HAPPY JUNETEENTH & THE PROGRESS OF BLM

[Luna Bliss]

Today is the day slavery ended in 1865, and now Juneteenth flags are flying in many states today - it appears BLM is doing some good!  What have you seen that indicates BLM is helping bring awareness to important issues, or alleviate prejudice against Blacks or other People Of Color?

Be good...no name calling!  Stay on topic.

 

[Luna Bliss]

http://juneteenth.com/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juneteenth

Edited June 19, 2020 by Luna Bliss

[Ashlyn Voir]

Thank you so much for posting this and Happy Juneteenth. ❤️ BLM and other black activists have been not only bringing more awareness to the institutional and systemic racism in this country, but so far change has been happening. Here’s a post on Tumblr highlighting that:

https://saatooriii.tumblr.com/post/620570169293619200/what-have-the-protests-accomplished
 

There is still a lot that must be addressed and must be done, but so far I think people are starting to wake up and become aware. 

[Luna Bliss]

If this is happening even in Kansas we have hope!

TOPEKA, Kan. (KAKE) - Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly says she will sign a proclamation Friday morning recognizing June 19, 2020, as Juneteenth National Freedom Day in the state.

“Juneteenth is not just a celebration of the ending of slavery in our nation, it also serves as an important reminder that the struggle for freedom and justice is far from over,” Kelly said. “We need to remain committed to making Kansas and our country a more equitable place for every American.”

[Dano Seale]

12 minutes ago, Ashlyn Voir said:

but so far I think people are starting to wake up and become aware.

Britains and Europes football  (soccer) and their sporting associations in general, have had a "kick it out" campaign against racism for at least the past 5 years! We're pretty much wide awake already.  😉

[Beth Macbain]

I've mentioned that I work for a human services agency. This morning our (extremely white and conservative) CEO sent staff an email outlining the first steps we are taking to becoming an anti-racist agency. The words were chosen very deliberately to state that simply not being racist isn't enough - we will be taking concrete steps to work with and support BLM to become anti-racist.

After it was shared with staff, it was shared with the public. We know we are going to get some backlash from our very conservative, very white donors, but we've decided that taking this stand is unquestionably the right thing to do. 

I'm incredibly proud, and also happy on a personal level to have been asked to be a member of our Diversity and Inclusion Committee. 

 

[Innula Zenovka]

I can certainly recommend Watchmen, which is how I learned of the Tulsa Race Massacre that took place 99 years ago.   

[Drakonadrgora Darkfold]

6 minutes ago, Beth Macbain said:

 

I'm incredibly proud, and also happy on a personal level to have been asked to be a member of our Diversity and Inclusion Committee. 

 

congratulations Beth.

[Cindy Evanier]

19 minutes ago, Dano Seale said:

Britains and Europes football  (soccer) and their sporting associations in general, have had a "kick it out" campaign against racism for at least the past 5 years! We're pretty much wide awake already.  😉

It was actually founded in 1993  https://www.kickitout.org/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kick_It_Out_(organisation)

[LexxiXhan]

52 minutes ago, Luna Bliss said:

What have you seen that indicates BLM is helping bring awareness to important issues, or alleviate prejudice against Blacks or other People Of Color?

This is a text that a friend forwarded to me two weeks ago. And a lot more seems to have happened since then..

The protests in America and across the world have upset and scared a lot of people. Who would choose the middle of a pandemic to fight for human rights? Well it couldn't wait, NOW IS THE MOMENT, if people had pressed pause and politely waited until it was safe to leave the house no one would be listening. Whatever your opinion on the mass gatherings  & protests in this time of pandemic I feel it is important to remember that protests over history do bring about social change.
I have copied this post to demonstrate:
.
.
So what exactly has protesting accomplished this time?

👉🏾Within 10 days of sustained protests:
Minneapolis bans use of choke holds.

👉🏾 George Floyd’s murderer was originally charged with 3rd degree murder. He is now being charged with 2nd degree murder.

👉🏾The other three officers who stood on scene and did NOTHING to help Floyd are being charged with aiding and abetting 2nd degree murder.

👉🏾Breonna Taylor’s case has been reopened.

 👉🏾Louisville, KY’s mayor is ordering an outside review of the entire city police department.

