Deborah Hearn Smith: What we allow as a society will continue

I am perplexed, confused and distraught over the current state of our nation. How can we really support the vilification of women who speak their truth, or really think more gun protection is good for our children, or believe referring to all Mexicans as criminals strengthens our democracy? What I have witnessed in the last two weeks has brought me to my knees. Men standing in support of a Supreme Court nominee only because he guaranteed a conservative vote. All the rhetoric about values came in a distant second to winning at all cost.

How should an African-American women react to all the tension related to gender and race? All our progress is currently on shaky ground. The most disheartening aspect is not knowing friend from foe. Every white male is not the enemy. But not one man of power and influence came forward to support the effect of what we saw in the Senate on women and girls. And then to see the president mock the incident was appalling. And the silence that followed from his party brought a sadness I cannot shake.

Learning how to survive and thrive through these difficult times is critical. To lose hope and allow despair to take root in the soul is to declare defeat without the battle.

First and foremost, we must vote for those who have our interest. This means when an elected official compromises our interest, vote them out. It is time to discuss politics and to understand the path we are on and the consequences for our children and grandchildren growing up in a time where kindness is no longer a value, when a public figure is proud of his or her ties to the president and unwilling to defend those he ridicules and/or mocks and support his deceptions. Their silence must be seen as agreement.

This is a time to change the dialogue. For too long women and especially women of color have allowed conversations to occur in our presence and we remained silent. Our past taught us it didn’t matter; our opinion would be ignored and/or discounted. But now is the time to become like a squeaky wheel. If we are heard often enough, maybe it will be harder for them to turn a deaf ear. It is time to cause discomfort to those who support the marginalization of any person, race, gender, nationality, religion—and the list goes on.

Second we must be informed about events happening both locally and nationally that affect us. Public education is underfunded as the economy soars. The stock market is up to new levels, hospitals and schools are holding fundraisers to meet basic needs. It’s time to give our charitable dollars and time to organizations that share our values. For me, the organization must address the needs and aspirations of women and girls of color, because at this point in our history, we are on no one’s priority list.

The third thing we must do is to stand. Stand for what is right and call out that which is wrong, no matter the source, no matter the cost. Know that often we will be standing alone. But like our mothers before us, who had nothing but their dignity, we must stand.

What we allow as a society will continue. It is time to stand for all that is good and noble and speak out against that which we know is not.

I am standing. Are you?•

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Smith is former CEO of the Girl Scouts of Central Indiana. Send comments toibjedit@ibj.com.