I love so many things about the Substack Live conversation I had with immigration attorney and “Strangers” author Belle Burden. We talked about the cover design, the audio recording process, what legions of fans are responding to in the book and why the 50s might be the best decade for writers, and for anybody who has fought for their aliveness and found themself on the joyful terrain of “I don’t give a fuck” - plus more on her work with The Safe Passage Project - enjoy!
With my mom in town we took the kids to the Anne Frank Exhibition in Chelsea which closes on the 13th. It’s so well done - you get this audio thingie that you put up to thingies on the wall and then you hear the corresponding history. We were into it. It’s so frightening to really get to know Anne’s beautiful family and to see the many political connections to the times we’re in now.
There’s a replication of the attic, which was really more of a two bedroom apartment for seven people - my 7 year old paused before entering, “Is this going to be scary?” “No!” I said. “Nothing bad is going to happen. I mean. Something bad happens, but nothing bad will happen to us. In there.”
“Imagine if ICE came here and just grabbed all of us?” my 10 year old said. She’s saying that a lot. Their school has the sweetest security guards. One has got to be in her 70s; my seven year old dressed as her for Halloween a few years back. Are all the kids safe? They are not. I remembered how when I was a kid there was a rumor of a black van going around kidnapping children and I was afraid of it, but it was no more than a quaint suburban legend.
Anne was a writer, and a good one; I seem to have forgotten that. There’s a documentary video of a woman telling the story of giving her stack of Anne’s journals to Anne’s father and, seeing that stack, I cried.
The next morning my mom and I and the kids watched the Super Bowl halftime show (we were out for Japanese food and a Broadway musical during the game, just continuing our evening of Jewish culture.) And I wept. I love when dance is resistance, when celebration is resistance, when romance is resistance, I wept when I saw the young actor representing Liam. I don’t know about you, but my nervous system doesn’t get the catharsis and release it needs from the news; it gets it when tenderness busts through and wraps itself around me.
All paintings by Joseph Jones whose first NYC exhibition is now on view at Chapter NY in Tribeca through Feb 21.
Thanks for reading and thanks especially to my paying subscribers.
I will leave you with this gem.
xo Lizzie
PS - I have room in my memoir and personal essay class which begins Tuesday, March 10. You can find more info and register here!
