31-year-old Lauren hates 21-year-old Lauren. And that's okay.

Some of this is recycled content of my own, but I thought today was a fitting day to share:

In eighth grade, I remember writing a persuasive speech about how abortion—under ANY circumstance—was wrong. There I was, a young girl, who had yet to experience her first make out session, judging women for making incredibly painful choices. Impossible choices. Choices they should, legally, have the right to make about their own bodies. As a more-enlightened adult, who still has infinite room for growth, I lean pro-life, but I understand how flawed and ignorant my eighth-grade argument was.

In 11th grade, and I am beyond ashamed to admit this, I wrote another persuasive essay about “reverse racism” because “tHeRe iS nO wHiTe EnTeRtAinMeNt cHaNneL.”

The only black person I even knew was a boy from my class who was adopted into a white family. Ms. Lane, I am so sorry you had to read that bullshit. To the Black community, 17-year-old Lauren is so unbelievably sorry. I have worked hard and am still working to educate myself on systematic racism.

As a sophomore in college, I had a key chain that said, “Guns kill people like spoons make people fat.” Looking back, shame on me. First, let’s not simplify such a complex subject like gun control to a ridiculous key chain mantra, and secondly, let’s not fat shame. Last year, I asked my dad for a gun for Christmas. I feel safter in my own home with my 9 mm. But I’d be ignorant to turn my head to the undeniable gun violence in our country.

As a senior in college, I want to thank Dr. Fleck. I will forever remember this assignment. We were assigned a topic – mine was whether government-issued photo identification should be required to vote. I wrote my persuasive essay, that yes, absolutely, they should be required! They prevent voter fraud! Ha. Dr. Fleck pulled a fast one on us. That was only half of the assignment. Once we turned our essays in, we had to write another essay, taking the opposite stance. And it would be graded. Wow, were my eyes opened.

When you complete ‘research’ for an essay to back your own beliefs, you naturally select information (that is likely biased) to support your own views. When I was forced, quite literally (in order to get a passing grade), to research the “other side” my brain was opened to ALL KINDS INFORMATION I would have never discovered because I was not looking for it – I was ACTIVELY AVOIDING it. Friends, that is called confirmation bias.

Hell, by the end of the assignment, I wanted to trash my first essay entirely. I won’t dive into the topic of voter identification laws and how they are discriminatory, but I encourage you to read this article.

There has not been one political or social issue that I have not flip-flopped on, sometimes more than once. This does not make me a hypocrite. This means I am open to shifting my opinions when presented new information and perspectives. It means I’m smart, or at the very least, not entirely ignorant.

I, with complete and utter confidence, know that if I had not located to a metropolitan area immediately after college to work for a social agency that is DEDICATED to serving populations that are discriminated against (people with disabilities, people who have criminal backgrounds, people who don’t speak English as a first language, people who are a victim of chronic poverty, etc.), I would not be the person that I am today. I would not believe that our system is UNJUST, that is designed to kick people when they are down. I would believe that the ‘American Dream’ can be accomplished by anyone if they would just ‘work harder.’

31-year-old-Lauren loathes 21-year-old-Lauren.

Congratulations, Lauren. This is what growth and development look like. You are allowed to change and evolve and be a better version of your previous self.

#vote #roeroeroeyourvote #charlesbooker #morganmcgarvey #noonissue2