In a time where a hug is dangerous, the system isn’t trustworthy, the sky is an ashy shade of orange and your friends are in different time zones, it’s easy to feel alone, tired, and stressed. It’s easy to feel like you have no control over your future. Easy, is kicking back and avoiding the news. It’s telling yourself “yeah but that would never happen here.” It’s making excuses to not add your voice to a chant. It’s waiting for things to calm down, so your life can go back to “normal”. It’s posting a black square and moving on. 

What’s easy is falling into a pit of despair, and blaming 2020. 

Staying positive and finding ways to rally and fight for what is right is the hard part, and yet the youth have been busy at work. Hard work looks like a tireless machine of informational Tik Toks, and KPOP armies taking over twitter. Hard work is studying for a final, working to pay the bills during a recession, and finally at the end of the day, putting together an educational post. It’s calling your representatives and signing petitions while engaging in debates with your grandparents. It’s managing mental and physical health while being socially responsible. Avoiding that pit of despair is a hard feat, and slipping into it from time to time is altogether too familiar. 

What’s hard is climbing back out, brushing off your shoulders, and doing your part. 

But that’s the next step. Getting back up and getting back out there. Understanding that things won’t get better unless we make it better. A healthy future can come through hard work and smart decisions. We all have a role to play, and some of us have more work to do than others (white people, I’m talking to you). Reflecting on our roles in society and how we can benefit our communities, is the perfect place to start.

Change comes through casting your vote. But it doesn’t stop there. We have found ways to thrive and embrace the chaos of a pandemic. Many of us have become more engaged with our political and justice systems (perhaps for the first time), and we must continue to work together towards the next steps of managing that chaos, exterminating racism, and promoting peace, love, and sustainability.