Empathy draws me to social justice causes

I’ve always considered myself an empathetic person. I try to put myself in someone else’s shoes, see the situation through their eyes. As I get older, those feelings have become stronger, and my need to do good and be understanding ever more important.

I guess it began to take hold and mean the most to me after the Parkland shooting. After that, I got wrapped up in the fight to end gun violence. I joined several groups fighting for that cause. I even boarded a bus to Tallahassee on February 26, 2018 to demonstrate in front of the Florida state capitol building on the day of a major vote on background checks for gun purchases and a ban on capacity magazines.

The Rally in Tally t-shirt we all wore to the demonstration in front of the State capitol building in February of 2018.

That fight continues and always will and since then (and before the Black Lives Matter movement), I also began supporting local Black-owned businesses. Through my work in the arts community I’m surrounded by incredibly successful black business owners that I admire and respect. I’ve had the great privilege to be able to tell their stories through articles I’ve written, some for a black-owned magazine.

I also began following more social justice type accounts on social media including Dream Defenders, Community Fridge Miami, Green Haven Project and Finca Morada in my own neighborhood.

The Community Fridge movement in Miami is strong and I plan to begin making donations to those as well. These organizations place full sized refrigerators in underserved communities which they frequently fill on their own and through generous donations from people who drop by. I plan to be one of those people that drops by, on a regular basis. There are at least three that I know of throughout Miami. It’s a beautiful service/initiative.

Adding to these, I’ve now begun cooking meals for a family on Miami Beach where the Dad is dealing with reduced work hours due to the pandemic as well as for a local church in Coconut Grove’s black community. I look forward to Thursdays when I wake up and head to the kitchen to prepare meals for the meal distribution at the Grove church.

Then on Fridays, I trek to Miami Beach to bring food to my adopted family. It’s food I’ve either prepared or purchased, along with cash for groceries and food that my sister Maria donates as well. My friend Janet even made a monetary donation to me directly for these causes. I am truly touched by my sister’s and Janet’s generosity.

I recently made the decision to quit working to dedicate my time to these causes and hopefully doing more in my community. Whether that’s volunteering at park and/or beach clean ups, at food distribution sites or elsewhere, this is where my heart is telling me I need to be.

I also want to dedicate more time to this blog and keep putting stories out there for you all to read.

Peace. Love. Happiness. To all of you!