Thanksgiving Morning
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I enjoy the way, as a reader, I am informed with the writer’s surroundings, and a tone is set as an opening. The words always leave a sense of empathy for many communities affected by injustice. The work tells the story of the ongoing journey as a passionate journalist.
LISTENING: to my cat's purr
FEELING: so excited for turkey day!
SEEING: my boyfriend watch this weird chair company show lol
Where would I be if not for the miracle of movement? Trees cannot move (not far at least). And some organisms are sessile, unable to move on their own, spending the majority of their lives attached somewhere. How beautiful that animals like us — bipeds who walk on two legs — can get up and go whenever we please.
What would my life look like this Thursday if not for my mom's family pushing her to leave for the U.S.? I doubt I'd be cooking mac and cheese or mashed potatoes. There would be no Thanksgiving dinner. I can't imagine I'd even be here, writing on the internet to you all.
Mobility is a human right. Migration is the natural way of things. Some creatures fly. Some prowl. Others scurry. People, well, we walk. We run. We drive. We board planes and buses and boats. We embark on journeys that change our lives for generations to come.
COP30, this year's U.N. climate talks, had lots of disappointments. These summits always do. The U.S. federal government didn't even attend. Texts, once again, didn't mandate an end to fossil fuels. But you know what documents did mention? Migrants. Displaced communities.
(I have a story coming out soon for Yale Climate Connections all about this topic.)
This doesn't mean international climate policy will suddenly force governments to do the right thing and welcome immigrants. It doesn't mean the polluting nations hoarding the world's wealth will have to cough up any money to help communities rebuild and adapt to stay home. At least not yet.
What this means is that there's still a fighting chance as these negotiations begin to manifest into actual funds and legal processes. Migrants and people displaced by climate change haven't been written off. Not yet. And as the climate crisis disrupts even more lives, these voices will only grow louder.
We can't afford to get this wrong. Migration is a form of adaptation. And people deserve the right to move — and the right to stay.
I wonder what my life would be like today if my mom hadn't immigrated to the U.S. over three decades ago and met my dad. How would her life have turned out if she had the opportunity to stay in her beloved El Salvador? We'll never know. Economic inequality, extreme poverty, and a civil war pushed her out.
I have no idea which timeline is the better one, but the one I'm living in has afforded me a life of luxury compared to most. I'm typing on an expensive laptop. I've got a fridge full of food. And I've got a safe and healthy family just a half hour away. I'll be sharing a feast with them very soon. Life is good.
But none of this makes me special. It makes me lucky. And I'm thankful — for my family, my friends, my peace. Everyone else deserves that, too. I'm thankful for the voices from the frontlines. They remind us what's at stake. Justice is overdue. 🌀
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