This year has brought with it a wave of awareness I would say we haven't really seen before in this country. Even for myself, who has been doing my best for a very long time to stay abreast of the things I want to see changed and diving deeper into the things that matter to me, I have learned many things this year. Or at least had what I suspected all along confirmed by others, which in its own strange way is helpful - to know that you are not, in fact, losing your mind. It's also a relief when you know you've been feeling something for so long and have been unable to articulate it. Then one day you stumble across even the most basic of comments somewhere on the internet, and you see something someone wrote and there it is: the one sentence expressing what has been bothering you all along.
For some years now I have been trying and trying to find ways to spend my money better. What do I mean by that? Well, it's very simple and massively complicated. It gets down to the fact that every time I turn around, these last couple of years especially, I feel as though I have learned that I have been unintentionally supporting someone who is racist, bigoted, destroying the planet, hurting animals, exploiting women-the list of garbage goes on and on. Now, I understand people make mistakes. People say or do things without thinking or without realizing the impact or depth of what those words or actions mean. Particularly in a society where terrible things are the norm and people do things because it was what they were taught. Everyone does this no matter how they purport otherwise.
And I'd say for the most part people can learn from these things even if the internet is a completely unforgiving place that will never let you move on to trying to be a better person. It is a frustrating thing to watch people act as though they themselves have never made a mistake and continue to tear at the others who messed up, were called out, and have tried to move on from it a with a new point of view. It certainly has impacted whether I visit a site or commentator anymore - the whole throw stones, glass house business. It can sometimes be seemingly impossible to earn forgiveness. I grant you, there are unforgivable things. But that is not what I am getting at here and that is a conversation for another time. And well, if all you do is sit on the internet bitching at other people and never actually do anything - give it a rest: You are part of the problem.
Now, if you come forward and do your best, most especially in your day to day practices, you will have my support if our values align. Or maybe you even teach me something, who is to say what the possibilities might be?
One of my favorite local businesses to eat at and support is Pizza Nea. Even before this election cycle (which, yes, has redefined a great deal for me, or at least confirmed some good things and some genuinely terrible fears) the owner was taking steps I appreciated. Making the business vegan-friendly, sourcing ingredients when possible from other local places.
Then comes the election and, well, he spoke up - and loudly. Quite predictably there were threats and people complaining about "getting political." Give. Me. A. Break. What a privilege it must be never to have to worry about anything. Or to be so unaware that everything that is stressing you out is probably being made worse by those in power that your apathy helped put there.
It was clear from the get-go that Pizza Nea would be an inclusive, welcoming place for everyone, and he even went as far as to form an alliance with other local businesses to make sure discrimination was not being tolerated, as well as using their growing social media platform to encourage others to get involved.
Oh. And the pizza is super yummy. You know, which helps.
It's a nice place, too. Not super dressy, but not so casual that you couldn't, say... have a romantic date here.
Try it out. You won't regret it.
