“I can’t believe we’re arguing over this.”
“Seriously? You can’t believe that the very fabric of our democracy, the basic rights of every person in our country isn’t worth arguing over?”
Kelly stared at Liz, dumbfounded that she would support the dismantling of women’s rights to bodily autonomy and the looming threat to democracy itself, not only here at home, but around the world.
Liz stared back, defiant. “It has nothing to do with us. We had our kids decades ago. I’m more concerned about gas and food prices right now.”
“You cared when you had your abortion. And it’s about more than that. You’re willing to throw away democracy forever so you can avoid inflation now. There are at least three problems with that.”
“Such as?”
“The first is that a new government isn’t going to fix it. The Republicans aren’t interested in stopping inflation. They’re feeding it and blocking every piece of legislation the Democrats are trying to pass to address it. They offer no alternatives because they have none. All they’re after is consolidating their power.”
Liz almost looked like she might be considering Kelly’s argument, then crossed her arms, her face going hard. “And the second?”
“This isn’t something that can be solved in isolation. It’s a global problem, fueled by world events, including the fight for democracy in Ukraine.”
“Which isn’t our problem...”
“Which,” Kelly said, cutting Liz off, “is everyone’s problem. Putin won’t stop at Ukraine. He’ll move on to the next country and the next. We won’t come out unscathed. No one will. And the third issue with your argument is that you’re ignoring a problem much worse than high prices at the pump and grocery store. You’re pretending that we’re not on the precipice of an autocracy. If you think things are bad now, just wait until America becomes Russia 2.0.”
Liz opened her mouth and closed it again, looking uncertain. “That won’t happen,” she said. “It can’t.”
Kelly shook her head. There was no getting through to people who were unwilling to face hard truths. Or to people who were brainwashed. “I hope it doesn’t. But I’m not going to stick my head in the sand and pretend that if I don’t see it, it isn’t there. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a protest to attend.”
For any who might be put off by the political nature of this story, I can only say that I have always felt that, as a writer, I have a responsibility to reflect the issues of our times in some of my stories. I can’t think of a bigger issue right now than the threat to democracy around the world (of which the attack on women’s and LGBTQ rights is a part).
I strongly believe that everyone needs to pay attention and to stand up now, before it’s too late. I also believe that it is too late for civil discourse, because, while we’re trying to talk sense to those who would take our democracies from us or who support them, they are acting and have been doing so for decades. We fail to act at our own peril.
As always, I welcome discussion. That does not include hate speech, which will not be tolerated.
I’m a single issue voter. I vote for the candidates that will do the most to promote and protect democracy. In the current U.S. political environment, that means I won’t vote for any Republican for any office. Thanks for your timely story my friend
I like the way you have presented the issues. I think there is a real feeling of separation in the world and that we arev
safe from what happens "to them" or "over there". I see this with the threats to democracy and to our environment that surround us every day. And I'm Kelly, I have to speak up. I believe I have to care in order to ensure my grandchildren have a wonderful world in which to grow.