👉🏾Dallas adopts a "duty to intervene" rule that requires officers to stop other cops who are engaging in inappropriate use of force.

👉🏾New Jersey’s attorney general said the state will update its use-of-force guidelines for the first time in two decades.

👉🏾In Maryland, a bipartisan work group of state lawmakers announced a police reform work group.

👉🏾A seminar scheduled in December for KC police that trains cops to kill without hestitation was cancelled.

👉🏾Los Angeles City Council introduces motion to reduce LAPD’s $1.8 billion operating budget.

👉🏾MBTA in Boston agrees to stop using public buses to transport police officers to protests.

👉🏾Police brutality captured on cameras leads to near-immediate suspensions and firings of officers in several cities (i.e., Buffalo, Ft. Lauderdale).

👉🏾Monuments celebrating confederates are removed in cities in Virginia, Alabama, and other states.

👉🏾James Miller resigned from his role in the Defense Asvisory Board at the Pentagon in response to the Secretary of Defense’s support of LEOs clearing out White House protestors with tear gas so Trump could take a publicity photo.

👉🏾Defense Secretary Mark Esper said he will oppose Trump’s threats to deploy federal troops to stop protestors across the US.

👉🏾Street in front of the White House is renamed "Black Lives Matter Plaza.”
Military forces begin to withdraw from D.C.

Then, there's all the other stuff that's hard to measure:

💓The really difficult public and private conversations that are happening about race and privilege.

💓The realizations some white people are coming to about racism and the role of policing in this country as well as the USA.

💓The self-reflection. (Fingers crossed 🤞🏽)

💓The internal battles exploding within organisations over issues that have been simmering or ignored for a long time. Some organisations will end as a result, others will be forever changed or replaced with something stronger and fairer.

Globally:

🌎 Protests against racial inequality sparked by the police killing of George Floyd are taking place all over the world.

🌎 Rallies and memorials have been held in cities across Europe, as well as in Mexico, Canada, Brazil, Australia, and New Zealand.

🌎 As the US contends with its second week of protests, issues of racism, police brutality, and oppression have been brought to light across the globe.

🌎 In France, protesters marched holding signs that said "I can't breathe" to signify both the words of Floyd, and the last words of Adama Traoré, a 24-year-old black man who was subdued by police officers and gasped the sentence before he died outside Paris in 2016.

🌎 Cities across Europe have come together after the death of George Floyd:

✊🏽 In Amsterdam, an estimated 10,000 people filled the Dam square on Monday, holding signs and shouting popular chants like "Black lives matter," and "No justice, no peace."

✊🏽 In Germany, people gathered in multiple locations throughout Berlin to demand justice for Floyd and fight against police brutality.

✊🏾 A mural dedicated to Floyd was also spray-painted on a stretch of wall in Berlin that once divided the German capital during the Cold War.

✊🏿 In Ireland, protesters held a peaceful demonstration outside of Belfast City Hall, and others gathered outside of the US embassy in Dublin.

✊🏿In Italy, protesters gathered and marched with signs that said "Stop killing black people," "Say his name," and "We will not be silent."

✊🏾 In Spain, people gathered to march and hold up signs throughout Barcelona and Madrid.

✊🏾 In Athens, Greece, protesters took to the streets to collectively hold up a sign that read "I can't breathe."

✊🏾 In Brussels, protesters were seen sitting in a peaceful demonstration in front of an opera house in the center of the city.

✊🏾In Denmark, protesters were heard chanting "No justice, no peace!" throughout the streets of Copenhagen, while others gathered outside the US embassy.

✊🏾 In Canada, protesters were also grieving for Regis Korchinski-Paquet, a 29-year-old black woman who died on Wednesday after falling from her balcony during a police investigation at her building.

✊🏾 And in New Zealand, roughly 2,000 people marched to the US embassy in Auckland, chanting and carrying signs demanding justice.

✊🏼✊🏾✊🏿In Bristol, England, thousands peacefully marched in solidarity, and the statue of slave trader Edward Colston was toppled, dragged through the streets and dumped in the river where slaves were once brought. Colston Hall will be renamed sooner than planned, and a smaller Colston statue has been removed from a Bristol school.

💐 Memorials have been built for Floyd around the world, too. In Mexico City, portraits of him were hung outside the US embassy with roses, candles, and signs.

