Today is 4th of July 2019, a day when freedom is represented by pool parties, hot dogs and blowing up the sky with red white and blue. As a Mexican-American, today is indeed a puzzling day.
America the beautiful, America the great. America the country that has women and children locked up in border camps drinking toilet water while guards laugh.
America the place that allows women, men and children to die while striving for a better life.
Don’t get me wrong, I love the good ol’ US of A. I love the opportunities that it has granted my family: the opportunity for education, home ownership and security. The same opportunities that I would hope would be open and free for anyone coming into this country in search of a better life.
I’ve been having so many thoughts about these camps and in a way feeling guilty for not doing enough.
I don’t want to look back 10 years from now and find out we were living during a time when concentration camps were happening. I don’t want to tell my children all I did was share news stories on my twitter.
Don’t get me wrong, social media is a wonderful tool, but if you want to do more, check out some of these organizations and businesses that are actually doing something. Don’t forget to go give them your money or share the heck out of them.
Twisted For Sugar @twistedforsugar
This Latina owned business set up a raffle with a donation of $5 where the winner will receive a 3 hour service with them. Since then, more businesses have partnered with them including @sugarcrushsweets, @globochic, @churroservice.
The donations are going towards @RaicesTexas. To enter their raffle by July 8th go visit their Instagram Page
RAICES @RAICESTEXAS
LYFT @lyft
Lyft is “donating $200,000 in ride credit to help organizations like @MinorityHumani1 in their efforts to aid asylum-seekers in get to and from medical appointments, legal consultation, court hearings, ICE check-ins, family reunification, and more.” according to their twitter.
Minority Humanitarian Foundation @MinorityHumani1
The mission statement for this foundation says it all: their goal is to provide humanitarian response to issues facing Immigrants and refugees on a global scale.
Illustration drawn by children at the Catholic Charities Humanitarian Respite Center in McAllen, Texas, in abcnews.go.com/Politics/migrant-children-draw-alarming-images-life-border-patrol/story?id=64117571. Courtesy of American Academy of Pediatrics.