The Fight is To Make Sure Every Eligible Voter Can Vote Freely, Fairly, and His/her Vote Count! Where Our Political Parties Stand?

Voting is your profound way of expressing your desire of the choice of the leader you want to represent you in your government. It’s your voice, your civic duty, and your right to participate in the affairs of your government.

Perhaps, of all the Civil Rights, Voting Rights matters the most. Why? Because if we argue that our voting rights matter and the constitution support the arguments that voting is a right and every voter's voice, in that case, our political leaders must ensure that people's voting rights are secure and protected, not tempered with to violate such right.

The Founding Fathers and The Voting Rights

From the Founding Father’s viewpoints, starting with James Madison who helped to produce the Constitution of the US which was ratified in 1787 and introduced the list of Amendments to the constitution, the Bill of Rights in 1789 after the realization of the importance of those rights to the voters. Thus, Madison was once an opponent of the Bill of rights because he thought “the government can only exert the powers specified by the constitution”, but later, Madison come to “appreciate the importance voters attached to these protections, the role that enshrining them in the Constitution could have in educating people about their rights, and the chance that adding them might prevent its opponent from making more drastic changes to it.”

Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence which start with the recognition of man’s rights, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

To secure these rights, he wrote, “Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the Consent of the Governed-that whenever any form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it…”.

Then came Lyndon Jackson who was a passionate supporter of civil rights and signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which was intended to end the Jim Crow era and held government accountable to its Black /minority citizens and to a true democracy. Lyndon Jackson argues, “This right to vote is the biggest right without which all others are meaningless. It gives people, people as individuals control over their destiny”.

Later in recent memory emerged Martin Luther King Jr. a pioneer and champion of Civil Rights movements, who throughout his life advocated for peaceful resistance against social injustices minority groups were subject to. MLK Jr. fought tirelessly and gave his life for a greater cause. He says this “If we do not act, we shall surely be dragged down the long dark and shameful corridors of time reserved for those who possess power without compassion, might without morality, and strength without sight” This could not have been so relevant to the recent actions we see from the Republican Senate blocking bills that address people’s rights and protections of those rights.

In honoring his legacy at a time when some politicians are engaging in enacting state laws that violate the same rights MLK Jr. fought and lost his life for, his family demanded actions on federal voting rights legislation to honor his legacy of fighting for civil rights... “We are asking people to honor Dr. King through action to protect the right to vote…We’re directly calling on Congress not to pay lip service to my father’s ideals without doing the very thing that would protect his legacy: pass voting rights legislation” said, King’s eldest son, Martin Luther King III on MLK Jr. Day this week.

Despite the call to action at a time when our voting rights are under attack by the Republican leadership in the Senate and states run by Republican governors, the voting rights legislation was blocked the next day on the Senate floor. The actions of the Republican leadership in recent years have ignored American history, values, and the Constitution altogether.

And now, Joe R. Biden Jr. a career politician who entered the presidency at an unprecedented time, and after his predecessor, Donald Trump who in four years managed to smash down many rules and regulations that were in place to protect people’s civil rights, his divisive and discriminatory policies,  his vetoes, and his Executive Orders which were geared toward the erosion of democracy and the abuse of the constitution, and that of the presidency’s office, still are been carried by the GOP and the Republican Senate who are blocking the democratic bill after bill that will secure and protect the people’s civil rights.

In fact, for the second time, The Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act was rejected in the senate when all republican senators, joined by Krysten Sinema and Joe Machin who betrayed their democratic party in changing the rules to overcome a Republican filibuster, hence failed to pass the voting right legislation.

Joe Biden whose presidential election victory was almost hijacked (couped Jan.6th,  2020) due to false narrative, a “Big Lie” manufactured by his predecessor who got into power in 2016 under a series of suspicions following the intimidations, false threats, and lies about Hilary Clinton and of course with the help of Russian interference into the US election systems-‘Russia find Hilary’s emails’…

Same tactics he wanted to deploy to steal the election from Joe Biden when he knew he was going to lose the election by exactly the number of votes he demanded Georgia to find for him-‘Georgia find 11,780 votes’…and again he continued to spread lies about election votes results from states he was losing, and with his Republican allies they pressured, threatened, intimidate, and sued some states, but all failed-Georgia were to find 11780 votes he wants that would have been enough to win Georgia…How do you find votes for someone when he demanded it? Who was committing election fraud here?

We all remember what went on in Georgia, Michigan, Arizona, Pennsylvania. How coincidence or convincing that the same states Donald Trump wanted to win by force to steal the presidency again are the states that are targeted for massive laws and restrictive measures that violate voting rights.

For Joe Biden, and frankly most of the Americans of all stripes-some Republicans, Democrats, Independent views these undemocratic and unconstitutional acts by the Republicans as the return of Jim Crow.  ‘Jim Crow 2.0 which is about two insidious things: voter suppression and election subversion. It’s no longer about who gets the vote; it’s about making it harder to vote. It’s about who gets to count the vote and whether your vote counts at all.’

“You know, for the right to vote and to have the votes counted is democracy’s threshold liberty. Without it, nothing is possible, but with it, anything is possible” said, Joe Biden.

If the purpose of politics is justice, and the first duty of the society is justice, then the government only exists not to create rights, but to secure those rights. 

“Government secure our rights to create a civil society” … “The consent is important not when we form a government, but for the operation of the government; and that is where the voting right becomes an important and necessary tool that spearheads and protects democracy.

Security for Rights without effective control over those who exercise power will lead to unfair practices that hinder peoples’ rights and jeopardize democracy.

How do Americans consent to be governed? How should you vote? Who should vote? What are the rights of the minorities? And why our politicians are inclined to ignore these questions and engage in practices that infringer people’s rights are a merely selfish act that drove them into concern about the next election and how it is going to impact them to stay in power. Maintaining power over their people is all that the politicians are most concerned about than securing and protecting individual rights!

