A SHERO AMONG US? LOOK AROUND

“Do you need a shero?”

That’s the question. And I have the answer: “Yes.”

For those in the back, “THE ANSWER IS YES, YOU NEED A SHERO.”

Here’s why:

My ride with civil disobedience came after asking a doctor to arrest me if he sent my father in law back to a nursing home.

I was the old man’s caregiver and came back after my first break in three years to find him in dire straits, like he’d been three years earlier.

We worked it out.

Another happened when I negotiated back to back traffic tickets in court. I collected them within three blocks of my house.

I went from volunteering for jail time, to writing a public service announcement about the good habit of stopping at new stop signs as they appear.

And following the speed limit. Some of my best writing came from that daring pitch.

Nothing I’ve done, and I’m guessing you too, comes close to what Madison Shanley did in a red ‘You Knew’ shirt while she sang her last National Anthem for the Portland Timber and Thorns.

Why Take A Stand?

From ESPN:

In May of 2021, then-Timbers midfielder Andy Polo was cited by the Washington County Sheriff’s Department “for harassment after grabbing” the wrist of his estranged wife, Génessis Alarcón.

(Remember ‘grabbing the wrist’)

In an email to the Portland organization, Shanley said that Timbers owner Merritt Paulson, Golub, and GM Gavin Wilkinson “do not reflect nor protect the beautiful people within this community…Instead of taking any legitimate accountability, they are choosing to dedicate their energy to denying claims, excusing behavior, and maintaining the falsehood ‘change takes time.'”

This Is Why:

From the Oregonian:

“On or around May 23, 2021 at his residence in Washington County, Oregon with his child present, defendant (Polo) attempted to and did in fact cause harmful physical contact with plaintiff (Alarcón), including by violently grabbing her by the arm, pulling her by the hair against her will, and pushing her to the floor, causing her pain and discomfort,” the lawsuit’s factual allegations read.

The Timbers sent two officials to the scene May 23, according to the police report obtained by The Oregonian/OregonLive: director of security Jim McCausland — a retired Portland Police detective — and manager of player affairs Gabriel Jaimes.

This is the same story from two different points of view. What strikes me is the organization sending two guys out, like they had experience with some guys going off on their wives.

A shero sees the difference between ‘grabbing a wrist’, ‘twisting an arm’, and getting ‘pushed to the floor.’

Was the guy an experienced abuser? Going to the hair ‘against her will’ shows concern for bruises, so I’d say yes.

The young woman singing “Land of the free” decided to be a shero in the best way.

Personal experience said she couldn’t stand by after reading between the lines of those two accounts.

What I hear is, “Either you do the right thing, or I’ll do the right thing, but one of us is going to do the right thing.”

Isn’t that what a shero does?

Walking Past One Last Time

What we’ve learned about each other over the past few years is how many of us are willing to walk past what we know is wrong.

Whether it’s clean water or Elon Musk, walking past carries consequences.

The hard part is knowing that stopping and helping also carries consequences.

Sheroes know, and still stop.