Last year on the 13th anniversary of 9/11, I sat down in my home and wrote a heartfelt plea to my fellow world citizens to step up and finally make the change so that this world we occupy could be better. Better than it was 13 years ago. Better than it was yesterday and is today. I felt so hopeful, the positivity burning a hole into my soul. We could do it. We would do it. I just knew it.
365 days have passed since then.
365 days filled with gun violence. Filled with death and destruction. Filled with lies, mayhem and terror.
365 days in which every step forward was met with an equal push back. When people who thwart progress are raised up and hero-worshipped by national press.
This year on the 14th anniversary of 9/11 I cannot find a single drop of hope left in my body. I can only find a deep-seated anger and a voice shouting, “For mankind’s sake, WHEN WILL THINGS FINALLY CHANGE?”
When will we stop shooting people because of the color of their skin?
When will we stop assuming that inside every police uniform lies a racist?
Will we ever just be able to celebrate one person’s love for another?
Will we ever fund missions instead of missiles? Arm saviours and soldiers alike?
Do we have the space in our hearts and minds to accept our neighbor for who they are, regardless of where they or their family came from?
Six years ago I made the choice to bring a child into the world. I have no choice now but to fight to make these changes become a reality.
365 days later, I know that this will never happen as long as I am fighting alone.
Won’t anyone else join me?
It is 9/11 again. When will things finally change?