Courage Is Contagious: Ana Maria Archila

Ana Maria Archila is a resistance icon. She’s known by many as the “lady in the elevator” after her confrontation with Senator Jeff Flake went viral during the confirmation hearings for Justice Kavanaugh. But that wasn’t her first rodeo. Ana Maria has been disrupting, bird-dogging and advocating for human rights and dignity since she emigrated here at the age of 17.

She teaches us that disruption is essential to slowing things down and getting people in power to listen. Everyday people speaking truth to power is what this country is all about.

The resister.

The video.

The action.

If this episode resonates for you, we’d love for you to take a screenshot and tag us on Instagram stories @ctznwell @anamariaarchila1 and @popdemoc, and click below to tweet:

"We are allowing each other to see one another more clearly, we are allowing the country to see itself more clearly." @AnaMariaArchil2 of @popdemoc on #CTZN Podcast with @kkellyyoga. Check it out: ctznwell.org/ctznpodcast @ctznwell

More about this episode:

In this episode, Ana Maria shows us how everyday people can speak truth to power and how courage is contagious. We saw it in the wake of #metoo, in the wave of stories that flooded the Hart Building during the Kavanaugh hearings and, most recently, in the avalanche of abortion stories that emerged in response to the war on reproductive freedom. Our stories, each and every one of them, has been necessary for creating a moment of reckoning and making our democracy come alive.

This is how the healing happens, she says. ”We are allowing each other to see one another more clearly, we are allowing the country to see itself more clearly,” and we are weaving a fabric of community care and courage that is challenging the status quo and changing the game.

That is what real citizenship is all about. Not the kind that requires documents or cares where you were born. But the kind that shows up, speaks out and fights for justice for all. Check it out.

Join CTZNWELL on Patreon

Follow CTZNWELL on Instagram

Sign up for CTZNWELL’s weekly email WELLread and check out our free action guides at ctznwell.org.