Emily Bengels
@emmyb2.bsky.social
Teacher, writer, musician, scholar, activist, hiker, and friend. Auntie Em to the world.
www.lifeisanarrowbridge.com
www.lifeisanarrowbridge.com
But I know there are some very loud and entitled voices screaming back from a place of misinformation and manipulated emotions.
There are truths on all sides but there is one truth above all: we are human. And we must see and support one another’s humanity.
There are truths on all sides but there is one truth above all: we are human. And we must see and support one another’s humanity.
July 7, 2025 at 2:56 AM
But I know there are some very loud and entitled voices screaming back from a place of misinformation and manipulated emotions.
There are truths on all sides but there is one truth above all: we are human. And we must see and support one another’s humanity.
There are truths on all sides but there is one truth above all: we are human. And we must see and support one another’s humanity.
Yes, I spend my nights translating asylum requests and helping with amicus briefs. I know what I’m talking about. And it isn’t good.
I feel like a voice screaming in the wind. I know I’m not alone.
I feel like a voice screaming in the wind. I know I’m not alone.
July 7, 2025 at 2:56 AM
Yes, I spend my nights translating asylum requests and helping with amicus briefs. I know what I’m talking about. And it isn’t good.
I feel like a voice screaming in the wind. I know I’m not alone.
I feel like a voice screaming in the wind. I know I’m not alone.
I’m angry that people are more willing to protect their own than to help those who really need help. I’m tired and scared and angry……. And I’m way too informed to be anything but.
July 7, 2025 at 2:56 AM
I’m angry that people are more willing to protect their own than to help those who really need help. I’m tired and scared and angry……. And I’m way too informed to be anything but.
I’m sick of lies and simplifications and cruelty disguised as protecting us from “illegal” people. I’m fed up with double standards: if it isn’t ok for people of one skin color or nationality or faith or political party or wealth level, then it isn’t okay for people of any group.
July 7, 2025 at 2:56 AM
I’m sick of lies and simplifications and cruelty disguised as protecting us from “illegal” people. I’m fed up with double standards: if it isn’t ok for people of one skin color or nationality or faith or political party or wealth level, then it isn’t okay for people of any group.
Haven’t the figures of deaths likely caused by the dismantling of programs ended up in the tens of millions?
Power like this- unblocked— mixed with hatred and access — can lead anywhere. We have seen the past. We must not let it happen again.
Power like this- unblocked— mixed with hatred and access — can lead anywhere. We have seen the past. We must not let it happen again.
July 5, 2025 at 12:22 PM
Haven’t the figures of deaths likely caused by the dismantling of programs ended up in the tens of millions?
Power like this- unblocked— mixed with hatred and access — can lead anywhere. We have seen the past. We must not let it happen again.
Power like this- unblocked— mixed with hatred and access — can lead anywhere. We have seen the past. We must not let it happen again.
There are those in my field who guard against comparing the modern day with what happened in Nazi Europe. They say we are not at that scale.
Do we need to get to millions of murders to call out a genocide?
Do we need to get to millions of murders to call out a genocide?
July 5, 2025 at 12:22 PM
There are those in my field who guard against comparing the modern day with what happened in Nazi Europe. They say we are not at that scale.
Do we need to get to millions of murders to call out a genocide?
Do we need to get to millions of murders to call out a genocide?
This place was never meant to be a citadel. It is not meant for prisoners. It does not contain a barbershop, a library, a room for visitations.
Alligator Auschwitz is just intended to cramp and terrorize.
Alligator Auschwitz is just intended to cramp and terrorize.
July 5, 2025 at 12:22 PM
This place was never meant to be a citadel. It is not meant for prisoners. It does not contain a barbershop, a library, a room for visitations.
Alligator Auschwitz is just intended to cramp and terrorize.
Alligator Auschwitz is just intended to cramp and terrorize.
But, America, you have to do better. If you value Independence, it must be more than parades and flags and fireworks. It must be the work of protecting and uplifting each and every one of us living here.
July 5, 2025 at 2:32 AM
But, America, you have to do better. If you value Independence, it must be more than parades and flags and fireworks. It must be the work of protecting and uplifting each and every one of us living here.
America, you are the victory parades and the protest marches. You are the old man begging on the corner and the little kids with the lemonade stand. You are the Nobel prize winners and the aspirants (whether realistic or now.)
July 5, 2025 at 2:32 AM
America, you are the victory parades and the protest marches. You are the old man begging on the corner and the little kids with the lemonade stand. You are the Nobel prize winners and the aspirants (whether realistic or now.)
America, I still believe in you. You, too, are a verb. You are the actions we take: the good, the bad, and the inbetween. You are the graduations and barbecues, the blood drives and naturalization ceremonies, the bake sales and gazebo concerts.
