ArcaMax

It feels like there are people in America who wake up every morning, stretch like a cartoon villain, and immediately start working to make things worse. They clog up school board meetings, launch unhinged Facebook rants, and propose legislation that makes you check if it's satire. And you know what? They do it with confidence that would be admirable if it weren't so dangerous.

They are brazen. They do not second-guess themselves. They do not pause to wonder, "Hmm, am I the baddie?" No, they plow forward with the conviction of a squirrel sprinting into traffic, but they rarely get hit. Meanwhile, people who want to make things better? We are often careful. Thoughtful. Empathetic to a fault. We fact-check ourselves into paralysis. We hesitate, worrying about how our words might be received, how to find common ground, and how to be reasonable in unreasonable times.

But ... is that worth it? Is it time to match audacity for audacity? Is it time to be as defensive of what's right as they are in their relentless assault on it?

Now, I'm not saying we should start flailing wildly at imaginary culture wars. But I am saying that the energy we use to improve the world must be just as unapologetic as the energy used to tear it down. If they can charge forward with reckless abandon in the name of fear and regression, we can march just as fiercely for hope and progress.

We need to be the kind of people who show up, and we need to show up loudly. We refuse to be cowed by bad-faith arguments and manufactured outrage. We are willing to make a scene when necessary because history shows that polite requests for justice are rarely honored.

We also need to stop letting them frame the narrative. They act like their version of America is the only "real" America, as if fighting for equity and decency makes you an outsider rather than someone who upholds the actual founding ideals. (You know, the good ones, like being created equal or not being down for kings, and not the ones about slavery and only landowners voting.)

People who posture like they own patriotism make it sound like caring about human rights somehow makes you less American than screaming about gas stoves and banning books.

So, let's be brazen in the right way. Let's make it so that advocating for a livable wage, accessible health care, and the radical notion that kids should make it home from school is just as loud and proud as the nonsense peddled by those who oppose such things. Let's make the defense of dignity and decency so strong that those working against it feel the pressure for once.

Because the truth is terrible, bad ideas only win when good people hesitate. Let's be bold, loud, and unapologetically audacious for the good of us all.

Cassie McClure is a writer, millennial, and unapologetic fan of the Oxford comma. She can be contacted at cassie@mcclurepublications.com. To find out more about Cassie McClure and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

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