The People's March on Washington, two days before Donald Trump's second inauguration: Even in the darkest times, people have power. (Jose Luis Magana/The Associated Press)

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I’ve been oddly quiet about how the executive orders and decisions of the last few weeks have affected my work as an academic researcher, thought leader, and champion for reproductive justice and rights. As the gravity of what’s happened — and what’s coming — settles in, I find myself sitting with the weight of it all.

The attacks on bodily autonomy, the erosion of rights, the selective wielding of science and policy to control rather than liberate — it’s all deeply personal. This is not just about my work; it’s about our collective future. It’s about the kind of world we are shaping with every decision made in rooms where power is held, where evidence is ignored, where control is prioritized over care.

Our scientific research is under threat — population and public health are being weaponized, and evidence is being selectively curated so that only certain communities, populations and people are valued while others are erased. This isn’t just problematic; it’s dangerous. And let’s be clear — it’s unethical.

We cannot afford to lose trust in science from reliable and trusted sources. We cannot allow the politicization of knowledge to dictate who lives and who suffers. Science — when done right — is a tool for truth, for justice, for liberation.

Here’s what we can do:

• Educate those around us on misinformation: Misinformation is a weapon of oppression, and we must disarm it at every turn.

• Strive to consume information from credible and trusted sources. Our survival depends on truth, not propaganda.

• Find your beloved community and hold on tight. Adrienne Maree Brown reminds us that connection is our greatest strength. In times of struggle, we anchor ourselves in love, in solidarity, in the unshakable knowledge that we are not alone.

• Remember the power of resistance. Even in the darkest of times, we have power. This is the stuff that revolutions are made of. Lean in, listen closely. Tracy Chapman tells us “Talkin’ ’bout a revolution” sounds … like a whisper.

Here is what I know to be true: Black people have been persecuted, harmed and erased for centuries, yet we are still here. We have always found a way forward. The inherent knowledge and wisdom embedded in our DNA is powerful — it has weathered the storm, carried us through the darkest of times, and sustained us when the world tried to break us.

But this truth is not just ours. It belongs to all of us, regardless of our racial background. We all have something within us that keeps us going, that urges us to take one more step, to fight for something bigger than ourselves.

Find your why and hold onto it as tightly as you possibly can.

My daughter, Leila, is brilliant, bright, empathetic and full of joy. She deserves a world where she is free to live, to dream, to exist without fear — a world where science is used to heal, not to harm. A world where policies are built for justice, not control. A world where she, and the generations that come after her, are seen, valued and protected.

On Martin Luther King Day and Inauguration Day, I had the privilege of sharing the stage with renowned journalist Michele Norris, speaking with her about her revolutionary work as a journalist and founder of the award-winning Race Card Project. The Race Card Project invites individuals from all over the world to share six words that describe their experiences and ideas about race — six words that distill the weight of history, identity and hope into a single, powerful statement.

That day, as we honored the legacy of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., while also steeling ourselves for the challenges ahead, I shared my six words:

My Black daughter will experience liberation.

Those words are not just a hope. They are a declaration. A commitment. A revolution in itself.

I write about science because I am a scientist. But what’s at stake is much is bigger than science.

This is about survival.

This is about justice.

This is about liberation.

And I will not be silent. Join the revolution. Make the whisper a roar.

Rachel R. Hardeman is the Blue Cross Endowed Professor of Health and Racial Equity and founding director of the Center for Antiracism Research for Health Equity at the University of Minnesota.