I've been ugottafriend for over 20 years. The name symbolizes my devotion to charity and human rights. The Carole King song You've Got A Friend made popular by James Taylor was on my daily playlist and inspired the name. Most people associate it with the Randy Newman song from Toy Story. That's fine, too.
Anytime someone tries to insult my introversion, ghosting, or criticism by claiming my name doesn't check out, I issue a reminder that it's not about them. If someone is a bigot, supremacist, or inhumane in general, they do not have a friend in me. We may be equals, in fact, I insist on it and vote accordingly, but my life mission is better than both of us. It is the thing I strive for, which keeps me alive.
Too many people hold beliefs that harm others and still want to be trusted. They threaten and destroy the lives of loved ones and innocent bystanders. They figuratively hold an ax to my head like a psychopath and expect to be friends.
I refuse to pretend it's normal, and I reject how casual cruelty has become.
Prejudice is a choice. To those who make that choice, if I may share a quote allegedly associated with Tupac: "I still wanna see you eat, just not at my table."
Glad I could clear that up.