💐 In Poland, candles and flowers were laid out next to photos of Floyd outside the US consulate.

💐 And in Syria, two artists created a mural depicting Floyd in the northwestern town of Binnish, "on a wall destroyed by military planes."

Before the assassination of George Floyd some of you were able to say whatever the hell you wanted and the world didn't say anything to you...

THERE HAS BEEN A SHIFT, AN AWAKENING...MANY OF YOU ARE BEING EXPOSED FOR WHO YOU REALLY ARE. #readthatagain

Don't wake up tomorrow on the wrong side of this issue. Its not to late to SAY,

"maybe I need to look at this from a different perspective.

Maybe I don't know what its like to be Black in America...

Maybe, just maybe, I have been taught wrong."

There is still so much work to be done. It's been a really dark, raw week. This could still end badly. But all we can do is keep doing the work.

Keep protesting.

WE ARE NOT TRYING TO START A RACE WAR; WE ARE PROTESTING TO END IT,
PEACEFULLY.

How beautiful is that?

ALL LIVES CANNOT MATTER UNTIL YOU INCLUDE BLACK LIVES.

YOU CANNOT SAY 'ALL LIVES MATTER' WHEN YOU DO NOTHING TO STOP SYSTEMIC RACISM & POLICE BRUTALITY.

YOU CANNOT SAY 'ALL LIVES MATTER' WHEN BLACK PEOPLE ARE DYING AND ALL YOU COMPLAIN ABOUT IS A STATUE BEING PUSHED OVER!

YOU CANNOT SAY 'ALL LIVES MATTER' WHEN YOU VOTE IN ADMINISTRATIONS THAT ALLOW THE WEALTHY IN SOCIETY TO GET WEALTHIER BY AVOIDING TAX WHILE VETERANS ARE HOMELESS AND POOR FAMILIES GO HUNGRY AND THEY BREAK THE VERY RULES THEY IMPOSE ON US.

DO ALL LIVES MATTER? YES. BUT RIGHT NOW, ONLY BLACK LIVES ARE BEING TARGETED, JAILED, AND KILLED EN MASSE- SO THAT'S WHO WE'RE FOCUSING ON.

🖤🖤🖤BLACK LIVES MATTER🖤🖤🖤

IF YOU CAN'T SEE THIS, YOU ARE THE PROBLEM.

[Beth Macbain]

1 minute ago, Drakonadrgora Darkfold said:

congratulations Beth

They may end up kicking me off when they discover that I joined to be the voice of the non-Christians... 

I know a lot of us are just learning about Juneteenth today - I think it's important to note that this day of freedom came two years AFTER the Emancipation Proclamation, and slavery wasn't officially outlawed until December when the 13th Amendment was ratified. 

And while we celebrate today, it's also important to see how on the very first Juneteenth in 1865, the fine white abolitionists of the North wanted to make certain that the newly freed slaves had just better behave themselves. 

"On June 18, Union Army General Gordon Granger arrived at Galveston Island with 2,000 federal troops to occupy Texas on behalf of the federal government. The following day, standing on the balcony of Galveston's Ashton Villa, Granger read aloud the contents of "General Order No. 3", announcing the total emancipation of those held as slaves:

The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves, and the connection heretofore existing between them becomes that between employer and hired labor. The freedmen are advised to remain quietly at their present homes and work for wages. They are informed that they will not be allowed to collect at military posts and that they will not be supported in idleness either there or elsewhere."

Let's celebrate our butts off today, and remember that there is still work to be done tomorrow. ❤️❤️❤️

[LexxiXhan]

28 minutes ago, Dano Seale said:

Britains and Europes football  (soccer) and their sporting associations in general, have had a "kick it out" campaign against racism for at least the past 5 years! We're pretty much wide awake already.  😉

I wouldn't go as far as "wide awake", there are still huge problems in UK football culture regarding racism, but can confirm that "KickItOut" is doing great work to combat discrimination of all kinds in football. Here's one of their recent Tweets

[Janet Voxel]

9 minutes ago, LexxiXhan said:

This is a text that a friend forwarded to me two weeks ago. And a lot more seems to have happened since then..

