By Irene Heron

Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in American Thinker

Like our brothers and sisters in the other Blue State Gulags, we New Yorkers have been to hell and back these past couple of years under the reign of King COVID.  Unless you have been here, those of you who are fortunate enough to live in a Free State have no idea what we’ve been going through.

We have seen our fundamental liberties and civil rights, which we used to take for granted as part of our American heritage, taken from us by a cabal of the most evil scientists, bureaucrats, and politicians ever assembled in America.

We have mask mandates, “vax” mandates, and everything in between that have been placed on our schools and workplaces, all without the benefit of the Legislature’s imprimatur.  Our power-hungry, unelected governor, who replaced Cuomo, the scourge of elder care facilities, tells us that, just like her five-year-old daughter who had a meltdown because she had to wear sneakers to kindergarten, we will get used to it!

For Pure Bloods like me, New York City is pretty much off-limits these days.  We are not allowed to eat in restaurants; go to concerts, shows, or museums; or pretty much do anything indoors because we haven’t been jabbed.  Not only that, but who wants to take a chance on getting mugged or murdered by one of the thousands of criminals who now roam the streets courtesy of the Demo-Marxist politicians who implemented all kinds of “reforms” to enable these thugs?

So the obvious question, one that I am asked all the time, is this: why do I and people like me stay here?  Why don’t we pull up stakes and move to Florida as so many of my friends and relatives have done?  Certainly, life would be so much better and easier in every way, especially when it comes to the cost of living.  Can it be that we are all just masochistic gluttons for punishment?

My answer is this: I have lived my whole life within 50 miles of New York City, where my parents, husband, children, grandchildren, and I were born.

We worked hard and built our dream house in the beautiful northern suburbs, where we raised our kids and now our grandchildren.  There’s a beautiful lake and state park nearby that are as magnificent as any tourist attraction in the East.  We have strong roots in this community, including many relatives and friends who feel, as we do, that New York is worth fighting for.  In short, why should we be the ones who have to have to move?

As bad as things are, we have reasons to hope that all is not lost, not by a long shot.  Outside the Downstate, Demo-Commie region, a tremendous resistance movement has grown in the upstate counties that voted for President Trump and other GOP candidates.  Like my neighbors, these New Yorkers are hardworking, civic-minded, family-oriented taxpayers who basically just wanted to be left alone to enjoy the fruits of their labors.

Most people send their kids to public schools, which they considered pretty good until recently, when they found out about the CRT indoctrination and vile pornography that have infested even the best of them in our high-taxed communities.  On top of that, there came the abusive mask mandates for children, along with the constant testing and quarantines for healthy, not-at-risk students.

We had a powder keg that was ready to blow, and that’s exactly what happened.  If the internet alone was responsible for the worldwide Scamdemic, it has been equally responsible for the backlash.  I have been involved with local politics for over 35 years, and I have never seen so many people get involved who were formerly apathetic screen addicts.  As much as we all detest Fakebook and other social media, they have proved to be invaluable in organizing meetings and rallies around the state.

I see a general consensus that New Yorkers are fed up with all of it and are more than willing to defend their families and their property from further incursions by the communists who rule this state.  We are trying to do it through the ballot box and the courthouse, but we are also throwing sand into the machinery by refusing to comply.  Quite simply, we are not giving up our most valuable and beloved properties to move to Florida, no matter what Democrats want.

I am not going anywhere, and neither are the millions of others who have committed our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor to our homes, our state, and our country.  We are ready to use our constitutional rights to push back the Democrats’ incursions on all those things. 

Irene Heron is a pseudonym.