All the isms in the world seem to be exploding in our faces. It’s as if the last straw was added to the backs of oppressed people and they — hallelujah! — are rising up. Some allies and advocates are suddenly either making, or no longer able to avoid making, the connections. again — hallelujah!

The equal and opposite reaction that we heard about in science class is that those who long for a time when their comfort was insured, that they didn’t need to see beyond their own enclaves are taken aback by people’s demand for recognition.

So hateful, hateful, hateful laws are being enacted that are signs of the worst of their hearts.

It’s been stunning. But we can’t allow our dismay to stop us in our tracks. We cannot allow ourselves to be simply dumbfounded. It has to stir us to action. Hate needs to bring us to our feet. We must protest with our bodies, our very clever minds, and our very loving hearts.

We must somehow remember even as we protest, that we do not want to sound like the people giving voice to their hate. We have to be firm in our love and loving in our firmness. We must love the haters. This is a hard call for me.

The shock of hatred must, I believe with everything in me, move us to our passion for Peace. Let us Peace. In the face of hatred, let us Peace.