The last few days have been a hard and dark time for most of us. We have run through many of the 
horrifying scenarios that could occur after the final election results. We’ve thought of how many of us women may lose the legal right to protect our bodies. Or the possibility that many undocumented friends and loved ones may be taken from our families and communities. We have been fearful of how this decision will further endanger the lives of black people, Muslims and refugees. And our hearts have hurt at the possibility of how this could impact our LGBTQ community and low-income, working class communities of color at large. Some of us have imagined how we can possibly explain all of this to our children and young people.
This mourning and sadness is a natural reaction during a time that seems so uncertain and dark. And CURB hopes you are taking great care of yourself and those who are closest to you at this time.
Yesterday, I felt the same way. It was hard to move, to think, and to work. It felt like a bad dream that I would soon wake up from. I drove to my office at Chuco’s Justice Center in Inglewood in hopes of just being around freedom fighters like you. I wanted to be in community with the people that we have been fighting side by side with for years. I was lucky enough to find that in this space. Every few seconds a young person walked by wanting to process things and connect. Another organizer would pop into the space to reflect on all that occurred and how this would impact our work. A community member we had never met before came by for resources. And in all those conversations I was reminded just how much we have built together and how strong our community really is.
I was reminded of our important victories in California this election cycle, with the passage of Proposition 57 and Proposition 64! These successes were direct results of our people power, and the many organizations led by people impacted by this system like the Youth Justice Coalition, CURYJ, and many more. And I celebrated those collective victories with the wonderful community that passed through yesterday.
This morning I woke up from a dream where I saw us continuing to build towards a brighter and stronger world. I felt how proud we were about the roles we were taking on for our communities to maintain their resilience and fight. I saw our smiles, our laughter, our sweat to make our dreams real.
CURB hopes that at this time you are looking in and finding this hope for yourself. That you are staying close to the people you care for and love. That you are appreciating the smiles shared with strangers and that you are getting ready for our continued fight ahead.
Our fight is long and I believe that we will win,
Diana Zuñiga
Statewide Development and Membership Coordinator
Californians United for a Responsible Budget
