In the middle of the pandemic, I picketed with my friends outside of a Market Basket to raise awareness for the Black Lives Matter movement after the unjust killing of George Floyd. At the time, I was 17 years old, living with two immunocompromised adults, trying to do what I could that didn’t involve large crowds and excess exposure. Double-masked and baking on the sidewalk in the hot summer months, I’d watch as others drove by to beep in support or jeer out the window. Sometimes a camera flashed past, but many times there was silence.

I remembered a friend at the time asked me if this kind of work would actually make a difference, skeptical that picketing made any impact at all those days. Unfortunately, I didn’t have an answer, and if anything, my greatest fear was that this may be true. I had seen how stubborn, selfish or brainwashed people had been in the past four years. There was no real way to know if I was getting through to what still is a fairly conservative town. I felt a deep guilt that I may just be performing.

I am brought back to this moment when thinking about how just a few months after this, I was celebrating President Donald Trump’s defeat in the 2020 presidential race, and the subsequent election of former President Joe Biden and former Vice President Kamala Harris. I thought things were looking up, and that maybe I wouldn’t have to worry about Trump again.

In the years that followed, I became more aware that the Democratic party wasn’t any more dedicated to creating change than the party they opposed. As Republicans became more conservative and extremist, Democrats made little moves to help bridge the widening gap between Americans or ensure the safety of minority groups.

Over the course of these last four years, Democrats threw American tax dollars towards bombs, failed to advocate for transgender Americans’ rights and couldn’t agree to codify Roe v. Wade. Then, they allowed Trump to take office again, putting blind trust behind Biden — who couldn’t go against him — and giving Harris barely any time to launch her own campaign. Namely, a disaster.

I’ve grown tired. When neither side budges from extremism or inaction, things only steadily get worse. School shooting rates increase, the consequences of abortion bans are not reviewed in relation to maternal deaths and natural disasters occur more frequently. Fires ravage the Palisades, and even across the country; Massachusetts has seen unprecedented wildfires this past fall. Everything feels hopeless.

With my writing, I feel I can make a bigger difference than I was able to before. I brought readers in with an article about Taylor Swift, then addressed how she could grant her influence towards the Palestinian cause. I informed students of the benefits of the University of Massachusetts Amherst’s community, while reminding them of the racist attacks and unlawful arrests of protesters that have happened in recent years. I hope these words are reaching people, but there’s no way for me to tell if I successfully held their attention.

I want to circle back to my time picketing in 2020. When I had to stop due to the return of online schooling, my little sister told me that the neighborhood kids had seen me picketing. They’d recognized me.

While it was a small, almost insignificant comment, it changed my mindset and remains something I think of to this day. I had watched those kids on the street for years, and now I was someone they looked up to, showing them what I believed in. I had the chance to make a meaningful impact on them.

All we really have left are people: the people you work with, the friends you grab drinks with, your classmates, your siblings, your parents. You’d be lying to yourself if you said you didn’t care for at least one of those people and that at least one of them didn’t care for you. At least one of them cares what you have to say in it all.

At a time like this, Trump’s administration wants you to stay silent about what’s going on. They flood the media with executive orders, breaking news and sometimes just plain nonsense. Half of the demands can’t even be met; 22 states are suing over Trump’s decision to end birthright citizenship, and his move to freeze federal funds has already been blocked. But the deluge of information is successful in overwhelming and shutting up the general public. The constant stream of news is meant to exhaust people, or worse, prevent them from talking politics all together. What’s the harm in lying low for the term? Just surviving?

If anything, we cannot be afraid to talk about politics these next four years. If you can’t be out protesting, boycott establishments you don’t support, and tell others why. Spread the word about ICE raids in your area so others can stay safe. Remind people of their rights. Stand up for immigrants, the LGBTQ+ community, women or anyone else being unjustly targeted by Trump. Talk to people about why you’re doing it, and don’t let them forget. You can’t get everyone on your side, but you can get a few.

I think we’re trained not to complicate personal relationships with politics, but staying silent only allows things to get worse. You’re right to feel overwhelmed. Take what breaks you can from the media so that afterwards you can keep going, keep fighting and keep talking. It is a small change — it is only the first step — but it is an important step if we are to keep moving forward, if we are to have hope.

Hailey Furilla can be reached at [email protected].