01/30/2026
I’m usually posting on my personal page these days... I don’t have a ton of time to be keeping up with all the socials. However, it’s an important moment we’re living. If you know me personally then you know that I’m outspoken about the things that matter to me. I’ve never been one to care much about offending people if not offending them meant being quiet, inauthentic, or passive. This has cost me, and that’s ok. I’m not sad about it. I do want to share a little here about what happens behind the scenes and the community work that has been going on for several years now. And thank those that make it possible.
One of the “gotcha” moments people try to throw at me when advocating for immigrant rights and dignity is “where were you when Obama was deporting and caging families?!” I get that question so often it’s wild to me. Babes, I’ve been protesting inhumane family separation and detention since Obama. So I was out there with my picket signs. It’s also when I started to volunteer at migrant shelters, collect clothing and diaper donations, and advocate for individual families. I volunteered at the youth detention centers here in SA and that was an intense time. The lived experiences of these young boys were some of the most harrowing things I have ever heard. About 3 years ago I started going to the migrant shelter (which is now closed) to distribute food, clothing, and basic meds to the families being housed there. I would go just about every week for nearly a year before finding an amazing group of people doing the same work. Mutual aid is indispensable. The mutual aid community in SA is such an incredible effort of every day people going out there to serve the most vulnerable. I tend to go be in the weeds, but not everyone can help that way. We all do what we can! Without the support of friends and local businesses who are quick to show up and donate money or goods, we would have had to call it quits a long time ago! So while a lot of us are participating in the general strike, I want to thank those small businesses that can’t afford to close their doors but have always been part of the work of caring for out community in ways that a lot of people don’t see!