NY Nurse: February 2020

I have always loved nature because I grew up in a rainforest and natural resource region. This upbringing was in so many ways a source of inspiration — to embrace the comforting peace, subtle beauty and stable tranquility!

But never in my wildest dreams have I imagined or thought that I would find my pampered self in the middle of a fight to keep our environment sustainable and protected for future generations.

The time has come for a more honest reckoning with black American history. Through the eyes of black people, American history is turned upside down, made messier and more difficult, but more honest. Black history is American history, and it is a story that needs to be told.

Scores of nurses and supporters from the Capital Region and beyond gathered outside both Ellis Hospital and Bellevue Woman’s Center in Schenectady on February 14 to call on management at the two facilities, as well as at Albany Medical Center, to put patient care first and settle fair contracts with safe staffing ratios. Braving the frigid temperatures and biting wind, members marched in the snow wielding signs and chanting “We are all united here!” while passing motorists honked in support.

The history of the United States can be told in many ways. It depends upon where one sits in the social structures of our society.

How many times do we witness an event, only to see it reported very differently?

Or, have a meeting of the minds conversation, only to discover that the other person believes we had a fierce argument?

Or, maybe we were pressured to accept someone else’s interpretation of events, someone with more power...