I believe freedom is priceless. It is not measured by justice, fairness or tears. I have sought justice, fighting and standing for the rights of the vulnerable. Today, I know freedom transcends what you think, feel or deserve. Freedom rises above all . . . and lives not in castles, nor prairies, cities, mansions or deep space; it lives within our essence. It resides in the very core and nature of who we are, when we have the courage to live FREE, no matter what . . . A foundation for Transformative Justice.
The 21st century’s objectives for social justice will not be won on a conventional battlefield; they will be achieved through an unabashed belief in the power of this evolved brand of justice. The transformative justice warrior’s armor is not made of metal, nor is it impenetrable. It comes from a belief in valiant vulnerability and the refusal to be daunted by what is brutal or inequitable in this world. I am armed with grace and love, grit and guts – radical compassion and collective tribe – the true gear for 21st century social change.
When I’m living “on purpose” I believe I was put on this earth to be a vehicle for love and grace in the world. Early on when I was a kid, I used to hide behind my rose colored spectacles, embarrassed sometimes, that this is how I saw the world. Today, many years later, I no longer hide my appreciation of the beauty in life, even in the midst of pain; oddly it enables me to do the work that I do. When I was based at juvenile court working with young trafficking survivors, my team would sometimes call me Polly (short for Pollyanna). Though they’d often shake their heads, it’s what got me up in the middle of the night to write when our kids got arrested. My belief and love for the children, not my hatred or anger for their perpetrators. Please understand, by no means do I excuse these perpetrators’ acts, I vehemently condemn them. But it is love that gives me the strength to fight, not hate.
Let us be armed not with hatred and hopelessness, no matter WHAT the circumstances, but with a brand of justice – transformative justice, that cannot be taken away, because it lives within us, and provides strength so profound, that nothing and no one can diminish it. Recently, in the wake of the massacre in South Carolina, I see this philosophy emphasized so clearly — in the courage of the people of South Carolina and the stunning way they are driving change.
One of my heroines, Anne Frank, to me says it profoundly, I pray to one day thank her myself for the words I choose to live by and that have inspired an age – I still believe in the inherent goodness of people. I believe the foundation for true freedom lies in this transformative approach.
I want to add my word’s to those of Anne. I do believe that it is standing in this belief, no matter what the circumstance, that ultimately gives us the power to advance the goodness of people. While we recognize that evil does indeed exist in this world, we can choose to view it as vastly outweighed by the good. Standing in that belief, allow us to pass on what is powerful and pure to the next generation, so that, as a global society, we can have the courage to be fueled by love. Not as a weakness, but an ultimate strength.