While the framers of the constitution rendered the role of elections to be regulated by the states, they also gave Congress the power to make federal laws to regulate elections when it ought to be proper and necessary to secure the voting rights of the individuals.

In Article 1 Section 4, the Constitution says:

“The times, places, and manner of holding elections for Senators and Representatives shall be prescribed in each state by the legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time by law make or alter such regulation.” 

 The 14^th Amendment (1868) granted Blacks the right of citizenship, although the ability to vote wasn’t straightforward! Blacks’ voters systematically were turned away from state(s) polling places, and many other restrictions and tactics were imposed on Black people to shrink and deny them access to the ballot box.

But in 1870 Congress passed the 15^th Amendment with the intent to combat the problems that denied Blacks their votes. It says, “The right of citizens of the US to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the US or by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.”

So, from time immemorial the US was founded as a democratic republic, and Constitutionally, Congress has a supreme role to play in regulating our elections law when it is deemed to be proper and necessary to secure and protect individuals’ civil rights.

However, the Republican Senate is dodging their Constitutional role and engaging in partisan politics by blocking every bill Democrats bring to the floor for discussion and support, and most of those bills are geared toward addressing the issues and challenges American working people are facing especially currently and under the Covid pandemic. 

Be that as it may,  the current trend by one party, the Republican party leadership to ignore the constitution, their oath of office, and their duty to abide by the rules and laws that granted the Congress the power to make laws or alter state(s) laws and rules that violate and deny individual rights is appalling and should be regarded as a crime against our democracy and elections systems, for the states in the 21^st century to be embarking on circumventing the Constitution and prevent Blacks, and other minority groups their individual rights, particularly voting right.

Concerning the power of Congress to regulate the elections, Alexander Hamilton (Federalist No. 60-61) argues that the Federal government should be the only entity within the government that can regulate its own election, rather than the states or any other entity being able to regulate those elections. Allowing the states to regulate the elections of the federal government would leave the existence of a federalist union entirely at the mercy of those states, contrary to its supreme role over the federal government affairs that supersedes that of the states.

In recent years, from the 2016 election and after the 2020 elections, some Republican leadership began to enact restrictive state voting laws designed to support their falsehoods and ‘Big Lie’ about the stolen election when they lost the election.

The Republicans and The Voting Rights

Surely the party of Abraham Lincoln has died, and no one is sure about its replacement! But first, how the Republican Party evolve and revolve: In 1860, the first Republican president, Abraham Lincoln was elected after the party’s success in guiding the Union to victory in the American Civil war, and Lincoln’s role in the abolition of slavery.

The Republican party dominated the national political scene until the Great Depression (1929-1940). By1932 party members were leaving the party and others underwent an ideological shift to the right.

Social reforms have never been a concern for Republicans! At times when society calls for such reforms to address the ills in the society whether is the economic crisis of the magnitude of the Great Depression, or the pervasive pandemic invasion that crippled people, the economy, and the society, the Republican party holds into the old and uncompromised ways of defying democratic values that the US is founded on, neglect the working-class Americans, but heavily concern about property ownership,  involved with trading with big corporations, and favor the wealthy at the expense of the working-class.

Even then, Abraham Lincoln on Civil Rights said, “Let us have faith that right makes might, and in that faith, let us, to the end, dare to do our duty as we understand it.”

The Republican party’s core base shifted drastically to become more reliable on White voters who increasingly identify with the Republican party, and the Southern states after the 1960s growing demands for social justice reforms.

Thus, after the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and the continuous shifting of demographic change, the Republican party is suffering from the inability to integrate party members, instead, they are recruiting hardliners with radical and extreme views on how government should conduct its affair forgetting that government is not a party, but people.

Government is the people, for the people, and by the people. Diversity and inclusiveness in the Republican party have never been their desire and or concern; as a result, their desire and or concern has been engaging into infringing minorities’ rights, especially voting rights, instead of finding strategies to attract minority groups of African Americans, Asians, Hispanics, and Natives to join their party.

If America is made up of these groups, what motivates Republicans to think that they can deny them their citizenry rights, or treat them as non-Americans? Just yesterday after blocking the Democrats’ voting rights bill Mitch McConnel, a Republican Minority leader in the Senate said this, “The concern is misplaced because if you look at the statistics, African American voters are voting in just as high a percentage as Americans”, implying that African Americans are not Americans?

The same groups of people that Republican’s mindset of whiteness have no desire to integrate into their party-the Blacks and other minority groups are now their enemy number one, targeting them at the ballot box using false rhetoric such as stolen election to introduce massive states voting laws and restrictive voting regulations to deny them their rights to vote freely, fairly, and secure their votes.

In the 2021 legislative session alone, lawmakers in 48 states have introduced at least 389 restrictive bills that limit voting by mail, early in-person voting, Election Day Voting hours and Same Day Voting, Types of IDs requirement, and other anti-voting measures. This anti-democratic trend by the Republican party is a serious concern for the health and future of US democracy, but also for the Civil Rights of the minority groups.

Poll after poll shows that many Americans oppose these voting restrictions and want federal action so that their voices can be heard, and their rights protected.

It should be noted that not all the Republicans are siding with their leadership, in particular the Republican Senate and the Republican State leaders. Some groups of Republicans such as Republican for Voting Rights, an initiative of the Republican Accountability Project are defending the accessibility, integrity, and competitiveness of American elections.

They are against the false narrative and rhetorical language around the Republican's massive state voting laws and restrictions as a better choice for voting access and election integrity!

They believe Republicans in federal, state, and local governments should protect the rights to vote, protect our election systems from attacks either by one party or foreign interference, and help to protect and build trust in US democracy which other countries that are less or young democracies look up to, instead of engaging into enacting state laws and restrictions that illuminate voter fraud, voter suppression, and other election crimes.

Abraham Lincoln, a Republican and the 16^th President of the United State, who also abolished slavery, asserted that “The ballot is stronger than the bullet.” What he meant by that is that, if you want to stand for your country, by freedom, and for democracy, your weapon is your vote! Voting must be accessible for every eligible voter, and every eligible voter ought to vote in every election to bring about the changes we want to see in ourselves, in our communities, and in the government that works for the people, not the few and wealthy.

