Waking up Wednesday morning to the full realization of the US elections, I was immediately reminded of what it felt like turning on the TV to see the second plane hit the World Trade Center on September 11th, 2001. A mixture of disbelief, horror, abject fear, and the knowledge that everything globally was about to change. Like many of you, I immediately started looking at my social media feeds and seeing the outpouring of response-- at every conceivable level: personal, national, professional, at the level of family, race, gender, and the deeply philosophical and radically political-- and tried to take in the magnitude of what had happened. Most of the links I am sharing this week are a reflection of that range.

It is far too early to fully express as an educator what I am thinking about this event-- the ripple effects are already spreading the hate, division, and ugly authoritarian rhetoric that shaped the election and are now reflected fully in the public realm both locally and globally-- but as I discussed and heard from many over this week, we all have a responsibility to speak truth to power in the days, weeks, and years to come. This is not the time to become cynical, to despair, or to give up. It is also not the time to think we as Canadians (or any group living outside the USA) are somehow immune to the large shifts that this political event signals. One silver lining to all that has transpired is how quickly conversations have turned to ideas and sharing of information that truly matter. As I wrote to one especially distraught friend in New York this week: "We have to see this moment as an opportunity for all of us to strengthen and protect the core values that shape a tolerant and accepting liberal democracy-- to use our position and privilege to bring critical attention to the abuses of power, and help give voice to those who will be the first targeted victims of the changes that are undoubtedly around the corner." The moment, and urgency around it, is all too real to ignore.