People will try to silence you.
Don't let them.
They will say "That's not nice/polite/proper/acceptable."
Don't believe them.
They will try to scare you into silence. They will try to shame you into silence.
"You will go to hell."
"Fake news!"
"We will cyberbully you."
"What the hell kind of woman/man/asec/doctor are you??"
"What happened to you??"
"I never knew you could stoop so low."
Don't let them.
Speak your truth.
In the face of hellfire and brimstone.
In whatever language is comfortable to you.
No matter if your grammar stinks.
Speak your truth.
Even when fair weather friends leave you. (They weren't friends in the first place. Let them go. Not everything you lose is a loss.)
Even when family members stab you.
Even when your truth isn't popular or polite.
There always will be a price to pay--whether you speak up or choose silence.
Choose which price you want to pay.
Silence in the face of your truth wanting to be expressed will cost you. Make no mistake about it.
You fritter pieces of yourself away when you hold your truth inside you for fear you will lose friends or displease loved ones.
And nothing and no one is worth losing yourself over.
When you speak up, you run the risk of being hated.
Speak up anyway.
Hatred is not your burden to carry but the hater's.
When you speak up, you could get pilloried and disrespected. But I submit that there is nothing more painful than loss of self respect.
Another person's hatred of you is not your burden to carry but the hater's.
Speak up.
There are far too many things in this world that need to be spoken of. Give words to injustices you see around you. Give words to the horrible inequity that exists among humans.
Give words to what truly matters to you.
When you do, you will feel your power.
And you will touch the center of your peace.
There is nothing to be afraid of.
If you want to be a person of substance, if you want to live a singular life, you must never allow yourself to be silenced.
Silence is death.
Disclaimer: this is from her Facebook account today June 30th, 2017.
https://www.facebook.com/lorraine.badoy