The Democrats and the Voting Rights

The Democrats' beliefs about the right to vote and the Voting Rights are derived from its party’s principles of American liberalism, contrary to the conservatism of the Republican Party, which tends to maintain the status quo and slow to act in the dynamics of the ever fast-changing societies.

Most Democrats are centrist and a few numbers progressives, but also with a small number of conservatives (Krysten Sinema and Joe Manchin), and a few elements of socialism (Bernie Sanders). Given such diverse makeup of the party, Democrats tend to promote social programs such as Labor Unions, Consumer Protection, Workers Safety Regulations, Equal Opportunity, Disability Rights, Racial Equality, Environmental Regulations to safeguard our drinking water and the air we breathe; Criminal Justice Reforms and other programs that secure and protect peoples’ social liberties and freedoms. 

Democrats believe that the right to vote for every eligible voter and his or her vote counted is crucial for American democracy and essential for individual freedom, and they are against enacting laws that restrict freedom of voting, fairness to access the ballot box, or other unnecessary restrictions on those seeking to exercise their voting rights.

Looking beyond the hyper rhetoric of the 2020 stolen election campaign by the Republicans (which is a total unacceptable misleading the public) which implicate false shortcomings in the US election systems-even in the case of machine malfunctions or some voters voted twice, such claim does not add up to alter the election outcome when the winner is at advantage in high percentage numbers.

So, to compare what Democrats and Republicans are engaged in to infringe or to protect the voting rights is simple: One party becomes a watchdog to safeguard our voting rights, and the other party insult and assault our voting rights.

Instead of engaging in activism and volunteering to turn out the votes, to register new voters especially young eligible voters, and attract new party members like Democrats did in 2018 and 2020, Republicans are busy finding ways to engage in voter suppression, voter purging, voter fraud, and welcome foreign interference into our election system.

While Democrats are engaged in restoring and strengthening our democracy, freedoms, and civil rights, Republicans are engaged in falsehood campaigns about election frauds that forced them into enacting state laws intended to disenfranchise the minority voters through massive various voting restrictions and unconstitutional laws.

We know our government and our elections are supposed to reflect the interests of all American people, not just the wealthy few and the big corporation who pour money into politics influencing politicians who take their money to work for them instead of the people.

But Democrats and people who care about American democracy and freedoms will fight back to restore and protect America’s fundamental right to vote freely fairly, and everyone’s vote counted.

The For the People Act which was blocked by 41 Republican Senate who represents only 21 million people by using a filibuster to deny the 62% majority of Americans who support The People Act demonstrates how undemocratic and unconstitutional Republicans have become. The For The People Act would have expanded and protected people's voting rights. This bill would have changed the campaign finance laws to reduce the influence of money in politics, limited gerrymandering, created new ethics rules for federal officeholders, protected our election integrity, and overall strengthening and protecting our democracy.

The For the Peoples Act would have transformed our democracy by making it stronger and our voting rights fairer, freer, secured, and more inclusive. It would have been the most anti-corruption and pro-democracy bill since the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights of 1965.

Should the For the People Act have been passed it would have brought the voting right reforms that meet the moment in responding to the challenges minority have long faced when they exercise their right to vote. While the American people have realized that the status quo is no longer delivering or working for them, Congress must use its supreme power to regulate states' laws that are discriminatory and violate the constitution and people’s rights.

Yesterday, Wednesday, Jan 20^th, 2022, on Joe Biden one year anniversary into the presidency, the Republican Senate again blocked a vote to reform the Senate filibuster rule, and hinder the passage of the Freedom to Vote: John R. Lewis Act which would have been the most crucial for our democracy after the For The People Act failed to pass because of the “Do Nothing” Mitch McConnell and his GOP leadership boycotting any bill Democrats bring to the Senate floor.

This bill would have protected future elections from authoritarian attacks, end big money in our elections, stop gerrymandering, make election day a holiday, given two weeks of early voting and implement automatic voter registration in all states. It would have also restored key provisions in the original 1965 Voting Rights Act and made it harder to pass anti-voter laws in the future.

Nevertheless, the Republican Senate, Krysten Sinema, and Joe Manchin once again delivered another NO to the American people, and again failed the opportunity to secure and protect America’s democracy by blocking the Freedom to Vote: John r. Lewis Act. If was passed it would have curbed the recent wave of restrictions passed in 19 states fueled by Donald Trump ‘Big Lie’ that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from him due to voter fraud even though court after the court threw away his claims for lacking reliable evidence that fraud occurred that could have altered the result to his favor.

In a nutshell

The next time you hear Republicans lie to you that they are for the working-class people, ask them what they have done for the working class-which legislations have they initiated or supported that support working-class especially since 2016 to dates and at times that we have been facing many changes and crises- the effects of climate change, the systemic racial discrimination and the violence associated with it, the unprecedented Covid pandemic that shock and shook the entire world; and the recent presidential election feud that is still fueling undemocratic and unconstitutional acts by one party!

 Ask Republicans why you should stand for 10 or 12 hours in long-line to exercise your voting rights? Or how does removing polling places in low-income neighboring’s, on college compasses, and in communities of color translate to secure and protect the integrity of the election? Ask them when they wish to change the election and campaign-finance laws so that there is uniformity in following the same rules in all 50 states when administering federal elections.

Where should we vote freely, fairly, and our votes counted if we don’t seek protection, partisan takes over of election administration, or ban partisan gerrymandering, and mandate disclosure of big donors, ‘dark money influencing our elections? Ask them what if they honor working people by making Election Day a public holiday? That a working voter doesn’t have to decide between her civic duty and losing hours of work by standing in long-line for hours to exercise his or her right to vote!

Again, ask, who should strengthen our democracy and guarantee that every American’s vote is protected if not those who we elected to represent us in our government affairs?

