Bob, That is absolutely terrific. It is the best kind of thing one can do at
times like this.
Miriam
-----Original Message-----
From: blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
<blind-democracy-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of Bob Hachey
Sent: Monday, March 05, 2018 8:06 AM
To: blind-democracy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [blind-democracy] Re: Is this justice?
Hi all,
No bout about it; today's deteriorating climate worldwide makes justice harder
and harder to find and injustice easier and easier to find. Whether it's Trump
and his ilk here in America, Europe and Asia where nationalism and osterity are
on the rise or Isreal, where it seems that only the "chosen people" get
justice, the world is becoming a harsher place where human goodness is under
tremendous threat.
My method for survival is to first, do what good I can here in my little corner
of planet Earth and secondly, to develop a thicker skin to protect against the
onslaught of nationalism and greed.
One of my favorite activities these days is to do good work for the Waltham
Alliance to Create Housing, (WATCH). WATCH promotes the creation of affordable
housing and a lot more. WE run English as a second language classes, a tenant
group that helps renters in crisis and teaches them how to advocate for their
rights, first time home buyer classes and we offer support for some of the
immigrant groups now under threat by the Trump administration. One of our board
members is a Salvadoran who we thought we might lose to deportation a few
months ago. With a bit of legal assistance, she has beaten back the wolves of
ICE for now, but who knows how long that will last.
When I first joined the board of WATCH, we were mostly all white. Now the
majority of our board is nonwhite and WATCH has experienced tremendous growth
over the last six years. We definitely felt a Trump bump as donations increased
markedly after the election of 2016.
When I'm feeling down about life and the injustice around me, I try to focus on
the folks who come up to me and thank me both at the WATCH office and on the
streets of Waltham. They are usually thanking me for putting my skills and
experience to work on their behalf.
I have been working with WATCH since 2003, mostly as an advocate and now as a
board member. I have not received any monetary compensation from WATCH, but the
emotional rewards I have received are tremendous. The folks who come up and
thank me range from parents whose children benefit from a neighborhood spray
park in summers for which I helped to develop grant funding, to folks who just
bought their first home after attending one of our first time home buyer
programs to young people who have either gotten their first decent job or
gotten into college after attending one of our ESL classes.
I still enjoy advocating for ACB and other disability groups, but I seem to
derive greater spiritual satisfaction from working with groups like WATCH.
Bob Hachey
