It's been about a month since I've written here. It's been a wild and rough month. But this isn't about me. Not that what I/we experience in our lives isn't valid, it is, but there are folks who have it much worse right now that need attention and compassion.
This is prompted by a post I saw on a certain large quilting group I follow on Facebook - Quiltville's Open Studio, which I'll describe in a sec. Let me preface this post with this. I am not here to debate which side is right, what should be done instead, immigration policy, etc.
By now we are all aware of what's happening to immigrant children coming into the States under the current administration's active enforcement of a piece of policy that isn't explicitly required to be conducted. We have seen the pictures of the families and children being forced apart. We have heard the videos where the children are screaming for their parents. We have seen our representatives visit and denounce these facilities and the practices currently in place. My opinion on this should by this point be apparent, but just in case there is any misunderstanding, I am angry, outraged, disgusted, and heartbroken by what I am watching happen to these children. I don't have kids of my own, but I have a heart and a strong sense of empathy - I think about how I would have felt at that age not knowing where my parents were or why I was being separated. The fear, anger, and sadness would have been bottomless.
Someone, some empathetic, good hearted, and loving quilter posted about how these traumatized kids are just being given those horrible, silver "foil" blankets and what can be done to get quilts to them to give them a little comfort, because regardless of what got them here, they are children and they are hurting. They need something, anything to soothe them in what may well be the scariest, most lonesome, and horrific event of their childhood.
I am not a person generally at a loss for words when I feel strongly about something. But a sat there, reading responses, completely gobsmacked. The amount of hatred, callousness, and total lack of empathy for these children has stunned me. Out of quilters, those who make works of art out of the utmost in love, come words of nothing but pure hatred. Out of quilters, who seek to give solace and comfort in their works, come words of avoidance and rejection - refusal to even acknowledge that the evils in our world could touch quilting. People, who I remember were spouting off about how All Lives Matter, were trying to justify what is happening to these kids and why they deserve it.
Maybe, despite my typically cynical and sarcastic temperament, I have a little more Pollyanna in me than I care to admit. What just stabs me in the heart, just as much and maybe even more than reading the hate, is how many more hateful voices there were than loving or even reasonable ones. I joke around about how bad People collectively suck (not individuals, I mean people as a whole, so don't get butthurt please) . I joke about how I am not a fan of People. But in truth, I want to believe in the basic goodness and basic human empathy of People. I really, really, really do. But then I see quilters who claim to believe all lives matter and claim to be good followers of whatever religion they choose, spewing some of the ugliest and most hate-filled shit. About scared, crying, CHILDREN. I fucking cannot abide that.
I hope the post isn't deleted, but I am sure it will be; anything controversial is. But I also hope that the poster isn't deterred by this hate. I hope she becomes even more resolute to find a way to get quilts there and get them accepted and distributed. Who knows, maybe there is some humanity in this and there will be a way. Maybe not - anymore, compassion cannot be assumed. I contacted her, and with any luck if she finds anything legitimate, she will get in contact with me.
The very least we can do in this terrible situation, is - if we are unable to muster the courage to speak up and speak out - to do what we can to show love, empathy, and to do the kind thing. A quilt is a great place to start.