“Voting is the expression of our commitment to ourselves, one another, this country, and the world.” 

Our voting rights and election system must be secured and protected for they are the core elements of democracy. We must stand for and defend the accuracy, stop misinformation and partisan politics; and understand that constitution does not demand you to vote, but it commands the protection of your voting rights when exercising that right.

 

 

 

 Well-being While We Battle the Many Unknowns of the COVID-19 Pandemic!

While it is not easy to put into theory a healthy way of adapting and sticking to a good and healthy lifestyle that keep our bodies free from foreign substances and disease-causing organisms or infectious viruses, and have the exact same impact on our bodies universally…after all our physiology and anatomy may have shared characteristics and functions but processing what goes in and out of our bodies is not one-size-fits-all…We inherited different body-makeups (DNA & RNA) as such, our blood groups are not the same, our metabolisms are differently wired, and neither our heights nor our weights are the same, and that impact everything in our bodies, from moods, to the overall health of our bodies.

Nevertheless, understanding the best ways to take care for our bodies against foreign invaders that attack our bodies should be in the interest of everyone. It is imperative to be mindful of what we consume to keep our bodies healthy.

Food offers you what nutrients, but also when you need certain foods for certain reasons crucial for healthy living. Thus, Foods’ choices whether by preference or by its nutrients’ credibility must be learned/acquired to guide us in making smart choices of credible foods for healthy bodies.

Establishing, adapting, and sticking to good eating habits that promote good health and longevity have not been attained and sustained for the majority of us, perhaps simply because we tend to focus on other things in life than our bodies or forget that our bodies are engines of everything else, we do, and if so, priorities and focus should start with the state of your body, thus, you are what you eat.

Living under the cloud of COVID-19 pandemic and as a post-COVID syndrome person or sometimes known as “Covid long-haulers”,  that you recovered from COVID-19, and may thereafter test negative for COVID-19 but you have acquired lingering health problems that may last for long-term…COVID long-haulers can be experienced by and persistent in people who were perfectly healthy with no medical history of underlying conditions for some reasons so far unknowns and known reasons such as organ damage, persistent inflammatory, autoimmune response. That is why paying attention to our body’s health during this Covid pandemic is crucial than ever.

A-year-and-a half into the novel coronavirus 2019 that causes the COVID-19 disease, I have learned quite a lot about the importance of keeping my body healthy depends on my choices of what I consume everyday-body, mind, and spirit.

Learning how to defend ourselves against diseases constructively and holistically from our kitchens first and foremost, and of course, to the medical field (your doctor-Science medicines) has never been so essential like this time of COVID-9 pandemic.

Food is medicine too! Why? Food is medicine because food offers a complex mixture of credible nutrients that can never be perfectly prepared and replicated by manufactured supplements, fortified shakes, or meal replacement bars. You cannot substitute credible foods 100% with the manufactured supplements or even medicine. Nature offers perfect remedies if we nurture nature to nurture and nourish our body, mind, and spirit.

 

Can food boost health hence robust body immune system?

Many recent studies reveal that food choices have a tremendous effect on our bodies for better or for worse; food can even affect our moods, causing negative emotions that trigger emotional eating, hence wrong food choices, thyroid disorder, etc. With the skyrocketing cost of medicines and doctors’ visits while many people are underinsured or uninsured to receive proper healthcare, relying on good health habits, credible food choices are not a complicated science, but a simple embrace of the natural ways of living a heathier life-eating for better health!

Healthy living is a must to battle the COVID-19 that is intruding in us in every way of our everyday life. With the Covid-Delta variant infection clusters increasingly germinating across the country, no one is immune to it and the choices on how to contain this virus is upon us all…we can suffer less from it and even put it at bay if we make better choices and the good news is that we all can make those healthy choices if the WILL to beat COVID-19 is deployed and adapted.

CDC and WHO have given us what to look for in terms of symptoms, guidelines to safeguard our health, and even the vaccines to ease the severity of the illnesses COVID-19 can cause. However, people with COVID-19 may have a range of symptoms-ranging from undetected symptoms (asymptomatic), mild, to severe illnesses which require everybody to be vigilant and mindful of not only own health but also of the others.

Over the period of 18 months under COVID-19, both known and unknown symptoms have changed considerably adding complications on how to contain this virus from the asymptomatic, unvaccinated, vaccinated but asymptomatic, and mask-wearing and vaccines diners.

If I say COVID-19 can make you go nuts, it will be under treatment. COVID-19 is a monster and a nightmare…it gets into your head and takes you hostage!

COVID-19 has affected everyone in one way or the other- physically, psychologically, emotionally, mentally, and or socially, leaving you vulnerable to illnesses-unhealthy body, mind, and spirit, even sick and death. Why?

Coronavirus infections attacks and compromise your body immunity-it suppresses your body immune system and lead to organs failure to function, hence illnesses and deaths.

While COVID-19 has no cure so far, but various safety and health guidelines requirements have been made available for the public to follow…mask-wearing and vaccines are helping to slow the transmission and severity of the COVID-19 illnesses. However, because of the mysterious ways this Covid virus is manifesting itself on people-some get it with full known symptoms, others get it with minor signs, yet some get it without any known symptoms or contact source; likewise, some get it and recover fast, others get it and take longer to heal, yet some get it and die within a short period; and few battle it for some time, recover from it, and get it again, even the vaccinated people have fallen into a breakthrough infection cases leaving the public confused than ever.

As mysterious and notorious the COVID-19 can be, it is also how it is spreading and attacking your body. So far, the weapon you must have to battle the COVID-19 is to comply with the COVID-19 guideline, as stated by the CDC or World Health Organization (WHO). In addition, you can start the good habit of building a natural healthy body immunity as your second line of defense, especially if you have underlying medical or health problems, which might compromise your body’s immune system and leave you with either immunocompromised (a weakened/low body immune system defense, affecting its ability to fight against infections and disease-weakened immune systems are more susceptible to COVID-19 attack) or with autoimmune (a condition that turn your body immune cells into double agents that fight against own healthy tissues).

