Richa Gangopadhyay Instagram – Covid+election year=🤯 I’ve been more vocal this year than years past, and am choosing to use use my platform to highlight the issues that resonate with me, personally, and advocate for equality in the truest sense. As an agnostic Indian-American, immigrant woman, married to an agnostic, Caucasian American and US Army veteran, I get asked a lot of questions and judgement/assumptions thrown at me on a DAILY basis. The reason my relationship with Joe has worked so far, and why we chose to spend the rest of our lives together has nothing to do with race, faith or background. Our compatibility has everything to do with the fundamental values we share, which means fighting to unite, not divide. It means standing up for those who are underserved, underprivileged and need support through allyship, by advocating for systemic change, helping educate others learn the difference between covert and overt racism, and eliminating our own implicit biases from within. It means not having blind allegiance to any political party or person. It means standing by integrity, honesty and truth. These are the values that were instilled in me by my family, that we hope to pass on to our children. When you don’t open your mind up to people or experiences outside your bubble, or think that the lifestyle, religion, or values you and your ecosystem follow are the only “right” ways, you block yourself from growing and empathizing with others who are different from you. By not acknowledging your privilege or deflecting the conversation to focus on your struggles, you are gaslighting others by questioning their reality, and the struggle they’ve faced for many years, and continue to in the form of covert and overt racism. All it takes, is putting aside your defense, and instead, listening and learning. So remember that when someone else shares something seemingly hostile on social media, it might be coming from a place of personal pain, trauma or deep frustration for those who are marginalized. Open your eyes and listen to understand. I would much rather FEEL, profoundly, than bury my head in the sand. It’s been a hard 2020, but we’ll get through this together. 🤎