Ilhan Omar was born Oct. 4, 1982, and is one of those refugees Trump wants to go back to where she was born. Ilhan’s mother died when she was two, and with her family she escaped a war in Somalia and spent four years in a refugee camp. She has been physically attacked because of her politics and is currently a subject of death threats.
Rashida Tlaib, the eldest of 14 children, was born July 24, 1976, in Detroit to Palestinian immigrants, and identifies with the left wing of the Democratic Party. She won the general election for Michigan State Rep with 92% of the vote.
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, born Oct. 13, 1989 in NYC, felt her life change when she went to Standing Rock Indian Reservation in North Dakota and realized that those with interest and involvement, those who put their lives and savings on the line for health’s sake, were to be imitated, not arrested.
Ayanna Pressley a former cheerleader and model, was born Feb. 3, 1974 in Cincinnati, and has worked for Joseph Kennedy II and John Kerry. Her Massachusetts district seat was once held by JFK and Tip O’Neill. She has never learned to drive and is not known for being controversial. Her skin is Black.
None of these women was handed a break. Not by parents, trust funds, lottery winnings or prayer. If their names were Agnes, Helen, Dixie and Marge Smith we might quote them more often. In the meantime, know that it takes strong women to teach women to be strong.
These women are bright mothers, daughters, survivors. They don’t spend time stretching their blanket when talking about their history. They don’t hire people then not pay them. They don’t pat the Queen and the Pope on the back. They don’t grope or insult people and they don’t start their mornings telling big fat lies.
Right now, Leon James Alvarado-Owens, born July 24, 2019, is lying on a huge pillow next to his dad’s desk in this office, yawning, hiccupping, and smiling, all with his eyes closed.
These women will improve our country and our world for him. He, in turn, will improve it for babies born later on.
It takes a squad.