So, what should we do now as we face this outbreak of Covid-Delta variant and heading to the Fall/Winter seasons which Covid virus tends to flourish?

So much has been debated and contested about the vaccines and vaccine boosters especially now that we have the COVID vaccines and as we head to a possible second wave of an outbreak of Covid infections from Delta variant or other variants, and after seeing the increase of infection trending across the country.

With the Delta variant and the slow pace of accepting the vaccination, we must forge for reliable ways or alternatives on how to beat the COVID-19 attacks on our bodies by learning how to build and boost natural body immunity good enough to protect our bodies from many illnesses, not just COVID-19…the organic body immunity booster.

 

What is the organic body immunity booster means?

Organic body immunity booster in other words is, “You are what you eat”! But first, what does the body immune system means?

 

What Does the Body Immune System Means?

According to the Cancer Research Institute, the immune system is the body’s natural defense system. It makes various body parts to perform the functions of keeping you healthy and alive. Immune system does not reside in one part of the body; instead, it comprises a network of cells, molecules, tissues, and organs working together to protect the body. These cells, molecules tissues, and organs play a crucial role in how the body immune system works and its function, which is essential in preventing infections or diseases.

To maintain a sound body immune system, you need the tools to fight back against the invasion of infectious viruses and bacteria. The best natural tool is credible nutrient foods. Nutritional foods are natural medicine-the, “you are what you eat”.

When you have a healthy body, you have a robust body immune system defense that can detect the virus and kill it. When your cells of the immune system cannot see the infectious virus that enters your body and therefore do not know that your body cells have infections, your body’s health is compromised-immunocompromised. The contagious virus has weakened your defense-response (immune system) that attacked the infected cells, hence failing to protect you from diseases and deaths.

The body’s ability to protect and defend itself against a foreign enemy invader is what immunity is all about.

We know there are several types of immunity, but the two major ones are the natural immunity and the acquire passive immunity. Thus, natural immunity is a type of general inherited protection, you are born with it, and it is species specific-like humans do not get dog distemper and dogs do not get humans cold!

Natural immunity is also can be active immunity or passive immunity, henceforth requiring a person to be immunized by using vaccines to help individuals develop active immunity that will protect a person against a disease and offer him or her a lifetime protection when the body immunity need to be protected or unable to produce its own defense (antibodies) against harmful invasions by foreign substances and disease-causing organisms. Active immunity is long-lived and may even last a person’s lifetime.

Passive immunity is a temporary form of immunity that is borrowed from another source. It is short-lived. A baby receives passive immunity from the mother before is born and after is born from the mother’s milk…passive immunity protects the baby until the baby is old enough to have its “baby shot” …then the baby will develop its own active immunity. Natural active immunity can therefore be the food you eat-food is medicine, and food is your immunity only when you build and develop healthy living that encompasses healthy food choices and active lifestyle.

The other type of passive immunity is what is known as acquired passive immunity, the immunity that a person develops after his or her body immune system responds to a foreign substance or microorganism after a person receives antibodies from another source. Acquired passive immunity too, has two types-adaptive and passive. Thus, adaptive immunity occurs in response to being infected with or vaccinated against a microorganism, and your body sustains the protection-the body makes an immune response, which can prevent future infection with the microorganism. Passive immunity occurs when a person receives antibodies to a disease or toxin rather than producing his or her own body immune system and may rely on receiving antibodies to protect her or his health because her or his body cannot produce enough immune system against infections or harmful foreign substance inter the body, henceforth vaccines and vaccines booster shots.

Now let’s talk about body immune system that lasts and everyone can build it naturally and keep it active.

 

How to Build and Boost your Body Immune System During this COVID-19? (You Are What You Eat)!

It is vital to build a habit of eating good food to create a healthy body capable of fighting and preventing infections and diseases. The right foods give you more energy and keep you healthy and fit. Good nutrition means a good healthy life.

In addition to choosing the right foods, there are the best vitamins and minerals supplements that aid in boosting your immune system. Some suggested the right supplements that may increase your body immune system during this COVID -19 include Vitamin C, Vitamin E, D3, B6, B12, Potassium, Calcium, Magnesium, and Zinc. Check your iron level often too! These vitamin and minerals are not medicine to cure or prevent diseases, including COVID-19, but help increases your nutrient intake in return; you get a robust body immunity.

Research has shown that vitamins and minerals supplements, nutritious foods, and certain herbs; also, routine exercise and getting enough good sleep can significantly boost your body immunity and potentially protect you against many infections and diseases, including COVID-19.

Failure to maintain good health, especially now that COVI-19 is known to be responsible for suppressing the body’s immune system, may mean putting yourself at a health risk. Weak bodies are susceptible to infections and disease. 

Unhealthy food, such as canned foods, processed food, and or fast foods loaded with salt, sugar, oils, preservatives, and coloring, may suppress your immune systems, leaving you vulnerable to virus attack. Coronavirus flourishes fast in a weak immune system body.

Likewise, stress, loneliness, especially during this time of social isolation and distancing, can weaken the immune system. When we interact with nature and the outdoors-going for a walk or engage in gardening activates your body and offers a positive state of body, mind, and spirit. The outdoor environment has benefits to our overall body health. Direct sunlight provides natural Vitamin D and clean air, especially early mornings, or late evenings when there are fewer cars and people congestion on the streets. 

According to a research study on college students on Immunity and Disease by Health psychologists Sarah Pressman, Ph.D., Sheldon Cohen, Ph.D., and fellow researchers at Carnegie Mellon University's Laboratory for the Study of Stress found that social isolation and feelings of loneliness each independently weakened first-year students' immunity. Teaching your body to handle and manage stress may require repeated practice, just like eating and exercising; a night of good night sleep is a night of better sleep and a significant health factor in the overall body health and wellness. 

 

So, what is the organic body immunity booster means?

