When I think of the color green, I think of optimism, I think of growth. Not the kind of optimism that ignores reality, but the kind of optimism that digs beneath the surface. Spring of 2021 will be remembered by many as a crucial historical turning point that made people feel optimistic. Between Biden settling into the White House and millions of Americans receiving vaccines, on the surface, sure, things seem different. But here at FEM, we know that praising these kinds of optical forms of progress only hurts marginalized people. As liberals praise our “return to normalcy,” Biden has approved the sale of $735 million worth of weapons to be sent to Israel to be used to murder Palestinians. As millions of white Americans receive their first and second doses of COVID vaccinations, the vaccine rollout is still failing Black and Latinx people who need immunity.
