Why I Read.

I tried. I wrote a whole post on reader events and swag but the longer I looked at it the more I realized I couldn’t post it.

In light of what’s happened in our country the last few days, it felt disingenuous to talk about something on the fun/frivolous side.

Don’t get me wrong. I know the world continues to revolve and businesses must continue to run. Writers must continue writing, promoting and selling their books. But there is a time where we must stand up for ourselves and our beliefs. To lock out the real world and what’s happening in it doesn’t do any service to anyone. Will I lose readers because I want equality for all Americans? I guess the answer is yes. (Which truly astounds me, but...) The opening line of the constitution is "We the people of the United States..." Not "we the men" or "we the white guys in powdered wigs" or "we the christians." I don't understand the need of some people to dictate how others live their lives. Live and let live. It's not so hard to do. I don't understand what happened to compassion. 

Personally, my social media has been cut by more than half. I find it hard to post about books when so much upheaval is happening in the country. Don’t get me wrong, in this instance, I think upheaval is needed and is a good thing. Americans should voice their opinion peacefully when so much is at stake.

For instance... if Americans really embodied what the Statue of Liberty stands for then they should be furious with the current state of affairs. Here is a small – and widely known – section on the monument’s plaque written by Emma Lazarus:

 "Give me your tired, your poor,

Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,

The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.

Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,

I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

Powerful words, are they not? 

To ban people because of their religion goes against everything our country stands for. There is NO religion synonymous with terrorism. None. Terrorists come in all shapes and sizes from all religions and all walks of life. To hold a whole race or religion accountable for the actions of a few is despicable.  America has plenty of its own homegrown terrorists like Timothy McVeigh, Terry Nichols, Eric Robert Rudolph, and most recently Dylann Roof among many others. But there was never a thought to ban the white guy.

America is made up of people from everywhere who have different beliefs. Why is that bad?

Let's look at some cliches: Strength in numbers. Divide and conquer.
They are cliches for a reason. We are being divided and prime for being conquered. 

To sit by and watch/let the country move in its current direction without speaking out is to condone it. I can’t do that. To me, this is not a Democratic or Republican issue. It is an American issue. It's about common human decency. I'll repeat that. 

Common human decency.

We are all part of the human race. We all bleed the same color. 

So I protest. I call, write and email senators and legislators. I do research and choose where I spend my money.

And I read. I’m so sick to my stomach by what’s happening that I NEED books to escape. I need to forget for just a few minutes everyday that the world has turned upside down. I need to believe that we’ll come through this and everything will be okay. Romance helps me believe that happily ever after is possible.

That’s why I read.

These views are solely my own as I cannot speak for any other participants of this blog.