I remember a conversation with my friend Cindy not long after my mom had died in 2014 and while I was thinking about launching this whole website and book writing adventure that I was incubating. I told her about my hopes for the website and some of my ideas about blogging and the book that I wanted to write. And I was surprised when her response to me was an understated, “It sounds to me like you have a lot to say.” That was truly some much-needed wisdom and affirmation at a hard and busy time for me.

And now, a little over one decade into this website and book journey, I am gratified to see how much I really did have to say and how many more topics I would still like to write about. I know this blog doesn’t have a huge following, but it is the primary way I can use my voice to let you know what I have learned or come to better understand. It is a way to express what meets my curiosity, and it’s my small way to SPEAK UP and to do what I have the power to do.

I’m a huge fan of Heather Cox Richardson (HCR), who lives in Maine and is an American history professor at Boston College. She specializes in the Civil War and Reconstruction and previously taught at MIT and the University of Massachusetts, Amhert.

If by some weird twist of fate you haven’t found her yet, she writes a daily newsletter on Substack called Letters From an American that you can have emailed to you if you subscribe for free. HCR also has a podcast called Politics Chat that you can find on Facebook and YouTube every Tuesday and Thursday. And if that isn’t enough, she also interviews politicians, economists, and public servants in a series she calls American Conversations. Finally, one of my favorite things is to watch her feel-good check-in with fellow historian Joanne Freeman every Saturday morning on What the Heck Just Happened. I swear this woman never sleeps!

The best thing about HCR is that she has such a deep understanding of American history and politics. I like that she is able to constantly reiterate that we have been in similar political situations before and have survived. By doing this, she lowers the temperature of the news. Most importantly, her work in support of our democracy really helps all of us manage our anxiety about the terrible and exhausting political situation we find ourselves in.

Heather’s voice with respect to our civic religion of democracy is one that I absolutely trust. She preaches the so-called liberal consensus: the idea that the U.S. government should provide social welfare programs, promote infrastructure projects, regulate business, protect civil rights, and support a rules-based international order. We must be civic minded and SPEAK UP if we want to keep our democrcy. She also advocates for our rights of equality, including the right to have a say in our government, the right to be treated equally before the law, and the right to equal access to resources like education, healthcare, and housing.

I recently came across the following related quote by Robert F. Kennedy Sr. that I absolutely love. It’s from a speech he gave at the University of Capetown, South Africa on June 6, 1966. I am so impressed with the idea of hope for justice being like a tiny ripple that crosses “a million different centers of energy” as if it were spreading across a body of water. Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream (Amos 5:28). And it fits right in with my insistent refrain that we must do precisely what we have within our power to do:

It is from the numberless diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is shaped. Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance.

Robert F. Kennedy Sr. (1966)

I en-courage you to go to the link below for reference 2, in order to read the entire speech. It isn’t very long, but it is very powerful.

So how do we go forward and SPEAK UP? Well, for some of us, understandably, we must find our voices first. And looking within for self knowledge is the obvious place to start. Yes, it does take some courage and practice, but there are many reasons to speak up. For example, your voice matters, especially when you are speaking for those who are voiceless. Also, standing up for what you believe can be a liberating experience that allows you to grow as an individual. And importantly, you may have the next best idea or constructive criticism that we need to hear. References 5 and 6 have some practical suggestions, if you need a place to start.

On the other hand, many of us have a fairly good idea what our political opinions are and are ready to call our elected leaders or protest in one way or another. However you choose to use your voice, just don’t wait too long for perfection before speaking up and making a concrete plan to vote in the midterm elections in November. We must all speak what we have the power to speak! And the time to do that is NOW!

If you liked this blog post, you might also like The Courage to be Seen and The Courage to Speak Up.

Reference 1: Memmott, Mark, LOOKING BACK: RFK’s ‘Ripple Of Hope’ Speech In South Africa, National Public Radio, June 30, 2013.

Reference 2: Robert F. Kennedy, Speech at the University of Capetown, South Africa, Day of Affirmation, 6 June 1966, Centre for Curating the Archive, University of Capetown, accessed June 25, 2026.

Reference 3: Loretta Ross, Speaking Up Without Tearing Down, Southern Poverty Law Center, Learning for Justice, Issue 61, Spring 2019.

Reference 4: United Nations, Speak Up for Our Common Future.

Reference 5: Rob Yeung, Five Reasons to Speak Up When You Don’t Think You Should, September 27, 2025.

Reference 6: Vianne Valiente, The Power of Speaking Up, medium.com, June 20, 2020.

Image 1: Luisa Jung, Speaking Up Without Tearing Down, Southern Poverty Law Center, Learning for Justice, Issue 61, Spring 2019.

Image 2: Howard Lake, Speak Up!, flickr.com, CC BY-SA 2.0, September 25, 2014

Image 3: Howard Lake, Speak up, make your voice heard, flickr.com, CC BY-SA 2.0, March 13, 2011.

Image 4: Robert F. Kennedy Sr. and anti-Apartheid activist and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Albert Luthuli, Capetown, 1966.