Author: Michael Tino

 “When my brothers try to draw a circle to exclude me, I shall draw a larger circle to include them. Where they speak out for the privileges of a puny group, I shall shout for the rights of all mankind.” ―The Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray, lawyer, civil rights activist, and the first African-American woman* ordained an Episcopal priest.

(*Many wonder, given Dr. Murray’s writings about gender identity if Dr. Murray would identify as transgender or gender non-binary today.)

How can you speak up for the rights of others today?

Photo of Rev. Dr. Pauli Murray from the University of North Carolina library.

 

Liberation feels like a giant concept, hard to define, and hard to visualize sometimes. It’s easier for me to think about small things that make me feel free – being with friends who make me feel like myself, meeting new people who share my values, learning new truths that shift my worldview for the better – and imagining how those instances can be transferred to the macro scale. -Marin Smith (CLF)

What is a small thing you can do today to make the world better?

The sage advice of giving those who you love roots to come home to, wings to fly and a reason to stay defines liberation to me.  It indicates freedom to live a good life. -Judy DiCristofaro (CLF)

What gives you roots and wings?

On this day, Christians around the world celebrate gifts given to the infant Jesus by royal travelers from afar. 

What gifts do you give to the world today?

The poet Toi Derricotte told us that “joy is an act of resistance,”  and we know that resistance is liberation. We are free when we feel joy and live with love on our hearts. -JeKaren Olaoya (CLF)

Express joy as an act of resistance and liberation today.