Shadi Eskandani

If we can’t envision something different, then we’ll have more of the same.

We can look to the past to inform our present, while remembering that there is sociopolitical context to each historical moment.

We can take action while also reflecting to make informed decisions. Critical thinking is key. And although it’s hard with the levels of psychological warfare and propaganda these days, it’s not impossible.

Discernment is a skill to hone as we go down internet rabbit holes day in and day out.

What do we do when we’re desperate for revolutionary change? When we know that the “enemy of our enemy” is not always our friend. Especially when they’ve got blood on their hands.

What do we do when limited ideologies that lump everything together for a “fix-it-all” solution, do not capture crucial specifics?

What of self-determination when we think is impossible without a deadly intervention?

Political maneuverings will always be there. How do we get around them? Get through them? Work with them? Or do we?

What role does the *power of the people* play in all of this?

And who are the people if not us?

Maybe I’m not being clear enough here. Or specific enough. And maybe I’m just tired of screaming the same thing into cyberspace and hoping you’re catching my drift.

What I know is that without a radical act of hope, we’ll have more of the same. And I am hoping hard that we envision something different (better) than the narratives we’ve woven as truths. There is always a possibility for something new to free us from what we’re entangled in.

I dare us to hope for something different. A new way forward.