BY: Cheryl Smith
Ever heard of triggering? Call Dr. Brenda Wall. Call someone.
I said I need help. Actually, I am in pain, trying to think rationally when the world seems to be losing its collective mind!
But put my feelings and well-being aside for the moment.
Perhaps you haven’t heard about all the drama unfolding in Texas.
Republicans, at the behest of Donald Trump’s surrogate Greg Abbott, the President and Texas Governor respectively, hatched a redistricting plan that would change the makeup of the U.S. Congress and disenfranchise voters.
To keep from participating in a vote that would surely not go their way, Democratic House members took a trip out of Texas to ensure that a quorum was unlikely.
Gov. Abbott called a special session, to no avail. Democratic legislators were threatened. Yet another session was called last week.
There’s been a lot of talking, legal maneuvering and efforts to rule (see our coverage at www.texasmetronews. com).
When Rep. Nicole Collier (D-Fort Worth) refused
to sign a “permission slip,” which prevented her and other Democrats with arrest warrants from leaving the legislative chambers unless under the custody of a Texas Dept.of Public Safety Officer, she was detained, and dubbed a hostage.
This treatment of Rep. Collier speaks to the reason we recognize Superb Women—the assault against Black women is never-ending.
I am so proud of the many organizations and people who are speaking up in support of Rep. Collier.
Are you familiar with her? Do you know her story?
FYI, about the representative: The Honorable Nicole Collier is a respected attorney, small business owner, grandmother, and mother of three who has spent her life working to obtain the American Dream. As a single mother of two before finishing high school, she was bolstered by both her faith and family to continue her education through law school and beyond. Rep. Collier graduated from the University of Houston and the Texas A&M University School of Law. A member of Links, Inc., Rep. Collier is also a partner at West & Associates, LLP, specializing in commercial and general litigation, employment law, public finance, and school law. Whether it’s legislation banning e-cigarette cells, supporting the Affordable Care Act, creating opportunities for HUBs, or fighting voter suppression, Rep. Collier is on the job all the time!
She’s a fighter, and she has overcome numerous obstacles and challenges, so I know she will ultimately be good!
But why?
Why should she be subjected to archaic, insensitive, disrespectful acts?
This is a WOMAN, we are talking about!
She has a family. She has needs.
This treatment is insane, and as much as I blame the governor and other elected officials, I blame those who were birthed by a woman, those who lie down next to a woman, and sadly, those women who either are silent or lie down next to the male perpetrators of such an indecent act.
While folks want us to forget about slavery, recent acts make it easy to see how slavery was able to last so long.
Here, you have a Black woman being subjected to horrific behavior and challenges. My God! She is a woman. She has needs. She deserves to be in the comfort of her home, kicking off her shoes, getting a good night’s sleep after a nice soothing shower or bath, so that she can continue taking care of the business of her constituents.
Instead, she’s sleeping wherever she can, not getting adequate rest, nor is she doing the things that we women need to do to revamp and revitalize.
She is on the right side of history.
While Abbott continues to focus on efforts to erase the country’s sordid past, others, like Collier, will continue to make history.
Rep. Collier is doing what so many women have done over the annals of time. She is taking care of others!
We need to take care of her.
