This is in response to Bri Auspland, whose op-ed “The morning after: Reflections from a young American” appeared on Nov. 6. I want to say this:

Bri, I read your op-ed, which saddened me greatly. Thank you for being brave enough to write it. Know that you are not the only teen feeling unwelcome, fearful and overwhelmed. I think this is part of what you are saying in addition to feeling that American adults cannot be trusted to protect the young – its children.

I would like to tell you that you are wrong, but I have to say that you are not; you are correct. Adults, as a whole, in our larger nation are not to be trusted to do what is in your best interest, I agree. They nearly always have their own agendas. It is a harsh reality. If they were to be trusted and cared about children, we would have passed some reasonable gun control laws after Sandy Hook, after Parkland, after Uvalde. We would have passed laws that provided a permanent child tax credit, which did happen during the Biden administration and lifted thousands of families out of poverty, but was not extended because of the Republican Party.

We would pass laws that give all parents sick time so they could stay home with their children instead of leaving them on the couch with a cell phone and hoping for the best when they are sick. We would provide many other benefits that make it easier for families to care for their children. But our “leaders” did not. We have not. America as a nation only cares about its children individually. Each family cares about its own, and sometimes in the community you see that extended, but not as a nation. As a nation, we continually fail to see that they are all our children.

But can we agree that there are some who do care? I encourage you to look for examples of adults who have had the courage to stand their ground and resist the efforts of those who seek to divide us. Use them as your example. Think your grandparents, Liz Cheney, Anthony Fauci, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Jamie Raskin, Shaye Moss and her daughter Ruby Freeman. Read the history of the men, women and children who sacrificed and endured to secure voting and civil rights for all of us. They are a profound inspiration. At 17, you get to choose who you respect. Use your best judgment.

Even if it seems impossible now, I encourage you not to lose hope. Make your life. Find others like you. They are there. Know in your heart that there is “no freedom without responsibility” and follow that dictate. In our nation, so many love the freedom part but far too often fail to realize or openly reject the idea that responsibility is the counterbalance to our freedoms.

Finally, while you were being tasked to learn while the SWAT team roamed the hallways and the school yard, I was next door at the Merrill Auditorium collecting signatures to get a red flag law on the ballot. One of your Portland High teachers stopped and signed the petition – she cares about you. Many of us are working, and have been working, to protect all of our freedoms, in many different arenas of human rights and justice. We know that the battle is long and the arc of justice even longer, but we will never relent.

We will never accept an America where we are not free to express ourselves and be who we are, that is not “home.” There are many groups and organizations functioning to actually make the world a more welcoming and inclusive place. Some of us care about you deeply. Come find us. Never ever give up hope. You have a place with us.