Americans can flourish and prosper in safety and security. We must continue to fight.
If you’re still with me, here are some resources, recommended reading, and petitions that are important,
LIVE UPDATES ON THE GEORGE FLOYD PROTESTS NYTIMES.COM
Also, this Google Doc has amazing information and resources for protesters.
Stay safe, stay healthy, and keep fighting!
With Love,
Alina
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This is My Personal Reflection on Events in the U.S. This Week.
The Murder of George Floyd, Protests turned Riots combined with the spread of COVID-19 and Record-Breaking Unemployment all combine with the growing tensions in the U.S. with an increase in possible societal combustion across the country.
This week has been crazy. And I’ve been trying to moderate my intake of news. But this is too much.
The murder of George Floyd, the protests, now riots, and this morning The New York Times Breaking News that Military police units are preparing for possible deployment,
“The move does not mean that the units will be activated, but it is a first step toward doing so, officials said. Deploying military police units — likely from Fort Bragg in North Carolina and Fort Drum in New York — would represent an escalation in the government response to the unfolding events, in an echo of past uprisings over racial tensions in America. Military police units were used in 1992 during the aftermath to the Rodney King verdict in California.”
Justice for George Floyd is necessary. And I can’t help thinking about how this week has brought more attention to the issue of systemic racism in the U.S.
I wrote about racist rhetoric, white-supremacy, and systemic racism as an undergrad:
There was an increase of racist posters, graffiti, and rhetoric at The University of Utah and other nearby college campuses. I gathered reports of these events, and argued in my essay, that this was growing evidence that there is an organized white-supremacists presence with an agenda.
OPINION: Since the election of Trump in 2016, I believe there is an increase in the activity of white-supremacist organizations and the distribution of their rhetoric across the nation. This is a serious concern of mine. And the events of Charlottesville are still fresh in mind.
Increase in unemployment, loss of jobs, the rise of poverty, and now the protests and riots resulting from the murder of George Floyd; these are all elements when combined, can combust in violence and death. I fear that people will die as a result.
I can’t help it, I’m trying to stay positive, I’m trying not to stress, but I can’t ignore these signs that I feel are so blatant right now. Something is happening, something is going to happen, I just hope that it’s not military intervention, violence, and death.
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