July 5, 2025 at 2:32 AM
America, I still believe in you. You, too, are a verb. You are the actions we take: the good, the bad, and the inbetween. You are the graduations and barbecues, the blood drives and naturalization ceremonies, the bake sales and gazebo concerts.
Independence deprived to one is independence deprived to all. This is not supposed to be a country of “liberty and justice for all the white skinned Christian straight men who can afford it.”
July 5, 2025 at 2:32 AM
Independence deprived to one is independence deprived to all. This is not supposed to be a country of “liberty and justice for all the white skinned Christian straight men who can afford it.”
Right now, we are failing. We are undoing independence in the doublespeak name of “making America great”. We are undoing the “God” (noun or verb) of the pledge of allegiance by denying liberty and justice for all.
July 5, 2025 at 2:32 AM
Right now, we are failing. We are undoing independence in the doublespeak name of “making America great”. We are undoing the “God” (noun or verb) of the pledge of allegiance by denying liberty and justice for all.
They wanted a nation that would grow as the world grew. We have fought successive civil rights movements to expand what “we the people” means. Sometimes we have fallen short. Sometimes we have taken strides forward.
July 5, 2025 at 2:32 AM
They wanted a nation that would grow as the world grew. We have fought successive civil rights movements to expand what “we the people” means. Sometimes we have fallen short. Sometimes we have taken strides forward.
Back then, people didn’t have the artillery we have now. They didn’t have the 24 hour news cycle either. They didn’t have access to as many diverse viewpoints. But they had a vision.
July 5, 2025 at 2:32 AM
Back then, people didn’t have the artillery we have now. They didn’t have the 24 hour news cycle either. They didn’t have access to as many diverse viewpoints. But they had a vision.
I hear the fireworks right now. I know our world has changed in terms of technology since the Founders wrote our Declaration of Independence…. That paper set forth actions fighting for a vision of a country ruled by the people, for the people….
July 5, 2025 at 2:32 AM
I hear the fireworks right now. I know our world has changed in terms of technology since the Founders wrote our Declaration of Independence…. That paper set forth actions fighting for a vision of a country ruled by the people, for the people….
When children hide in corners of classrooms in lockdown drills, this is not my America.
July 5, 2025 at 2:32 AM
When children hide in corners of classrooms in lockdown drills, this is not my America.
When hospitals are forced to close because they are no longer receiving funds to support the weakest among us, this is not my America.
July 5, 2025 at 2:32 AM
When hospitals are forced to close because they are no longer receiving funds to support the weakest among us, this is not my America.
Look at the colleges where free speech is hampered but where DEI initiatives are shut down out of fear. We need to be united, not shut down. When college presidents are forced to resign due to supporting a diverse and inclusive community, this is not my America.
July 5, 2025 at 2:32 AM
Look at the colleges where free speech is hampered but where DEI initiatives are shut down out of fear. We need to be united, not shut down. When college presidents are forced to resign due to supporting a diverse and inclusive community, this is not my America.
On a more mundane level, independence of the “we the people” type is also under threat. Look at the people afraid to go to work or school because of ICE round-ups and inhumane conditions in detention centers. This is not my America.
July 5, 2025 at 2:32 AM
On a more mundane level, independence of the “we the people” type is also under threat. Look at the people afraid to go to work or school because of ICE round-ups and inhumane conditions in detention centers. This is not my America.
Anger is causing dialogue to shut down. Those of us who lead in our communities try our best locally, but the nation and the world are in a dangerous and lonely spiral.
July 5, 2025 at 2:32 AM
Anger is causing dialogue to shut down. Those of us who lead in our communities try our best locally, but the nation and the world are in a dangerous and lonely spiral.
Right now, our independence is not “independencing” well. Greed is slowing down our nation’s mission. Fear is causing leaders to squash opposing views rather than enter into dialogue and meet with a shared vision.
July 5, 2025 at 2:32 AM
Right now, our independence is not “independencing” well. Greed is slowing down our nation’s mission. Fear is causing leaders to squash opposing views rather than enter into dialogue and meet with a shared vision.
We have a history of innovation, where new ideas can be forged when people with different histories connect.
July 5, 2025 at 2:32 AM
We have a history of innovation, where new ideas can be forged when people with different histories connect.
Independence doesn’t need to be just a dream. We live in a world of plenty, if only we take care of one another. We have brains with so much untapped potential, if only everyone had access to shelter, food, healthcare and education.
July 5, 2025 at 2:32 AM
Independence doesn’t need to be just a dream. We live in a world of plenty, if only we take care of one another. We have brains with so much untapped potential, if only everyone had access to shelter, food, healthcare and education.