There’s a crack and the light is beginning to pour through. You can see it on the streets as more people realize the need to be visible. You can read it on social media as people are finding their voice. The hands-off rallies and gatherings have been peaceful, joyful events. They’ve become reunions of a sort. Reunions of the human family. Carrying signs that reflect the diversity of our woundedness and of our concerns, we greet one another in recognition of our mutual humanity.
Some people have never thought of Trans rights or Palestinian liberation. Some have not considered a world without Immigrants. Some are fearful as their safety nets are being ripped away. Some are terrified by the brutality they witness from ICE agents or vigilantes turning racism into sport. People come to the rallies to learn, to make connections and, in some way, to say, “No more”. Most importantly, we find we’re not alone.
Everyone who shows up wants to see a better day. That is our commonality.
May first is the international celebration of the working class. Each year Milwaukee’s Voces de la Frontera hosts a march and rally called A Day Without Immigrants. This year will be no exception. However, it is hoped that more white faces will buffer those who are made vulnerable due to the rhetoric and imposition of power. And let us not stop there. Let us continue to put ourselves on the line for our relatives of color. Let us confront the racism we have been steeped in, so that we can witness its end. Some of us are coming to the recognition this is not a game. There are no sides in humanity.
We are in this together and it’s time to let the light back in.
photo of Milwaukee May Day 2025 by Brandon Roost of Roost Photography / Milwaukee Wedding Collective
let kindness win 