People tell me that American politics are none of my business.
That’s not true.
They say that health care isn’t political.
That’s not true either.
They say that businesses should be apolitical.
Well, that’s just BS.
I’m a woman. A mother. A patient. A business owner. I can’t count the number of times I’ve been told to sit down, shut up, stop whining, quit being hysterical, and that I’m being too political. Mostly by so-called health leaders but also by other advocates (the shut-up from my peers hurts the most of all).
Women aren’t always told directly to shut up. In my country, there’s a sticky veneer of niceness that comes with the Canadian way. You find out you’ve been ghosted or put on a sh*t list because you’ve spoken your truth or made yourself vulnerable. Maybe you’ve said no or withdrew from an event because you listened to your gut. Or you dared to give feedback about a health care or patient engagement experience.
You’ve threatened those in power in some way and they will swat you away like a mosquito to shut you down. The whole strategy to dismiss you is structured to wear you down so you go away. I’ve been swatted a lot, especially lately as I’ve found my voice and stopped being a yes (wo)man.
Still I speak up.
American politics are my business because we live in a global connected world. I can see American outside of my condo’s window. My eldest son lives in the US with his wife. I grew up surrounded by American media, and Canada is influenced by the US more than we admit.
Health care is political. Businesses are not apolitical. I co-own my own business. Because Bird Comm specializes in health care, we do work exclusively for the public sector or with not-for-profits. And guess what? The public sector is 100% political, as politicians run our ministries. And the Ministry of Health is the biggest ministry there is. A lot of power resides there.
Yesterday’s election results were a wake-up call about how the world really is and not what I want it to be. What is going to save those of us who keep stumbling in this game of late-stage capitalism is being aware of our own values and then acting according to those values. I’m never going to become successful from telling my truth and using my power for good, not evil. I’ve recently come to peace with that being okay. Not being successful doesn't mean I'm a failure. You can't lose if you don't play the game. I refuse to play a game where, as Leonard Cohen says, the dice are loaded.
At times like these I draw upon is the wisdom of others.
This quote from Audre Lorde comes via hospital chaplain J.S. Park.
'Audre Lorde, four years before dying of cancer, remarked on facing both the ills of the world and her own illness. She wrote:“The point is to do as much as I can of what I came to do before they nickel and dime me to death. Racism. Cancer. In both cases, to win the aggressor must conquer, but the resisters need only survive. How do I define that survival and on whose terms?” ❤️🩹'
How do you define survival if you are a woman? If you are a health care advocate swimming against the tide? If you or someone you love is equity-deserving?
It is your job to craft a lovely, full and creative life based on survival that is on your own terms and in alignment with your own values.
Living a lovely, full and creative life is my greatest revenge against those who try to silence me, those who use the R word, those who call me difficult, and those who treat my son disrespectfully.
I will rest to lick my wounds but then I will continue on. There is lots of room at my kitchen table. You are welcome to join me.
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