MALCSistas:
2016 has been tough for the spirit, mind, and body. All that we are witnessing, happening in Aleppo, Corpus Christi, Oakland, Standing Rock—the police brutality, misogyny, Islamophobia, homophobia, transphobia, and bigotry are acts and events trying to force a split, fracturing us, hurting us but also reminding us that we are courageous and resilient gente.
Corazón Greñudo. CC Image courtesy of Atzimba on Flickr
Post the election we are witnessing a shift, uncertainty, and hopelessness. We are hurting in our own lives and hurting at the national and global levels. While all of this has been happening, we have turned to each other and relied on the networks of solidarity that we work so hard to protect and maintain wherever we are. Our personal, communal, and political struggles remind us that we come from strong antepasados, from wise elders y comunidades. Love, connectedness, and commitment does and should continue guiding our work these coming years. We will continue to move forward together with the strength and courage our gente has displayed for many years and across many generations.
Immediate consejos from us include that we continue leaning on each other for support and guidance—that we participate in and support local and national grassroots movements. If we can, contribute monetarily to organizations that protect our constitutional rights—one is the American Civil Liberties Union  but we are sure there are others. We must inform, educate ourselves and offer consejos to our students, to each other. We must seek such consejos from luchadoras who have endured struggles before us, from our elders.
We are feeling and witnessing the source of our intergenerational trauma re-enacted in and on our bodies these days. Remember, our bodies also hold thousands of years of strength, amor, and resistance handed down from our ancestors. We are in this together and our ancestors are with us, always.
En solidaridad y con cariño, cuiden su alma, mente y corazón.
Sinceramente,
MALCS Leadership
https://malcs.org/archive-2017/leadership/
