✨The Bright Side✨ #5 - Speaking Up Works

From courtrooms to communities, change is happening because people refused to give up.

It is easy to miss the good when there is so much noise. But this week, the wins were loud and clear.

From courtroom victories to grassroots pressure that forced change, there is so much to celebrate. Here is your dose of good news to remind you that progress is still happening all around us.

⚖️ Justice Is Having a Good Week

Trump is getting pummeled in courtrooms everywhere. This week alone:

• Judges blocked him from using a law from the 1700s to disappear immigrants without a hearing.

• Judges ordered him to bring back two men he illegally sent to a prison in El Salvador.

• Courts stopped his attacks on transgender Americans.

• Judges blocked his attempts to hijack election systems and hand over voter rolls to billionaire donors.

• They ruled against his efforts to punish sanctuary cities.

• They stopped his ideological punishments against schools.

• Judges forced him to reverse the mass termination of foreign students’ visa registrations after dozens of restraining orders and court challenges exposed the move as flagrantly illegal.

• And a Republican governor vetoed one of his book bans after realizing just how unpopular it was.

The courts are not having it. And neither are the people.

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📣 When We Speak Up, It Works

It was not just judges delivering wins this week. Public pressure also forced major reversals.

After medical researchers and advocates raised the alarm, tRumP’s team reversed its decision to cut funding for the Women’s Health Initiative, restoring critical research on cancer, aging, and chronic disease.

And thanks to public outcry, tRumP’s minions also walked away from plans to create a centralized autism registry that would have raised serious privacy concerns.

And in small towns and big cities alike, people are showing up.

My friend Matt, who lives in a small town in central New York, told me that for the past seven weeks, rain or shine, 150-300 people have been gathering on a bridge every Saturday to demand change.

People in small towns are protesting even if they don't get all the media attention

They are not doing it for media attention. They are doing it because they believe their voices matter.

And they do.

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🎉 Even More to Celebrate

• Disgraced former U.S. Rep. George Santos was sentenced to more than seven years in prison for fraud and identity theft.

• Colorado expanded abortion access by signing a new law that covers abortion care for Medicaid patients and state employees.

• Harvard University sued tRumP and his team to protect academic freedom after a political attack on its research funding.

One story from Tennessee this week felt especially powerful.

The cruel bill to deny undocumented children the right to an education is officially dead for the year.

But the fight to stop it was not just happening in courtrooms or hearing rooms. It was happening in the courage of people like Lynne McFarland.

Lynne is 80 years old. When lawmakers advanced the bill, she refused to leave the committee room in protest.

State troopers spent several minutes trying to convince her to leave. When she still would not move, they had to carry her out and arrest her.

She stood her ground for the students who could not be there to defend themselves.

I want to grow up and be like Lynne.

And for a little extra joy:

PublicSquare, a MAGA-friendly “anti-woke” business directory, is now being used by anti-Trump voters to boycott Trump-aligned businesses. 😂

Sometimes life delivers the perfect twist.

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📉 Bad News for Trump

This week will bring us to the 100 days of this regime, and the numbers are brutal:

• New York Times/Siena: 42 percent approve, 54 percent disapprove.

• Fox News: 44 percent approve, 55 percent disapprove.

• AP/NORC: 39 percent approve, 59 percent disapprove.

• Washington Post/ABC News: 39 percent approve, 55 percent disapprove.

Trump has tied his own record as the only president in modern history to post net negative approval ratings just 100 days into a term.

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✏️ Personal Notes

I cannot believe May is almost here.

In piano class, I officially finished learning Arabesque by Friedrich Burgmüller, a piece I spent a long time working on.

Now I am starting something new, Presto by Giovanni Pescetti. If you want to hear it, watch this:

Obviously, I can’t play at this speed (not even half-speed, LOL), but I love the piece and I love the challenge.

This coming Sunday is also a very special milestone for me. It is the 8th anniversary of Tono Latino.

Eight years ago, I sent my very first newsletter on Star Wars Day (May the 4th be with you). I had no idea where this journey would take me.

I just knew I wanted to help people make sense of politics in a way that felt accessible, human, and hopeful.

Now, all these years later, I get to keep doing this work because of you.

This week, I am also flying out to a conference where I will be a panelist, talking about how I use my platform to inform and empower people.

I am excited and, honestly, a little nervous. I always wonder if I am saying enough or giving enough value.

But something makes this trip even more meaningful. I finally get to meet the person who’s been my social media coach for the last three years: Lissette Calveiro.

She has helped me find my voice, trust my instincts, and keep showing up even when it felt hard. If you have noticed that my work feels clearer or more connected than it used to, it is because of her.

She has not just been a coach. She has been a mentor, a cheerleader, and a steady voice reminding me that this work matters.

After three years of working together remotely, I finally get to hug her in real life. And yes, I already warned her I might cry. I’ll have some chamomile tea, just in case.

Every week reminds me that we are not powerless.

We are powerful. And we are not alone.

Thank you for being part of this.

* My daughter asked me to start capitalizing the P in tRumP because she says it stands for Pathetic and Pointless. She also says the R is for Ridiculous