Here, are what we should all try to do for the sake of feeling well and healthy, but also build good healthy habits that boost our body’s immune system. Building good health habits is the best organic tool we have in our power to battle the COVID-19 inside out!

 

When your body, mind, and spirit are connected, you are more optimistic and resilient to negativity-stress or anxiety, you are self-motivated to do positive things, and you will undoubtedly sleep better and feel good. 

We know the credible nutrient foods are expensive, and it can be tough to build a healthy body that requires credible nutritious foods and supplements when reasonably you are struggling to put any food on the table-the irony being poor but need a health body!!!

I do not know how this will align well with the current and crucial need to eat credible nutritious foods to maintain a healthy body that is strong enough to fight this COVID-19. However, since there is no cure or vaccine, it will be challenging and problematic for many people to balance the need to stay healthy and the little income they get during the COVID-19 pandemic to afford credible nutritious foods as an organic body immunity booster.

Nevertheless, to disregard the fear of counting your little money at the expense of your health may sound odd, but what are the consequences? Your life depends on your healthy lifestyle, and consequently, being able to beat the COVID-19. Lifestyle changes such as balanced nutritious foods, exercise, and stress management can boost your body immunity significantly.

Everything currently seems to come with unnegotiable risks. However, risking your life by settling for poor health habits choices is not negotiable when battling the coronavirus pandemic.

 

The powerful foods + Vitamin Supplements you should confidently use to feed your body during this COVID-19?

Having experienced the COVID-19 attack and symptoms that won't go away, feeding my body credible nutritious foods is not only the powerful weapon I can bestow to build and maintain a robust immune system, but also to keep the COVID-19 battle at bay.

From morning breakfast to the evening dinner, my food choices intakes are intentional with COVID-19 in mind. I must intentionally reconsider recipes, and many ways to prepare and cookout meals daily-I reinvented the wheels to make meals with COVID-19 in mind adaptable to give me the nutrients my body needs the most under the COVID-19 situation…Don’t mind being labeled “foody” or “queen of foods” because everyone eats, even Uber Eats!!! What others eat or how others eat is a matter of style, but for me it’s a matter of building resilient natural body immunity.

First, know that colds and flu, pneumonia, respiratory disorders, fever, sore throat, stress, sleep disorders (Insomnia) are the primary illnesses that have shared symptoms as COVID-19, and therefore, knowing foods that heal these illnesses is a bonus in the battle against coronavirus attack.

Since the COVID-19 attacks the respiratory organs such as lungs, causing respiratory disorders to include bronchitis-severe coughs, emphysema, pneumonia, and sinusitis; drinking plenty of fluids-warm or hot helps to loosen mucus and make your breathing easier and more comfortable.

When I am suffering from Colds/flu and respiratory disorders, I find these foods to be powerful healing:

Vitamin C-Citrus fruits-oranges, red grapefruit, and Lemon, plenty of water (10 glasses a day-adding lemon or mint is a bonus to your health), and 100% Juices with no sugar added. Vitamin C intake is your first line of defense tool to support the immune system.

I often use other fruits, papaya, pineapple, banana, mango, apples, and berries. Watermelon and other red or pink fruits are good targets for their benefit in providing lycopene. Red fruits are rich in lycopene, a powerful antioxidant that supports cells in your body to maintain good health-improve your heart, and avoid the risk of certain types of cancer. 

To get enough Vitamin C, I add Vitamin C Supplement 1000mg daily, and I sometimes double it, depending on the severity of my cold/flu symptoms.

You also get additional Vitamin C from other foods like tomatoes, cantaloupe, green leafy, spinach, peas, asparagus, brussels sprouts, carrots, beetroots, mushrooms, and other fresh vegetables. These foods offer you Beta Glucan, an immune regulator. The soluble fiber found on these foods helps maintain a sound immune system, which provides relief from cold/flu and other immunocompromised illnesses like lung cancer, diabetes, etc.

Also, foods that are rich in Zinc and Vitamins D3 as they provide proteins your body cells need to protect your organs from the invasion of the virus.

Foods like turkey, chicken, red meat-pork chops, sea foods-oyster, wild salmon, yogurt, eggs, milk, whole grains, rice-predominantly brown rice, nuts, and pumpkin seeds are rich in proteins and zinc minerals. Zinc minerals help your immune system and metabolism. They are also essential to wound healing and your sense of taste and smell. It also helps stimulate the activity of many different body enzymes (8 milligrams mg a day for women and 11 mg a day for men is all you need or recommended to keep your body zinc to a healthy level.

 

Spices and Herbs

Also, be sure to “spyce” up your meals with these spices and herbs for excellent health benefits and add delightful flavors and enticing aroma: garlic, ginger, chiles, turmeric, dill, mint, cilantro, rosemary, thyme, and parsley, basil, lemongrass, lemon balm, and sage. These herbs and spices will not only boost your mood but also are good defenders of the immune system as they are rich in antioxidants. Intentionally, I use them as frequently and in every food preparation as possible can.

 

Finally, Your Body, Mind, and Spirit

It is easier to lose it all than to keep it all, but life depends on maintaining it all and keeping it all. Unlike any other time in our lives, living under the threat of COVID-19 has changed everything normal to abnormal, and to uncertain, but we must forge for the ways to adjust, and make changes as we go on with life with the COVID-19 upon us.

Despite the COVID-19 lingering fear, life is how you respond and confront the challenges it brings to you. Under the COVID-19, the priority and the battle are how to keep safe and healthy, since COVID-19 tends to attach the respiratory organ:-lungs, respiratory disorders include bronchitis (severe-persistent cough) emphysema, pneumonia, sinusitis, lifestyle, good health-living choices are crucial than ever to beat this coronavirus invader. 

Keeping your body healthy is more than just food choices and consuming credible nutrient foods and meal choices. It is also about taking care of your mind and spirit. It is the attitudes and habits towards healthy living. It is the self-esteem and self-confidence in the ways you live your life, unscripted and unapologetic-you are who you are; and you are what you eat to sustain your body, mind, and spirit.

