The recent passing of the 2025 “Budget “Reconcilliation”” law is going to make the next handful of years significantly more difficult for the vast majority of Americans.

That goes at least double for a vibrantly diverse city like Fall River.

I am well aware that Fall River has been fighting for survival for decades. I also know that the only way through the coming fight is to push forward, and that none of us will be able to fight this fight by ourselves.

The road is going to be scary and painful in a lot of ways, but there are way more of us than there are of them. We have strength in numbers, and our numbers will continue to grow as more people realize what this congress, senate and president have signed. Already, the policies in the bill are wildly unpopular with voters. The policies will only grow more unpopular as the effects of them start to hit anyone not already a multi-millionaire.

I don’t think that anybody working to fight against this knows what all of the correct answers are to survive the oncoming years, but doing nothing at all and hoping it blows over is not an acceptable answer.

Locally, we need to remember the message behind the motto of Fall River.

I know that the motto is frequently laughed at and dunked on. I’m also well aware that I’m not the first person to write about the motto on the internet. But, when looked at in the proper historical context, the motto of Fall River is actually beautiful and perfect.

Going back to the 1843 fire that nearly wiped out Downtown Fall River, the motto was used as an attempt to express that a disaster was not going to stop the determination of the residents to let the city succeed.

“We’ll Try” isn’t a promise that we are going to go through the motions and make it look good while we half-ass a task.

It was, and still needs to be, a promise that we are going to do the best that we can to fight together, in the face of any- and everything that “they” want to throw our way.

This country, this state and this city are all worth fighting for, even knowing that the rich and powerful are doing everything they can to rig the game against the rest of us. But, like I said before, there are a lot more of us than there are of them.

Even today, while gathering signatures to help ensure my name gets on the ballot, I encountered a handful of residents who refused to sign my nomination papers because I didn’t vote for the same presidential candidate that they did. And while that’s certainly their right, and I didn’t press the issue with them, that goes against what I am hoping to bring to the school system here in the Scholarship City.

In a story I’m sure that I’ll be sharing at some point in the coming months, one of the greatest things I was looking forward to about moving here was the diversity of the city. I say it right on my homepage, and will tell it to anybody that will listen to me: The diversity of Fall River needs to be celebrated and protected.

We would not have made it as far as we already have without all of our different perspectives. We would not have made it this far if, in previous times of trouble, had we all just decided to look out for ourselves and let everybody else fall where they may.

Once again, this is a time when we need to stand together to support one another and do what is best for the common good of the community. Fall River has done it before, and I know that we have it in us to do it again.

We WILL try. TOGETHER.

And we WILL succeed together.