United We Dream protesters outside Senator John Cornyn's office in January

The anxiety of these times is overwhelming. I say that as a straight, white male of means.

What's lost in the day-to-day bullsh*t of this administration is the quantity of lives lost, ruined, delayed, and inconvenienced due to the policies this administration has put into place. Compounding the problems are the number of white people that feel empowered because of this white supremacist in chief.

Think about it: I have a sh*tty start to the day when my kids refuse to put their shoes on or leave their lunches at home and I need to make multiple trips to school. I have a sh*tty day when our pool's pump is leaking (for the fourth time this summer). I have a sh*tty day when my old bloodhound wakes up in the middle of the night to poop because he's getting older and doesn't have great control of his bowels.

United we DREAM protesters speaking before entering John Cornyn's offices

All of my sh*tty days are NOTHING compared to the very real issues of our brothers and sisters of color:

Not being able to find a job because your name sounds different;
Having the cops called on you because you're a person of color opening the door to your own store;
Not being able to go to college because you weren't born in this country and you don't have documentation;
Not being able to take your sick children to the doctor because you don't have insurance because your job considers you a "freelancer";
Not being able to have access to public housing because you were arrested because you made a sh*tty decision when you were 18 and you now have a record

Senator John Cornyn's award for being the #1 DREAM killer

We are living in a time in a country when white people in power are not stepping up to their Christian (or any other mainstream religion) responsibilities to ensure that the most vulnerable people among us are taken care of. This is evident in countless policy goals and appointees of the current Tr*mp administration and in state government (I'm looking at you, Texas). White people, it's absolutely critical that we 1) are registered to vote AND YOU VOTE. Not just in presidential elections; 2) that we are aware of the issues affecting our brothers and sisters; and 3) that we support our brothers and sisters in need.

I say all of this with full-knowledge that I am not perfect, but knowing that my goal each day is to be the best dad, husband, friend, neighbor, colleague, and passerby that I can be.

Clean DREAM Act banner in front of Senator John Cornyn's office

And, finally, if you aren't subscribed to their podcast already I highly, highly recommend listening to the Politically Re-Active podcast episode below (and their whole catalogue of episodes). The two hosts, W. Kamau Bell and Hari Kondabolu provide fantastic perspectives on what the signing-away of DACA means for children that were brought to this country. The episode also underlines the importance of not only protecting the "exceptional" immigrants but the importance of protecting all immigrants.

Leave a comment with what you're trying to do to help provide opportunities for those in your community :)

Last weekend I had the privilege of working with Lewis Conway Jr. on several photos for his campaign for a position on the Austin City Council.

Lewis isn't your typical candidate by any measure of the imagination. When Lewis was 21 he was convicted of voluntary manslaughter. For his crime he spent eight years in prison and another 12 years on parole. Lewis, now 48, works for Grassroots Leadership, an organization focused on ending mass incarceration, deportation, and criminalization. Previously he worked with the City Council in 2016 to pass the Fair Chance Hiring ordinance which prohibits an employer from using criminal background as a condition for making a job offer.

As Ava DuVernay outlines in 13th (which is amazing and can be found on Netflix) our prisons act as contemporary slave plantations condemning people, even once they've served their time*, to an extremely difficult life after prison. This life after prison often results in a loss of public housing, the loss of voting rights, the loss of someone's rights to serve as an elected official, and very high odds of recidivism. These are just the tangible impacts and it says nothing about all the intangible and unseen threats affecting a person who has served time in prison.

Lewis and Grassroots Leadership are fighting against these stigmas and these "tough on crime" initiatives to try and ensure that the next generation of people serving time in prison, or those at risk of serving time, have a better shake than what Lewis experienced.

The hitch to Lewis' candidacy is that he may not be qualified to run due to his conviction. A ruling has not yet been made and while he waits for his lawyers and the city to determine his eligibility, he's out doing meet-and-greets, talking on panels and ensuring that the community knows his story.

In November's elections Lewis aims to bring his unique perspective to the Austin City Council, challenging whether or not someone convicted of a crime has the ability to serve as an elected official and challenging what kind of world we share with those that have been convicted of a crime; people who have paid their debt and now want to run for office to leave a better world for those after them. I couldn't be more excited to see what Lewis is able to accomplish over the coming months and I'm absolutely rooting for him!

Lots of articles are better-written than this blog post and you should absolutely read them for a more-thorough understanding of how Lewis' background affects his ability to run for office and how our local, state, and national laws are setup to discourage those who have been historically underserved from running for change:

*that's not even to say whether they're guilty or not or whether they've received a fair trial due to not being able to afford a lawyer or parole

Hank + Tank's Journeys:

Featured posts:

Capturing the Power of Voices - Striking Photography of an Immigration Protest: DACA and Immigration and Customs Enforcement

Lewis Conway Jr. is Running for Austin City Council