Sejal Gandhi, a great health educator, considered health as not only the absence of physical diseases or sickness of the body but a positive state of body and mind.

Food nourishes your body, but having a positive attitude and perspective feeds your mind and spirit and help heal faster and or overcome many illnesses and daily life obstacles and challenges.

Your overall body health and wellness, especially during this COVID-19 Pandemic, depend on your ability to listen to the body and to the recommendations for safety and health guidelines that will safeguard your health and life during this Covid-19 pandemic. Pay attention to the signals your body is sending you and using your instincts and senses to act quickly and soon as your body starts acting unusually and giving it a care boost it needs! Do not brush the unusual feelings away, for they don't usually go away but multiplied to a bigger problem.

 

 

 Masking up For In-Person Schooling Should Never Be Politicized or An Option, But A Universal National Mandatory!

We are living in a time when the coronavirus crisis escalating again, which means the virus is soaring and is contagious and causing illnesses faster and in younger people.

According to CDC, “the Delta variant causes more infections and spread faster than the earlier forms of the virus that causes COVID-19. It might cause more illness than previous strain in unvaccinated people.”

We know the severity of the COVID-19 what it does to our bodies when you get infected with the virus-you may live with it for a while or long-term, you may recover from it, or you can die from it as millions have worldwide. Living with COVID-19 is a matter of life and death-but fighting to prevent it, is the best choice to sustain your health, hence life.

We have come so far with this coronavirus to defy the rules that prevent and protect us ALL-young and old from its attack in the past.

Across the country, the number of Covid-Delta variants is increasingly growing with speed-from the month of July 2021 heading to August 2021 the numbers of Covid-Delta infections are in the tunes of above 200,000 cases a month just about the same as it was at the beginning of the pandemic.

But unlike now, then we did make some commitments to follow the safety and health guidelines, the number of infections was able to decrease drastically; and with the availability of the vaccines, the spread of the virus can be controlled even more if we collectively do our part.

While schools are reopening for Fall sessions for full in-person learning and under the cloud of the COVID-19 pandemic, we must ALL show care and conscientiousness in one another’s work or duties to bounce back to the safer zone again.

It is unsettling to hear and see that the Covid-Delta variant is affecting younger people and more kids are being hospitalized across the states, than during the previous variants, and at a time that there isn’t a vaccine available for them yet to shield them from the severity of the COVID-19.  Following the guidelines in place such as mask-wearing, distancing and avoiding crowd places while continue maintaining hygienic practices-handwashing and sanitation are viable and only preventive measures at our disposal.

As schools are gearing up for full in-person learning this Fall, the situation could be dire and worse if we defy the safety and health guidelines that are proven to have worked in the past in preventing the spread of the virus especially mask-wearing.

Already released data shows that in the Southern states like South Carolina, Texas, Florida, and Louisiana cases of Covid-Delta infections have skyrocketed to the alarming point simply because they relax in implementing a mask-wearing rule.

This unfolding situation is making teachers, parents, students, and schools super nervous, frustrated, and fearful for the return to in-person learning that many parents and students want the most!

By this time last year, the Coronavirus has taught us that mask-wearing is the best, if not the only preventive tool ever been in reducing and protecting you from contracting and transmitting the virus because even if people are vaccinated they still can get infected with this new Delta variant since the vaccines are not available for younger children, but also the vaccines do not prevent you from getting infected by the virus, rather it minimizes the severity of the Covid illness. It is therefore logical and common sense that mask-wearing is the best preventive tool since we don’t know who is infected and who is not (asymptomatic) whether vaccinated or unvaccinated; or whether the virus is in the air and or where so that to avoid those places.

 

Mandating the Mask-Wearing

Most Americans about 69% are in favor of mandatory mask-wearing in school, however, the issue has become so polarized and politicized and party divided with 92% of democrats supporting a mask-wearing mandate and only 44% of Republicans are in support of mask-wearing even as many red states showed uncontrollable surging numbers of Covid-Delta variant infections.

Again, it’s logical and common sense that mask-wearing is the BEST preventive tool we all have at our disposal since not all age groups have available vaccines and even those who are eligible for vaccines have not all been vaccinated, and the virus keeps eluding us and infects us whether vaccinated or unvaccinated. However, with the mask on, chances of getting infected whether you are vaccinated or unvaccinated is low with the combination of following the other safety and health guidelines.

As a parent and an educator, yes, it’s my responsibility to ensure our kids and all students are safe while under the school custodian.

In K-8 specifically (or even K-12 since not all students eligible for vaccines are vaccinated) teachers, students, and parents must all abide by the Code of Ethical Conduct and Responsibilities-Guideline for Responsible Behaviors in K-12 education; more so while COVID-19 pandemics is upon us-focusing on practices that maintain safety and healthy learning environment for everyone.

Ethical responsibility to children is that our paramount responsibility is to provide care and education in an environment that is safe, healthy, nurturing, and responsible for each student; maintaining safe and healthy schools that foster student’s social, emotional, cognitive, and physical development, respect their present and participation; in addition, support the right of each child to play and learn in an inclusive, yet safe environment that meets the needs of the children with and without disabilities.

Universal and consistent guidelines for schools are inevitable under the cloud of Covid pandemic threat and must therefore be in place and be followed by all involved to maintain our ethical responsibilities to our children.

Schools cannot afford to give every student special preference (some wear masks and others not) or excluding them from schools or activities based on others being defiant in mask-wearing to avoid virus transmission.

With the Covid-Delta variant soaring across the country, the federal government should be the leader in issuing universal national safety and health guidelines such as mask-wearing mandate back in place instead of leaving it as unilateral action by the states or local governments. Giving this as an option or choice of the local government to decide whether to wear a mask in school or not while new infections are skyrocketing is a recipe for disaster-we should focus on curbing this virus not paving the way for another lockdown like last Fall.

