Here are two Progress Virginia team members sharing how the intentional thought about race, or the lack thereof, had an enormous impact on their lives, and the lives of their children.
Kimberly Nario
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Fed Up With What the GOP is Serving
I hope y’all are hungry because Virginia’s GOP is serving up a buffet of ridiculousness. We knew this session would be different – and difficult – without a trusted Democratic trifecta to lead the Commonwealth. So when it comes to the nonsense some GOP legislators are trying to push through the General Assembly, you can color us shocked, but NOT surprised.
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Work, Work, Work, Work, Workers’ Rights
“How can we have a labor shortage if there are so many people who are unemployed?” Ahh, the question posed by all of our least favorite uncles. I think the answer can be summed up into three words: People are tired. Tired of working long hours for little pay. Tired of putting themselves at risk […]
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You’re Going to Vote? What, Like, It’s Hard?
When a past situationship told me he didn’t vote, I couldn’t ignore it. I literally COULD NOT stop thinking about it. Like a true Capricorn, I pressed on to find out why. Then he uttered the words that I’ve heard dozens of people say but never fully understood. He said he didn’t believe in voting […]
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Abortion Access Granted
What do you get when you put together years of activism and advocacy with lawmakers who support our freedom of choice? Abortion coverage! That’s right, y’all, beginning July 1, plans available in our state health insurance exchange can FINALLY cover abortion. In case you didn’t know, abortion coverage in our state health insurance exchange was […]
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Are You There Unemployment? It’s Me, Virginia.
I never thought I would need to file for unemployment. Since graduating college, I always had at least two jobs. It wasn’t uncommon for me to hold three jobs at once, usually two regular part-time jobs and one rotating, less frequent gig, like teaching improv comedy or assisting with florals for weddings. Then last year, […]
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I Used to Be Pacific Islander, but Now I’m Asian
by Kimberly Nario As a second-generation Filipino American, when I think of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, I think: screw those annoying standardized testing scantrons. I’m not talking about standardized tests itself, although I do have some feelings about those. I’m talking about the little section on the scantron, after filling out my […]
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Minimum Wage, Maximum Rage
by Kimberly Nario At the start of the pandemic (before I started working at Progress Virginia), I had to cobble together two part-time jobs with occasional freelance work to survive. My hours from these two jobs combined were equal to a single full-time job. So how could I be making more than twice the minimum […]
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If You Don’t Hate Me, Act Like It
by Kimberly Nario Sometimes it feels like I grew up in a hospital. When I was a kid, my mom and several aunties worked at hospitals across Hampton Roads. It was common for my dad to drop me off in the middle of my mom’s shift so I could spend an afternoon bouncing between the […]