Patricia M. DeMarco

     I sit in my sunroom at dawn this midsummer day listening to the insistent trill of the Carolina wren in the rose of Sharon bush just outside my door. The sight of Pasha Pussycat, safely behind the screen, is sending the apprehensive mother bird into a frenzy in fear of a threat to her nest in the niche above the doorway. It is natural for a creature to shriek at a threat in alarm and warning.As I attended  Reclamation! the 2025 Black Appalachian Coalition Storytelling and Policy Summit July 17 to 20, 2025, I heard many people share their experiences and their fears for the impact of the cuts to so many services. I wonder why we all are not shrieking in alarm and warning at the “One Big Beautiful Budget Act” that was signed into law on July 4^th this year.

The major cuts to health care and food support will cast millions of Americans into poverty and even death. The major beneficiaries of this OBBBA are corporations whose taxes fall from 35% to 21%, and individuals with net income over $400,000 per year. The budget is the best representation of policy. This budget codifies a shift in values away from standards that long defined America. Here, greed and privilege displace equal opportunity and shared prosperity.

We must restore trust in each other and rebuild confidence in the representative democracy system of governance:

We must restore the sense of dignity and respect for people regardless of their income level, race, gender, religion, or even political affiliation.

We must recognize our responsibility to engage as active citizens.

We must commit to preserving a future for our children, and care for today’s children.

We must face the reality of climate change.  The laws of Nature are not negotiable. 

We must raise our voices in protest. Every Congressional Representative is up for election in 2026. The time to weigh in with them is NOW! 

We the People must take back the narrative of what this country is about. We do not judge our greatness by the number and fame of the billionaires but by how well the children, the elderly, the infirm and the poorest among us are doing. We can build a finer future that is people centered, not profit centered, and recognize that we live in a state of abundance. Shared prosperity will emerge when we shift our values to place priority on people above profits and planet health over the next quarter bottom line. This OBBBA makes a mockery of the message of the Statue of Liberty that has welcomed so many millions to our shores. Our diversity is our strength. We the People must raise our voices in moral outrage at what has become legal but is not right. 

See the full article below. I welcome your thoughts.

Patty