This election, I’ve been hearing a lot about how we have to pick the “lesser of two evils,” why “voting is like taking the bus,” or how “at least Biden isn’t Trump,” and I agree with these sentiments wholeheartedly, but there are honestly so many reasons why I think that Biden and Harris are the best choice in this election. Here are just a few that I jotted down earlier this week:

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  1. Reversing some of the most inhumane immigration policies––including child separation from their families (remember the horrific pictures of kids in cages?) 
     
  2. Reinstating DACA and making it easier for DREAMers to get financial aid (Some of the most dedicated, brilliant students I’ve taught are DREAMers, and they’re working to become doctors, teachers, and counselors. Not giving them the opportunity to contribute to our society is a loss for all of us!) 
     
  3. Finally providing a path to citizenship for 11 million undocumented Americans (if this sounds radical to you, remember that Reagan did it in 1986, so this isn’t really partisan)
     
  4. Investing in clean energy and holding corporate polluters accountable (because we can’t reverse climate change with small individual actions, and I should know. I take a lot of small individual actions!)
     
  5. Reforming the criminal justice system, including investing in social workers, disability advocates, and mental health experts to de-escalate situations that police officers never should have been expected to handle; and eliminating private prisons and cash bail (because if locking people up is a business, then doesn’t that create incentive$$$ to do so?)
     
  6. A comprehensive COVID-19 plan that prioritizes health AND economic concerns––they’re not separate issues––including free, rapid testing so that people don’t unwittingly infect the people in their communities; ensuring fair access to treatments (this pandemic won’t ever end if only the wealthy can get tested and treated); scaling up unemployment insurance; and halting evictions (I live down the street from a park that now has a homeless encampment because so many people have lost their jobs and can’t make rent. They’re my neighbors, and honestly, it could be Devin and me if we lost our jobs. We live paycheck to paycheck.)
     
  7. Paid parental leave (because I love a lot of moms who had to go back to work pretty much right after their babies were born, and because maybe someday we’ll have kids, too.)

Not convinced? Here’s a hundred more!