05/02/25
By Karla Barber
I am on a last minute, hastily planned trip to Philadelphia and Washington, DC. I attended a May Day rally in Philadelphia and I plan to attend a rally in D.C. tomorrow. On Sunday, I will visit the National Museum of African American History and Culture. I fear the presidents attacks on the museum may escalate, making it difficult or impossible to visit in the future.
I arrived at the DC Amtrak station a few hours ago and walked to my hotel. It was a beautiful walk that passed by the U.S. Senate building, the U.S. Capitol, the U.S. Supreme Court and the Library of Congress. Along the way, I passed several groups of high school students, which brought back memories of my senior class trip to this city in the spring of 1978.
What I remember most vividly about that trip, the weather was gorgeous and we couldn’t get enough of just hanging out enjoying the sunshine on the National Mall. The winter of 1978 was particularly harsh in my home state of Vermont. In early February we had endured a 3-day blizzard that dropped more than 40 inches of snow in some parts of the state. We were in awe of the green lawns and blooming flowers.
We toured a lot of museums, I vaguely remember which ones, but I do not recall many specifics. I don’t recall being aware that the U.S. Senate was voting on the Panama Canal treaties, paving the way for the canal to be turned over to Panamanian control by the year 2000. I don’t recall anything that was happening politically. I do remember one of my classmates shouting an inappropriate homophobic comment when we saw two men lying together on the green and several of us telling him to “shut up.” I am aware that today that classmate and I do not share the same political views.
I wonder how tuned in the high school students of today are to the current political landscape. I wonder if they are aware of the men who have been disappeared to El Salvador. I wonder if they are aware of the children being separated from their immigrant parents. I wonder if they are aware that the president is using billions of dollars in federal grants and contracts as a lever to force colleges and universities to bow to his agenda. I wonder if they know that the rule of law and human rights are under attack.
I wonder and I hope they are paying more attention than I was at 17 years old.
#BlueTriangleSolidarity #IStandWIthImmigrants
