I can speak to both the strength and the trauma I felt, marching in New York City for Freddie Gray, Sandra Bland, Eric Garner and helping to organize other acts of civil disobedience. There’s a fear and acceptance that comes with knowing you might get shot or beat down while fighting for your freedom. As I marched through Times Square with thousands of other local activists in a protest organized after the death of Freddie Gray in Baltimore, I remember the numbness that seemed to transform into positivity. There’s a power that comes from standing on a bridge in solidarity with thousands of other voices watching cars stop in their tracks and drivers leaning out of their windows to throw up fists in solidarity as a city that otherwise “never sleeps” was forced to stop — at least for a moment. These are the things that make the world pay attention. There’s a small comfort in that global solidarity, to know that someone in another part of the world is also fighting for the same mission of equality.