union

“we must end this uncivil war that pits red against blue, rural versus urban, conservative versus liberal. we can do this if we open our souls instead of hardening our hearts... because here is the thing about life: there is no accounting for what fate will deal you.” words of america’s forty-sixth president, joe biden, who on wednesday shy of noon was sworn in at the u.s. capitol, moments after the swearing-in of kamala harris, the country’s first woman vice president. i was at home this time, watching the inauguration on tv, witnessing the pomp, the historic firsts, the carefully-chosen and welcome words of unity. democracy at this hour did prevail, and the transfer of power was peaceful, but looking outside my window it’s hard to ignore the civil war millions are quietly fighting in their own lives against not just a raging plague, but against an economy, a government, and a healthcare system no longer working for them—a seemingly rigged state of affairs long upheld, curiously, by the people’s representatives. we know not what fate will deal us in the end, but in a republic where the people decide their destiny, we know those elected to public office have the power, and the responsibility, to heed the voices of the people: to end the inequities, to end the injustices, to even the deck, to deal the american people a better hand at life and liberty. only then, in those hours of conscience, will we begin to heal, to unite, to find our way back to a more perfect union”

— jk montane