I believe “all” includes everyone

I believe skin color, gender and sexual orientation should be celebrated not denigrated

I believe faith is a matter of choice

I believe love is stronger than hate

I believe our country is in crisis

I believe this crisis is a wakeup call for all of us, and future generations will judge us by how we respond

I believe we can do better

Dear Readers,

Today is America’s 244th birthday. We typically mark this occasion with fireworks, flags and cookouts. And if my neighborhood is any indication, lots of folks are doing just that. But even for those who are celebrating, this year is undeniably different.

The country is experiencing record levels of COVID-19 cases, with over 132,000 fatalities and counting. We have the shameful distinction of having more confirmed cases than any other nation on earth (almost double the number of Brazil, which is currently ranked second.) We have a president who continues to downplay the severity of the pandemic, refuses to wear a mask, and ignores the advice of the very agencies that are tasked with controlling the outbreak. He continues to spread misinformation, conspiracy theories and bold-faced lies even as the number of reported cases continues to escalate daily.

In addition, those of us who have taken to the streets to protest the unending cycle of police brutality have been met with more of the same. A growing number of us are finally beginning to understand that our system of law and order is neither just nor accountable.

All of which begs the question: What are we celebrating?

For my own part, I’m laying low this year. I’m using this time to reflect on myself and the country I call home. I’m thinking about where this country is, where it should be, and what I can do to help get it there.

Sincerely,

Erik Eff

Dear Readers,

Pig With A Crown: A Modern Fable is the first book I have published, and I am excited to share it with you. I wrote the poem, on which the book is based, back at the beginning of 2018 when the world looked a lot different than it does today. As I write this, Trump, his staff, and the leaders of the Republican Party, have dropped all pretense of being for the people. The COVID-19 pandemic continues to take the lives of tens of thousands of Americans, while the Trump administration continues to downplay the severity of the situation and has chosen to politicize the pandemic instead of treating it as the public health crisis it is. In just the past few weeks alone, the president has praised supporters who are openly racist; he has defended the statues that honor the disgraced leaders of the Confederacy; he has ordered the tear gassing and violent removal of peaceful protesters from Lafayette Square so that he could pose for a photo op with a Bible in his hand; and in just the last 24 hours, new revelations have come to light alleging that the Russian government has been paying bounties to the Taliban in Afghanistan for the killing of American troops, and that the President knew about it since March and has done nothing in response. The list of his shameful transgressions grows longer and longer. In the last three and a half years, this president has spent the entirety of his time in office enriching himself and undermining the institutions that are the pillars of our democracy. Things are bleak to say the least, but there is hope.

The recent police killings of unarmed black citizens have galvanized our collective reaction into widespread protests, demonstrations, and demands for fundamental changes to the way policing is carried out in this country. Whites are joining the movement in unprecedented numbers, and it is plainly clear that the majority of Americans now support the work of Black Lives Matter and the hundreds of other organizations, large and small, that have been fighting for years to counteract the systemic racism that infects every aspect of our society. To say this is a moment of reckoning is an understatement. 

I believe that long overdue change is finally possible. I believe that the vast majority of Americans are good and decent people. I believe that we, as a nation, are at our best when we stand united with one another. I believe the success of any society is best measured by how well the least fortunate of its members are treated. I know I am not alone in these beliefs, and that is where I see hope.

When I wrote the poem that became this book, I was horrified by how public discourse had degenerated into an onslaught of lies, misinformation, defamation, specious arguments, and personal attacks filled with base and reprehensible language. The leader of this offensive sewer stream? Trump himself. And the thing that horrified me most about all of it was that children were being subjected to it the same as everyone else. Think about that.

My own children are teenagers, and the conversations I have with them regarding all of this are candid and transparent. I can do that because of their age. But what if they were younger? What if they were still in second or third grade? How would I approach the conversation then?

This book is my attempt to answer that question.

I hope you enjoy it, and maybe even find it useful in your own attempts to help your kids make sense of the unnecessary madness that surrounds us.

Sincerely,
Erik Eff