The protests in America and across the world have upset and scared a lot of people. Who would choose the middle of a pandemic to fight for human rights? Well it couldn't wait, NOW IS THE MOMENT, if people had pressed pause and politely waited until it was safe to leave the house no one would be listening. Whatever your opinion on the mass gatherings  & protests in this time of pandemic I feel it is important to remember that protests over history do bring about social change.
I have copied this post to demonstrate:
.
.
So what exactly has protesting accomplished this time?

👉🏾Within 10 days of sustained protests:
Minneapolis bans use of choke holds.

👉🏾 George Floyd’s murderer was originally charged with 3rd degree murder. He is now being charged with 2nd degree murder.

👉🏾The other three officers who stood on scene and did NOTHING to help Floyd are being charged with aiding and abetting 2nd degree murder.

👉🏾Breonna Taylor’s case has been reopened.

 👉🏾Louisville, KY’s mayor is ordering an outside review of the entire city police department.

👉🏾Dallas adopts a "duty to intervene" rule that requires officers to stop other cops who are engaging in inappropriate use of force.

👉🏾New Jersey’s attorney general said the state will update its use-of-force guidelines for the first time in two decades.

👉🏾In Maryland, a bipartisan work group of state lawmakers announced a police reform work group.

👉🏾A seminar scheduled in December for KC police that trains cops to kill without hestitation was cancelled.

👉🏾Los Angeles City Council introduces motion to reduce LAPD’s $1.8 billion operating budget.

👉🏾MBTA in Boston agrees to stop using public buses to transport police officers to protests.

👉🏾Police brutality captured on cameras leads to near-immediate suspensions and firings of officers in several cities (i.e., Buffalo, Ft. Lauderdale).

👉🏾Monuments celebrating confederates are removed in cities in Virginia, Alabama, and other states.

👉🏾James Miller resigned from his role in the Defense Asvisory Board at the Pentagon in response to the Secretary of Defense’s support of LEOs clearing out White House protestors with tear gas so Trump could take a publicity photo.

👉🏾Defense Secretary Mark Esper said he will oppose Trump’s threats to deploy federal troops to stop protestors across the US.

👉🏾Street in front of the White House is renamed "Black Lives Matter Plaza.”
Military forces begin to withdraw from D.C.

Then, there's all the other stuff that's hard to measure:

💓The really difficult public and private conversations that are happening about race and privilege.

💓The realizations some white people are coming to about racism and the role of policing in this country as well as the USA.

💓The self-reflection. (Fingers crossed 🤞🏽)

💓The internal battles exploding within organisations over issues that have been simmering or ignored for a long time. Some organisations will end as a result, others will be forever changed or replaced with something stronger and fairer.

Globally:

🌎 Protests against racial inequality sparked by the police killing of George Floyd are taking place all over the world.

🌎 Rallies and memorials have been held in cities across Europe, as well as in Mexico, Canada, Brazil, Australia, and New Zealand.

🌎 As the US contends with its second week of protests, issues of racism, police brutality, and oppression have been brought to light across the globe.

🌎 In France, protesters marched holding signs that said "I can't breathe" to signify both the words of Floyd, and the last words of Adama Traoré, a 24-year-old black man who was subdued by police officers and gasped the sentence before he died outside Paris in 2016.

🌎 Cities across Europe have come together after the death of George Floyd:

✊🏽 In Amsterdam, an estimated 10,000 people filled the Dam square on Monday, holding signs and shouting popular chants like "Black lives matter," and "No justice, no peace."

✊🏽 In Germany, people gathered in multiple locations throughout Berlin to demand justice for Floyd and fight against police brutality.

✊🏾 A mural dedicated to Floyd was also spray-painted on a stretch of wall in Berlin that once divided the German capital during the Cold War.

✊🏿 In Ireland, protesters held a peaceful demonstration outside of Belfast City Hall, and others gathered outside of the US embassy in Dublin.

✊🏿In Italy, protesters gathered and marched with signs that said "Stop killing black people," "Say his name," and "We will not be silent."

✊🏾 In Spain, people gathered to march and hold up signs throughout Barcelona and Madrid.

✊🏾 In Athens, Greece, protesters took to the streets to collectively hold up a sign that read "I can't breathe."

✊🏾 In Brussels, protesters were seen sitting in a peaceful demonstration in front of an opera house in the center of the city.

✊🏾In Denmark, protesters were heard chanting "No justice, no peace!" throughout the streets of Copenhagen, while others gathered outside the US embassy.

