People say we have come so far, but have we really? It’s 2022 and people are still being judged by the color of their skin or for whom they fall in love with or a woman’s individual right to choose when it comes to her reproductive rights.

Folks refuse to wear a mask or get vaccinated because, “My body, my choice,” unless, of course, it’s a woman.

Could you imagine the horrors of being raped and then told abortion was not an option? And let me say this again: I don’t support people having abortions because they fail to be responsible by using contraceptives or birth control practices. I am talking about abortions when it may be medically necessary for the not-yet-viable fetus or its birth mother. Or, as I stated above, a victim of rape. I watched a news clip a while back. It was from a pro-life march, and the TV reporter approached three women holding up signs that read, “Adoption is an option.”

He asked each one how many children they had adopted. NONE. He asked how many they planned to adopt. NONE. He asked how many they planned to help financially. NONE. So, basically, they were suggesting adoption was an option, but not one they would be willing to take in saving all the newborns they are so adamant about protecting.

One lady said, “I have my own kids.” OK lady, but isn’t your reason for protesting is that you don’t want to see any more abortions? Aren’t you marching to say the solution is for people to adopt children from people who don’t have the means or ability to raise the kids they gave birth to in order to avoid the abortion you are protesting against?

Another woman said, “Not my body, so not my problem.” And there it is. It’s not happening to her, so it is not her problem. It’s not happened to her children, so it is not her problem. It doesn’t affect her immediate family, so it is not her problem. Yet she wants to tell others what to do when she doesn’t care what happens to folks outside her little bubble in the first place. And then there are the folks who whine about censorship, and it’s primarily these same folks that are banning books. Let’s see, there is a word for that: CENSORSHIP!

Florida claims to be the freest state of the nation, while in the same breath, they are looking to pass a bill that would ban discussions of all sexual orientation and gender identity in schools. And while we are at it, don’t talk about anything that might make certain groups feel “uncomfortable,” either. Way to go Florida!

Hey, you know what that sounds like? CENSORSHIP!

So much for free speech. Don’t talk about that bad time in history when white people owned slaves. Or how one of our white presidents passed the Indian Removal Act in 1830. It may make them feel uncomfortable, make them feel bad.

IT SHOULD. Slavery happened; so did the infamous genocide we call the Trail of Tears. And despite what Marjorie Taylor Greene said, the Holocaust happened, too. If we don’t remember our history — THE GOOD AND THE BAD — we won’t learn, and history may repeat itself.

And if you think racism is gone, maybe you didn’t hear about the several bomb threats across the US on Feb. 1, which coincidentally marked the start of Black History Month.

Some may say that me bringing up these talking points is being divisive. Well, you are entitled to your opinion, but there are just as many people shouting from the rooftops espousing their counterview.

These issues need to be addressed because they’re still happening. You don’t approve of abortions? OK, let’s talk about how we can improve our foster care system, where some unwanted children will end up. Because right now, this system is broken.

And if we are going to talk about banning books in school, let’s also talk about kids bringing guns to school and killing other kids. What could we do to control that as well?

We need to have these discussions because these are the topics that do cause division, and we need to do our best to find some middle ground. To feel some empathy for each other. To remember we are all part of the HUMAN RACE and to move this stagnant country forward, instead of falling back to the Middle Ages.

Also, that dang groundhog, Phil, saw his shadow last week, so keep those winter coats out!

Patty Leon is the senior editor of the Courier and sometimes loses her mind while watching the evening news.