Dear Kent Streeters,

As you all may have heard by now, Louise is taking a well-earned sabbatical until early September.  During the next several weeks, we will be introducing you to other members of Kent Street’s leadership team through Happenings “The Week in Perspective.”  This week’s essay is by Lyn Lindpaintner, a member of the KSC Healthcare Working Group. 

Recently, pleasant temperatures in New Hampshire brought relief after months of rain, heat and humidity. Delightful cool mornings returned, almost lulling us into thinking we could lean back and relax.  

But then came day after day of oddly white skies, air quality warnings, news of wildfires across the continent, and advice to limit our time outside. 

Suddenly, it might be dangerous to breathe. What a metaphor for this moment!

So many “normal” things – previously unquestioned – now feel fraught or imperiled: Kindness. The Statue of Liberty’s message of compassion and welcome. Longstanding commitments to the rule of law, to civil rights, to our allies, to our earth, to facts…does this list have an actual end?! It feels dangerous every day.

Another example: Gathering with like-minded folks on the State House lawn to express resistance has been comforting. The protests felt upbeat, resolute and impactful. The collective mood going into last week’s “Rage at the Regime” demonstration was summery and almost routine. Lower turnout was anticipated – it’s August after all – and planning for the event had taken on a familiar rhythm.

But just before the protest, while tents and tables were being set up, suddenly the mood at the State House lawn changed: Hate-filled men with masks and swastikas stood in front of the State House shouting white supremacist, antisemitic slogans until the organizers’ music drowned them out. Then they marched away down Main Street, complete with Nazi salutes. A handful of angry folks followed them, shouting. A few scuffles and altercations followed and were (fortunately, but by no means inevitably) brief and apparently without lasting harm.

And that was the whole news story – not the fact that in Concord and across the entire country, many thousands of people were demonstrating our rage, borne of the illegal, cruel, unconstitutional actions and provocative rhetoric of Donald Trump. Instead, coverage focused on those who harbor resentments and seek attention via belligerent public expressions of hate – nurtured in the permissive environment created by Trump’s wrecking ball of an administration.

This isn’t the last time something like this will happen. It’s certainly not the first. So let’s make a plan to stay safe and be maximally effective. Let’s remember that it’s both brave and wise to not respond to provocation, which also makes things easier for the Peacekeepers.

Instead, let’s focus on nurturing hope and standing strong for each other, especially for those who feel most threatened in this moment. We can read Jess Craven’s Substack “Chop Wood, Carry Water” and find a sustainable rhythm by following her advice: Breathe. Act. Rest. Repeat.  

Good reasons for hope are all around us: In New Hampshire, political advocacy helped restore funding to family planning, Medicaid, and the Momnibus 2.0 bill. Just last week the Executive Council reversed course under pressure and approved two federally funded contracts for maternal health care. Nationally we’re seeing public opinion start to change. A tipping point feels a little bit nearer – doesn’t it?

What we do together truly matters. Get ready for more!

On August 15, let’s participate in “Be Brave Day” by holding signs on overpasses or street corners in our towns and cities to stand up to bullies and cowards. Summer is winding down, and September is coming. It’s time to get back to school, back to work, and back to all kinds of Good Trouble.

Thank you for everything you do – it’s making a difference!

Lyn Lindpaintner

View the full Happenings email for this week here.