✊🏾 In Canada, protesters were also grieving for Regis Korchinski-Paquet, a 29-year-old black woman who died on Wednesday after falling from her balcony during a police investigation at her building.

✊🏾 And in New Zealand, roughly 2,000 people marched to the US embassy in Auckland, chanting and carrying signs demanding justice.

✊🏼✊🏾✊🏿In Bristol, England, thousands peacefully marched in solidarity, and the statue of slave trader Edward Colston was toppled, dragged through the streets and dumped in the river where slaves were once brought. Colston Hall will be renamed sooner than planned, and a smaller Colston statue has been removed from a Bristol school.

💐 Memorials have been built for Floyd around the world, too. In Mexico City, portraits of him were hung outside the US embassy with roses, candles, and signs.

💐 In Poland, candles and flowers were laid out next to photos of Floyd outside the US consulate.

💐 And in Syria, two artists created a mural depicting Floyd in the northwestern town of Binnish, "on a wall destroyed by military planes."

Before the assassination of George Floyd some of you were able to say whatever the hell you wanted and the world didn't say anything to you...

THERE HAS BEEN A SHIFT, AN AWAKENING...MANY OF YOU ARE BEING EXPOSED FOR WHO YOU REALLY ARE. #readthatagain

Don't wake up tomorrow on the wrong side of this issue. Its not to late to SAY,

"maybe I need to look at this from a different perspective.

Maybe I don't know what its like to be Black in America...

Maybe, just maybe, I have been taught wrong."

There is still so much work to be done. It's been a really dark, raw week. This could still end badly. But all we can do is keep doing the work.

Keep protesting.

WE ARE NOT TRYING TO START A RACE WAR; WE ARE PROTESTING TO END IT,
PEACEFULLY.

How beautiful is that?

ALL LIVES CANNOT MATTER UNTIL YOU INCLUDE BLACK LIVES.

YOU CANNOT SAY 'ALL LIVES MATTER' WHEN YOU DO NOTHING TO STOP SYSTEMIC RACISM & POLICE BRUTALITY.

YOU CANNOT SAY 'ALL LIVES MATTER' WHEN BLACK PEOPLE ARE DYING AND ALL YOU COMPLAIN ABOUT IS A STATUE BEING PUSHED OVER!

YOU CANNOT SAY 'ALL LIVES MATTER' WHEN YOU VOTE IN ADMINISTRATIONS THAT ALLOW THE WEALTHY IN SOCIETY TO GET WEALTHIER BY AVOIDING TAX WHILE VETERANS ARE HOMELESS AND POOR FAMILIES GO HUNGRY AND THEY BREAK THE VERY RULES THEY IMPOSE ON US.

DO ALL LIVES MATTER? YES. BUT RIGHT NOW, ONLY BLACK LIVES ARE BEING TARGETED, JAILED, AND KILLED EN MASSE- SO THAT'S WHO WE'RE FOCUSING ON.

🖤🖤🖤BLACK LIVES MATTER🖤🖤🖤

IF YOU CAN'T SEE THIS, YOU ARE THE PROBLEM.

[Selene Gregoire]

7 minutes ago, LexxiXhan said:

👉🏾A seminar scheduled in December for KC police that trains cops to kill without hestitation was cancelled.

I wonder how many other law enforcement agencies train their officers to kill without hesitation. That is how the military trains. We're civilians not soldiers ffs.

[Ashlyn Voir]

On OWN they showed a really good segment on #DarkGirls and I just want people to show appreciation toward black girls and women. I’m so glad to see more people being more open to seeing a different perspective other than their own. And, yes I know people are tired of us Americans acting as though we “make everything about ourselves”. But, black history is so ingrained in American culture and I see nothing wrong talking about it or making others aware. Other counties as well as ours has a history of anti-black racism. 
 

Black history is American history. Although, even after our ancestors were “freed” we were still slaves without the shackles. I’m just so glad many of young people in my generation and what not are so much more outspoken and more aware than our elders. And, our elders did pave the way, but got so comfortable and stopped fighting. And, the racism was still there. It’ll always be there, but the more people we can educate and bring awareness, the more hopefully it’ll make a change. 

