Opening a new window of opportunity.

A few reflections on how I come about starting the Migrant Vote newsletter and what fears, concerns, and hopes were and are a part of this process.

Photo by Katerina Pavlyuchkova on Unsplash

Around 4 months ago I met a friend for a coffee. As usual, we did a little bit of hand wrestling to win the right to pay for both of our coffees. This time my hand-clapping game was faster, and I delivered my card first. That doesn’t happen often with that friend, he’s stronger than I am, so I decided to celebrate this occasion by getting two fortune cookies. I cracked the crispy shell and pulled out the slim paper ribbon that read ‘A window of opportunity won’t open itself’. That fortune cookie spoke to me more than I expected as I was about to make some serious changes to my life.

At that time, I was planning to write a resignation letter from my job after nine years of service and I did not know what my next step is. I had a strangely calm attitude to what was about to happen in my professional life. The universe snuck into a fortune cookie to tell me that I need to get my s**t together because as much as it’s great to be an Obama Scholar, things won’t start happening on their own. I wasn’t sure which window should I start opening though. Should I start applying for jobs? Start my own organization? Change countries again? I knew that I wanted to work on migrant leadership and voting rights, but beyond that the end of the road was hazy. I pinned the sliver of paper to a board over my desk to keep reminding myself that I need to find a window to open.

It was the time when I was just getting out of a serious long-term burn-out and I did not want to get myself into a situation where the same could repeat in the future again. Ironically the social justice system is designed to burn people out so I wanted to find something that would sustain me better. My community of fellow migrant women is the support that I can always lean on. I wrote about that in my love letter to migrant women before. Another thing that gives me energy is writing. When I was introduced to the concept of a newsletter, I had a lightbulb moment. The idea for the Migrant Vote was born.

The moment I knew what I wanted to do was the moment I started having serious doubts. I questioned whether my writing skills are strong enough to deliver. I am writing in English as a second language and that transpired as a barrier much stronger than ever before. Will I know how to run such a new initiative? Is there enough material and topics to write about? I know myself well enough to know that when I am outside my comfort zone, I will delay the work for as long as possible. But why was I outside my comfort zone? I have spent the last six years building my expertise on migrant leadership, political participation, and electoral rights. I was selected as one of the Obama Scholars for my work on facilitating migrant leadership and electoral participation. I wrote articles on democracy, produced podcasts on the electoral participation of migrants, delivered training and workshops on leadership, and co-authored toolkits. Why does starting a newsletter on the very same topics seem outside my comfort zone?

Starting something totally new is a scary thing, especially when doing it on your own. So far, my activism journey was always running alongside people who provided safety networks of formal structures and practical support.

I braced myself for this new chapter and challenge in my life. Coincidently my fear of writing was mediated by written words. In April on a trip to Washington DC, I saw and picked up a postcard with the Apollo XIII slogan ‘Failure is not an option’. I pinned that postcard to the board over my desk. In May, one of my fellow Obama Scholars wrote each of us a personalized message. The front side of my message card said ‘I inform the negative committee that meets in my head to sit down and shut up. Because I am awesome.’ That note is pinned to the board over my desk too. There were many others who said things that held value for me, so I started to write.

I wrote three posts, noted down ideas for a few more, and booked an interview for my first podcast when a new wave of doubt washed over me just a few days before launching my first post. This time the negative committee that meets in my head asked if Votes for Migrants is innovative enough to open a window of opportunity. There are so many ground breaking democratic initiatives that are trying to radically change the way our democracies work that I admire so much. Yet, I am still chasing the basic democratic right to vote for migrants. For a day or so I felt like last season’s coat. You can still wear that coat but those who are fashion experts will know that the world has moved on to a new design.

I sat down and started to think about why I should do it. The answer is that one reality usually does not apply to all. Progress achieved for mainstream society can be still delayed for marginalized communities. We still chase the basic democratic right to vote for migrants and that is the reason why I should do what I planned to do.

I am still scared, but I have come to the understanding that this new path will have highs and lows of confidence, outcomes, impact, and joy. I may not have a formal structure of support, but I know I have a safety net of people who will be there to give me more motivational quotes to pin to the board over my desk. Apparently, this is who I am now, inspirational quotes collector. It will be a learning curve and will stumble more than once. But I believe that everyone should have the right to democracy regardless of their citizenship status so here it is, I am about to open that new window of opportunity. Wish me luck.