Hope
This letter to the editor, by Kerry Kittel, appeared in the Hudson Star Observer on April 3, 2025.
Hope is in short supply for Americans today. It is easy to be overwhelmed by the dismantling of our federal government and the attacks on the Constitution as Trump continues to ignore federal judges.
Bishop Desmond Tuto, who spent his life fighting and defeating apartheid in South Africa, knew about hope. He once said, “Hope is being able to see that there is light despite all of the darkness.”
St. Augustine observed “Hope has two beautiful daughters; their names are Anger and Courage. Anger at the way things are, and Courage to see that they do not remain as they are.”
Dale Carnegie taught people that “most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying whenever there seemed to be no hope at all.”
Every day Americans must squint to see the light amid the darkness brought about in the first two months of Trump 2.0. Anger is growing daily as he guts programs designed to help children, veterans, seniors, farmers, education, and access to healthcare. We all need to have the courage to actively resist what he has done and threatened to do.
Remember that America has always accomplished great things, especially when there seemed to be no hope.
We aren’t fighting to overthrow an autocratic government. Yet. We are fighting to preserve a democratic republic that has existed for nearly 250 years. We are fighting for what President Lincoln fought for. We are fighting to ensure that the“government of the people, for the people, and by the people, shall not perish from the earth.”
Lincoln dared to see that things did not remain as they were during the Civil War. We must have that same courage today. Whether you are one of the 90 million Americans who did not vote in 2024, a progressive who understands the damage Trump has done to average Americans and the Constitution, or a disappointed Trump voter who isn’t getting what they voted for, please have the courage to fight for Lincoln’s America. Trump’s autocratic alternative would be catastrophic.