Thread by @itsJenRamos

[🧵] I got into politics because I was a child whose single parent home fell through the cracks of the AG’s office.
For most of my life, I’ve been the only political one.
Working class families live to survive so it’s not uncommon for people to never register to vote 1/7

My mom cast her very 1st ballot in 2016 but she started paying closer attention to politics in 2018 when I worked on my first statewide campaigns. Even so, she doesn’t really get what I do for a living or what I do as an activist. 2/7

My mom loves me and is supportive but she (for as much as she tries) doesn’t get it. She and my family don’t understand the political system, internal party politics, or any of the complicated nuances of politics in America. They just see people and the problems we face. 3/7

I’ve been coming home worn out from #txlege, first as someone testifying in Elections and now as a staffer. Today was particularly tough on me and as per usual, I had to give my mom a condensed explanation (think “here’s what you missed on Glee: #txlege edition.”) 4/7

I explained the abortion ban, permitless carry, and the 666 bills that became effective today.

My mom yelled every cuss word in the book. She asked why and how.
She was mostly upset that this was happening and regular people wouldn’t know this was now law until too late. 5/7

The silver lining in this is after this fit of outrage, she asked me what was involved in testifying.
As one of Austin’s newest residents she can now more easily testify at the Capitol and she feels compelled to make her voice heard. 6/7

I know today is tough for activists, organizers and even staffers in the Capitol. We’re tired and fed up with being both proud and angry to be Texans at the same time.
Whether we realize it or not, someone is watching and inspired by what we do. There is hope. 7/7