A Call to Action

DC does not feel like home right now. With armed soldiers walking the streets and my neighbors under threat from ICE, this country—supposed to stand for liberty and freedom—feels unrecognizable. What happened to the American ideals?

An energy of unrest and uncertainty prevails. A friend shared with me that her community has many Latino families. Each morning, small groups gather to walk neighborhood children to school, protecting them from ICE agents who hide out in alleys and parking lots. When I walk the streets around my business, the normal sight used to be the homeless begging, or those a little mentally estranged wandering about. But now it’s quiet. Where are our homeless? Since the “Big Beautiful Bill” and the military presence on our streets, I fear for those helpless dwellers.

It’s easier to turn a blind eye when it doesn’t affect me—but it’s time to speak out against injustice. How do we live and work in a city when the marginalized around us are not protected? White privilege buys some people time, but injustice will eventually show up at everyone’s door—directly or indirectly. It sometimes feels like only the fittest will survive. But how do we choose to show up? We can all survive if we join together: to protect, to grieve, to share. To walk our children to school. To stand with immigrant workers who do so many of the city’s menial jobs. To protest for our rights, for the homeless, for people of color, and more.

My daughter told me she has high expectations of people. I said she will, unfortunately, be let down in this world. I told her: “Give up your expectations, but don’t give up or compromise your values.” It’s easy to compromise when life itself feels like a terrorist and injustice is everywhere. People will let us down, and we ourselves have let others down, but that doesn’t mean we should abandon our values. Kindness and common courtesy in small exchanges seem to have been forgotten. Yet when a stranger acknowledges you with a hello or a smile, or when a shopkeeper greets you with genuine warmth—these small acts go a long way for someone who may be feeling hopeless. Kindness is free. Living by our values costs nothing. Helping a stranger goes a long way.

We have all felt let down and hurt by the system—our government and the policies that slowly trickle into our daily lives. Unconsciously, we project our pain, anger, and disappointments onto those around us—friends, community, colleagues. We form armor to protect ourselves, but our pain still seeps through the cracks, leading us to compromise our values. But we don’t have to compromise, even when we feel compromised.

In a society where ‘protection’ feels like fighting, can our protection come from unity and supporting each other? What does it mean to show up without expectation yet hold true to values and principles?

Strength is not found in force but in integrity of action—in truth enacted even when it’s uncomfortable or requires sacrifice. These are not easy times. Sometimes it feels easier to simply not turn on the news, out of fear of being sucked in and left powerless. Yet small stories whisper through the neighborhood: Did you hear about the man arrested for drinking an open beer in public? The armed forces arrested him. And why are there no homeless people? Not because they were given homes, but because they were arrested. Oh and what happened to the Latino DoorDash motorcyclists who used to wait outside my business? They didn’t get promotions (as much as I’d like that). Some were arrested by ICE, and others fled to survive.

Some people like seeing “cleaned-up” streets, but the real criminals are not the homeless or the immigrants—it’s the ones in uniform. Its ‘Kali Yuga’ it is said to be the “age of quarrel and hypocrisy.” I observe all this with a heart aching—not wanting to spiritually bypass—yet feeling powerless in the face of so much injustice. Some of us live relatively untouched and protected lives, while others are directly affected and see their lives upended.

In either case, what is the call to action? If one stays or goes, is there a right or wrong choice? Running away may feel like the safer option, and many of us instinctively feel that urge. Others stay at the forefront of justice. But whatever one’s choice, there can still be a call to action—if one acts with integrity. Truth recognizes truth. It carries no shame, only resilience and protection.

Each of our truths may look different. Some need to flee to survive. Some need to stay on the front lines of justice.What is your call to action?