Right after the presidential election, I sent a message to our students urging them to practice self-care in the face of expected increases in racial, gender, and religious discrimination fueled by the divisions the election exacerbated – divisions that were both obvious in the rhetoric and actions of the candidates and in the electorate and which are also hidden in the language of nationalism. My message spoke to the choices that we each have in how we will respond and the awareness that we must have when we choose to be silent or speak out.
