Remembering Renee Good and Alex Pretti: Honoring Courage and Humanity

In a world often marred by violence and division, we are called to remember and honor the lives of those who stood for peace and humanity. Renee Good and Alex Pretti were such individuals—courageous souls who believed in the power of nonviolent protest, community, and love.

Over the past year, a somber question loomed over many of us: who would be the first citizen to fall victim to state violence? It was not a question of if, but when. The answer, tragically, has come in the form of Renee and Alex.

I had assumed that soldiers might fall first. Yet, it was not the soldiers, but masked men who arrived with guns. When firearms and protests intersect, violence often follows. Those in power knew this, and perhaps, in a sinister way, they anticipated it. Guns and masked figures incite fear, and fear is a potent tool of control.

When was the last time we saw masked men with guns in our streets, outside of fiction? We once thought such figures were confined to bank robberies. How wrong we were. These masked figures aim to steal more than money. They seek to rob us of our dignity, our trust in institutions, and the faith we hold in one another.

But we fight back. Our weapon is not violence, but peaceful protest. Renee and Alex knew this well. Peaceful protest is our constitutional right and our most powerful tool against those who believe that guns and force dictate authority. It shames the cowardice of those who hide behind masks and weapons.

Consider Renee Good’s last words: "I’m not mad at you, Dude." In those words, we find a deep-seated peace and understanding. Renee's anger was not directed at the individual but at the system—the invisible hands manipulating our lives.

In the cacophony of news cycles and hasty opinions, we risk losing sight of the human lives behind the headlines. Renee and Alex were not mere statistics. They were vibrant individuals with dreams, aspirations, and a love for life. The brevity of news coverage cannot capture the fullness of their lives, now lost.

In this relentless consumption of tragic news, we risk losing the essence of life itself. Renee and Alex believed in the potential of their communities, the purpose of their work, and the joy of their existence. They did not deserve to die in violence.

Renee was a poet, fittingly. Poetry and song often help us navigate the vastness of our losses, providing solace and remembrance. We honor Renee and Alex through our shared grief and the memories they left us.

Yet, I cannot escape the harsh reality of their untimely deaths. They were extraordinarily brave, yet ordinary people. Through poetry, I try to convey the inexplicable loss we all feel.

I dream of this not happening.
I dream this day and night.
For none of this is real.
And none of this is right.

I dream of sons and daughters
who now will not go home,
and dream of mothers and fathers,
who now must stand alone.

I dream of all the flowers they will never hold,
the kisses never shared, the secrets untold.
I dream of sunsets that for them will never set,
of love they gave but now must forget.

I dream of dinners
with wine to never spill,
of books unread, bread unbroken,
or babies not held.

I dream of hands still reaching
in the night,
for another hand to stop
a nightmare’s flight.

I dream of them not dreaming,
which I could never do,
for how can you not dream a dream
that will never come true.

I dream of this not happening.
I dream this day and night.
For none of this is real
And none of this is right.

Through dreams and words, we remember Renee Good and Alex Pretti. Their legacy lives on in the ideals they cherished and the lives they touched. May we continue to honor their memory through our actions, our protests, and our enduring hope for a just and peaceful world.