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Nicole (W) Schroeder

@publicnicole

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we shape clay into a pot,
but it is the emptiness inside
that holds whatever we want.
— tao te ching

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My grandparents survived the violent Nazi and Soviet invasions of Poland. Only for my parents to live under a communist dictatorship, where political power was centralized, civil liberties were stripped away, and freedom of expression didn’t exist. Dissent wasn’t tolerated and ideological control shaped every aspect of life. The government controlled the media—newspapers, television, radio—and everything from artistic output to education was subject to censorship.

Is this the future you want for your children? I won’t even talk about the abject poverty, the food shortages and rations, the long queues for basics like sugar, butter, and milk, the black markets—the scarcity, hunger, and suffering that shaped everyday life. Like many families that were able to leave Soviet control in Poland, mine didn’t come to the U.S. to watch the same oppression take hold here. They came here for a better life through democracy. And living in that democracy has given me a life far beyond my dreams. It isn’t perfect, but it’s the best system the world could offer.

If you’ve had the privilege of living in a democracy for generations, you likely have no idea what you’re losing right now. But families who have lived under fear and force know we’re at a dangerous moment in U.S. history. As our country sprints toward authoritarian rule, we have a choice: defend our 250-year-old democracy—the world’s oldest—or stand by as Donald Trump, his billionaire allies like Elon Musk, and his despot friends like Vladimir Putin take a sledgehammer to it. Doing nothing is a choice, too. It’s a submission to authoritarian rule.

#resist #nokingsday #defenddemocracy #impeachtrump #50501 #50501movement #protest #50501protest #nokingsinamerica #presidentsdayprotest #stopthecoup by @publicnicole

Morning tea. Sky is dripping. #foggy #lookingwest by @publicnicole

This is my home now.. #solimanbay by @publicnicole

(Mostly) Art Deco. No Paris or London or Prague, but Chicago can hold its own. #ArtDeco by @publicnicole

summer in the city is over. some but not all of it: Europe, death & loss, family visits, gardening, neighborhood garden walks, Square Roots Fest, concerts in the parks, movies at millennium, beer league hockey, grillin’, backyard bonfire, baseball, painting with oil pastels, ceramics, aerial lyra practice, Montrose Point, Montrose Beach, books, shooting guns, cemetery picnics, long walks, screaming cicadas, heavy storms, wildfire air pollution, farmers markets, Bucktown Arts Fest, zoo days, alley fireworks, the steady march of fascism, ICE protests, sickness, beloved friends near & far, weird feelings • • • by @publicnicole

More Paris. More London. by @publicnicole

A 2-hour train ride from Paris can get you into a lot of meat pies in London by @publicnicole

A happy coincidence: crossing paths with Rob & Lauren twice in Paris. by @publicnicole

by @publicnicole

Things & stuff by @publicnicole

Trees about town #chicagoloop by @publicnicole

One year since our wedding in Mexico, 3.75 years married. Still the best decision I ever made. by @publicnicole