Sworn Enemy of These Forces

PERHAPS WE MAKE ASSUMPTIONS about who each other are out here from time to time. I know I’ve done it. I’ve heard the term Progressive, and, well—I think I have a pretty good grasp of the English language. So when I noticed self-proclaimed Progressives acting in ways I happened to think was not so progressive, I would call them to task, and online. I did this not from a feeling of superiority as charged, or needing attention (as some said, attempting to deflect the message); I actually wrote from an earnest place of bewilderment. I was shocked…and yes, a bit naive. This was the time when there was a fair amount of “blog triumphalism” in the air; we were all united in a new and powerful force that could crash gates, change the world, replace the old systems….and, too, I was learning more and more every day (and still am) about how I fit into the “We” that was/is spoken so often in so many contexts.

I agree, at this point, that it isn’t fair or practicable to expect every person to be engaged in every issue at every moment. Maybe it is only fair to outline our agendas in a plain way. So others know what to expect. In other words instead of a person raising their hands to acknowledge membership in the “Progressive Blogosphere” they could just go by “Blogger of Progressive [but not Pet] Issues.” And so on. Something like “Blogger against imagery that depicts the Democratic President as Hitler; Generally Okay with Yellowface and Blackface.” Or, “Deadset against rape; can overlook it when it occurs en masse in Juarez.”

So let me do this; break it down simply. Regarding my own purposes, which some take to be for All Matters Immigration.

No.

Remember, I began this blog in 2006 as a response to racist currents of pre-Beckian rhetoric that back then, had reached intolerable levels to me personally. But of course neither was that the beginning of my own journey That was the final straw, I’d say. The ever-increasing volume and presence of anti-Mexican hostilities.

I am not an Altruist. I am not really caught up in being a Nice Person.

Nor am I on a quest to help every individual immigrant I find.

Or pass any specific piece of legislation.

I am not someone limited, either, to “immigration issues.” Immigration issues matter to me because of how my family got here, who they are and were, and how this is treated in larger US culture and how that plays out on human beings and myself. +/-»

When I write or speak or lend my energy to issues, it is not because I am interested in helping the Democrats or the DC-spawned orgs who are currently taking on the cause in a US-centric (which makes sense from their end) manner.

No, it’s all much more simpler than that. It’s personal. And that’s why I talk personally about what I do. And that’s why I talk about my stories and my feelings, rather than fishing for pie charts or datum. A few forces made themselves my mortal enemies when I was young.

Racism is my sworn enemy.
Predatory Abuse of women and children is my sworn enemy.
Corrupt Authority is my sworn enemy.
Classist Separation and financial class war leveraged on the poor is my sworn enemy.

There may be more, if I stopped to think about it. But these four are the first that come to mind. And they grew out of pain I endured and saw in the world and for which a response has been long fused into my very brain and bones and heartbeat.

I will say it again: These forces declared themselves my mortal enemy and marked the battlefield with my blood and pain and tears. My life, no matter what else it includes, will always include my feet on these battlefields. Yes, I use war metaphors. Yes, some say we need to leave that language behind to make a new way. I say maybe that is the next generation’s shape. Maybe not, though. I still teach my own children to fight all these things with a full heart and both fists. And in all the forms that they will and can take.

I don’t promise nor predict I’ll win. But that’s what I’m aiming for. And now you know what to expect.