[Drakonadrgora Darkfold]

If you ever see a cop doing something you think is abusive or beyond normal behavior contact your local POST office. and no they are not related to USPS.. they have to power to revoke that offices right to practice law in that state anymore. They are the governing body is 43 states that decides if a cop gets their badge or not and can take it away even without criminal charges being filed against that officer.

for anyone living in MO like me it would be found here POST

[Velk Kerang]

1 hour ago, Selene Gregoire said:

I wonder how many other law enforcement agencies train their officers to kill without hesitation. That is how the military trains. We're civilians not soldiers ffs.

I wasn't gonna post anymore, but I'll answer this question since it's in my area of expertise. In all the years I was on the job any seminars or joint trainings I ever attended with any local law enforcement agencies not a single solitary one was ever held to train cops to kill with out hesitation. I believe that is taken out of context. While my training I am sure was a slightly different and a little more advanced considering I trained more with the military, but I would assume the core basics would be the same. I could be wrong. That being said I was trained to only ever pull my weapon only after all other alternatives have been exhausted and there is absolutely no other course of action to take. The kill with out hesitation part is in regards to if you pull your weapon do not hesitate to fire your weapon or else you will die. That is what that means. In my years I never have not once ever not been able to find a solution that would result in me pulling my weapon. I've always been able to disarm someone if the situation called for it. I would think they would have similar training considering they deal directly with the public more.

The issue is they need more mental health programs in place for those officers because they do deal with the public more. They are the first people the public poops on and they deal with a lot of ignorant and life threatening crap on a day to day basis and yet they are also the first to be called for help. That is not an easy job and they don't get no where near the respect they deserve and the pay for dangers and risks they take on a daily basis. And when a few bad apples royally fork up they all get pooped on and blamed because of it.

Personally I find it interesting people in America complain about the police because in Germany at least when I lived there anyway there was no such thing as police brutality. If you smarted off they beat your behind in to the ground. You DO show them respect in that country. They don't tolerate or put up with the amount of stupid we tolerate in this country. And they got a massively low crime rate compared to us too for it. I personally think we need to take a page out their handbook. Bet you there would be less crime, less cops with mental issues, and less cases of cops crossing the line if the penalties for it were a lot more harsher then what they are now.

I am sure someone will have something to say against my opinion, but I don't really care. lol Anyway question answered. Carry on. lol😎

[Janet Voxel]

 

[Selene Gregoire]

2 hours ago, Selene Gregoire said:

I wonder how many other law enforcement agencies train their officers to kill without hesitation. That is how the military trains. We're civilians not soldiers ffs.

Hmmm. I see zero question marks in this post.

[Velk Kerang]

2 minutes ago, Selene Gregoire said:

Hmmm. I see zero question marks in this post.

When someone says they wonder something the question is implied due to lack of education on the matter. You are now educated. You're welcome.😎

[Luna Bliss]

yay San Francisco Junteenth marches

https://sfpublicpress.org/news/2020-06/demonstrators-march-through-san-francisco-to-mark-juneteenth

 

[LexxiXhan]

1 hour ago, Ashlyn Voir said:

Other counties as well as ours has a history of anti-black racism.

Can confirm. Us White Brits tend to be more two-faced about our bigotry, putting on a show of 'correctness' in public but reverting to lazy, unexamined thinking in private. But I can also confirm that younger generations here are incredible, like a tidal wave of not-even-questioned acceptance that those of us who grew up in more overtly racist times have to make an effort to comprehend, and shift our perspectives accordingly.

[Luna Bliss]

protest for the 2 black trans women that were murdered recently:

 

[LyricalBookworm]

My Universalist Quaker Group have been building a  "Quaker Anti-Racist Reading List" they made available to all members. Open discussions on the book list are planned as well for those members wishing to have open dialogue. I believe although a very tiny occurance, this is on topic. ☺

 

[Selene Gregoire]

1 minute ago, LyricalBookworm said:

My Universalist Quaker Group have been building a  "Quaker Anti-Racist Reading List" they made available to all members. Open discussions on the book list are planned as well for those members wishing to have open dialogue. I believe although a very tiny occurance, this is on topic. ☺

 

It's still a step forward, rather than backwards. Like my pistol training instructor said, "Whatever it takes." Even if it is baby steps. Doing something (even if it is wrong) is better than doing nothing.