Certainly, when it comes to schools, teachers, students, and parents have responsibility for and to one another-none can operate safely and effectively without the cooperation of the others involved!

NAEYC Code of ethical responsibilities to children reminds all adults (teachers & parents) on principle-1.1 that “Above all, we shall not harm children. We shall not participate in practices that are emotionally damaging, physically harmful, disrespectful, degrading, dangerous, exploitative, or intimidating to children.” (NAEYC Code of Ethics 2005). What this principle means is that as adults we have ethical responsibilities to our children’s safety and health at home and in school. Violating this principle and other schools’ rules and behaviors for students, teachers and parents can lead to child neglect…families have the responsibility to ensure effective and smooth communication and transition from home to school more so during this pandemic. Developing and maintaining relationships of mutual respect, trust, and partner with schools with a common goal of nurturing effective learning for our children is fundamental.

Parents moral conduct include views of what is good, right, and proper; parents beliefs about their responsibilities and or obligations to their children and schools; parents ideas about how they should behave to accommodate sensitive issues like the crisis pandemic brought to our schools must be checked/navigate with restrain to avoid the unnecessary and unwanted tug of war between parents and schools, parents and teachers, or between students and teachers/schools, for such unrestrained behaviors is counterproductive and toxic for the learning environment…balancing our responsibilities to our children with caution and focus on things that are relevant and matter the most, is how to react to a vulnerable situation or crisis…There have been reports of violence in various states from people opposing mask-wearing. During a back-to-school event in Texas, an angry parent ripped a mask off from a teacher’s face…irrational responses or behaviors tend to make matters worse, not better.

 

School Rules Vs. Parents Choices during the pandemic

As an educator who has contracted the COVID-19, and a parent with children still in school, I know at hand the dilemma both parents and educators are facing during this COVID-19 Pandemic.

For the parents, if you believe you are the first teacher to your child and that nobody (the teachers or schools) can tell you how to raise your child, you may have a decision to make and options/choices out there for you! While some will be asking for universal mask-wearing because we believe it’s the best preventive tool against spreading the covid-delta variant, parents who oppose mask-wearing should have the right to remove their child from schools that calls for or implementing mask-wearing as a mandate especially with this new variant which is infecting children more while they have no other best tool due to their ineligibility for vaccines.

If parents don’t like the mask mandate rule in their kids’ school, they have the right to pull their kids out of school-they have the option to choose from private schools, homeschooling, or virtual learning if their school districts offer that option. For other districts through virtual learning is not a conducive option for their learning. There are challenges from internet connectivity, affordability of internet subscription may require additional teachers or even available spaces in their homes for comfortable-bother free learning can be an issue that may hinder effective virtual learning. I do not believe it is realistic or even fair to others who feel the need for the protection mask-wearing offers to change the rules at the expense of few groups of parents or political leaders who oppose school rules such as mask-wearing a mandate in school during the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

Vaccinated Vs Unvaccinated Saga

If anything, we know that vaccinated and unvaccinated alike have the responsibility of curbing the transmission of the Covid virus. Everyone’s safety and health depend on her/his WILL to do the right things-to follow the safety and health guidelines in place to prevent yourself and others from contracting the virus.

Vaccinated and or unvaccinated people must follow the safety rules and protocols. Not all people unvaccinated are antivaccine-some are only hesitant at the moment because of medical reasons-they might be immunocompromised, have a bad experience with vaccines reactions in the past, or they want to buy time to see where this virus with so many unknowns is heading, especially those who have maintained good health, with strong body immunity and taking all precautions that in 18 months of this virus they have not to get sickened by the virus; and of course, there those who got sick by the virus and recovered without the help of any drugs…they too have the right to weigh in as long as they are following the safety and health guidelines in place and beyond…

These different groups of people have been played and labeled as antivaccine or vaccines deniers which flare up a heated debate among the members of the community and families and people are divided or categorized causing yet more resentments to the vaccination…the divisiveness rhetoric over those vaccinated and unvaccinated as having two Americans is detrimental to the overall success in making people take the vaccines willingly or not.

Everyone should be encouraged or apply self-courage to comply and to protect not only self but also the public from making the virus uncontainable …ask yourself whether young or old how you can be a part of the solution in battling this virus, not a problem, a distractor, or stubborn in complying to safety and health guidelines that prevent you from being a super-spreader of the virus. The virus does not care who it infects, and our body defenses depend on how we take precautions and good care to prevent the virus infection.

We know the vaccines will not prevent you from getting a Covid-Delta variant infection if you do not wear a mask after vaccination. We, therefore, know that mask-wearing is the best tool to prevent you from contracting the virus…we know so because those vaccinated people who removed their masks and were exposed to the virus and cause breakthrough cases of COVID-19 infections.

Since we do not know who is vaccinated and who is not when in public after the universal masking mandate was dropped, we cannot say with the certainty that the vaccinated people are getting infected by the unvaccinated people…also we cannot tell who is asymptomatic and not wearing a mask and who is not at this time when the mask is not universally mandated… also, we do not know how one is contracting this elusive virus-when, where, how or why some have not been infected 18 months in the pandemic while others have been infected multiple times regardless of how careful and dedicated they are in protecting themselves and others by following the safety and health guidelines in place, and so vaccines may not necessarily be one-size-fits.

If the virus is in the air, everyone should wear a mask…if the virus is transmitted from human to human, everyone should wear a mask and maintain distance and avoid crowds/big gatherings…if the virus is coming from the unknowns, everyone should wear a mask.

It is common sense at the moments when the Covid-Delta variant is surging to adapt to what works best, a universal mask-wearing mandate work best.

I am sure no one has a desire for a second lockdown. So, let’s not allow ourselves caught into the politics of virus-politicizing this deadly virus in being irresponsible, instead people should rise above it and acknowledge once again our willpower to fight a good fight and overcome this virus by rising above our differences in perspectives on how best to first prevent while continue vaccinating others and coming up with possible drugs or permanent vaccines that will put the Covid virus at bay.