Writing is a passion of mine. I admire those who can write articles that are easy to read, grammatically correct and entertaining. Maybe in my next life...
I have watched with horror at the recent violence at our nation's capital. I couldn't help but reflect back on a group of angry grieving mothers who were able to change a culture, change laws and save lives without breaking any laws or displaying any violence. Our weapons were facts, not pie in the sky conspiracy theories or conjecture based on one deranged man's opinion who was terrified of losing. We debated opposition, again with proven facts from a number of sources, not rhetoric that inflamed and incited people to kill and destroy but carefully researched arguments that convinced people we were on the right course. Our strategy was reinforced by our success.
We worked with legislators from both parties, many of whom I came to like and respect. Some I did not. But I didn't threaten them with violence or say on national TV they should be hauled out by their hair or hung or executed by a firing squad. We succeeded without doing any of those things and as a result hundreds of thousands of lives have been saved and no one was killed or injured because we were on a crusade. We didn’t hire expensive lawyers to plead our case and many of our most effective crusaders were volunteers.
We held workshops across the country teaching our members how to be successful activists. We discussed our differences openly without fear of retribution or harm. Sometimes I changed direction as a result but I still supported those who had different opinions. We understood our imperfections and supported one another through the grieving process. We also understood that failure meant more lives would be killed because of impaired driving. Our change was permanent.
And we did this all without social media. And we were mostly mothers. And we saved lives.