“Undocumented, Unafraid, and Unashamed” By Liberty Lane & Joe Bob Justice
Today’s Porch Talk Grit #4 is going to be a POINT/EXTRA POINT format:
POINT – Liberty Lane
When I heard that young woman in D.C. say, “I am undocumented, unafraid, queer, and unashamed,” I didn’t flinch. I nodded.
I didn’t know her name at the time — Greisa Martínez Rosas, a national leader with United We Dream — but I knew her truth. I’ve lived parts of it. Maybe not the undocumented part, but the rest? Let’s just say I’ve walked with more than one label tucked in my boot. 👢🌈
Now some folks online lost their minds when that quote hit the feeds.
“Illegal and proud?!” they shouted.
“Groomer agenda!” others barked.
Same tired script. Same red-faced noise. 😤📢
But listen here: Ain’t no strength in shame. Not hers, not yours, not mine.
This young woman didn’t stand there to make you comfortable. She stood there because the system keeps her family under threat. Because silence never saved anybody. Because when the law sees you as a problem before it sees you as a person, courage sometimes has to be loud. 🔊🧡
I grew up learning to keep parts of myself real quiet. Southern girl code, you know?
Talk about Jesus, but not about heartbreak.
Wave the flag, but don’t mention the girl you kissed at 19.
I knew how to walk the walk, but some parts of me stayed hidden under layers of “proper.” 🙏🏼
💔
Well, I’m tired of proper if it means pretend.
That girl’s words weren’t just brave. They were American — in the oldest sense of the word. Revolutionary. Personal. Defiant in defense of human dignity. 🔥
Our founding fathers may not have imagined her, but they sure made a country where she could speak anyway.
And if you’re worried about the law, then let’s talk policy. Because this country’s immigration system is a nightmare of backlogs, fear, and cruelty. And being LGBTQ+ while undocumented? That’s not a lifestyle. That’s living under threat from every angle — abroad and at home. 
🛂
So no, I won’t shame her. I’ll listen. I’ll learn. And I’ll keep a seat for her at this porch table. 🪑🌻
Because freedom means all of us.
— Liberty
EXTRA POINT: Joe Bob Justice
Now look, I ain’t gonna pretend I wasn’t rattled when I first saw that video. 😬
“Undocumented, queer, unashamed” — all in one breath? That’s a powder keg if I’ve ever heard one. 💣⚡ And trust me, I’ve worked on enough farms and factory floors to know how this lands with the working class.
You say undocumented, and they hear somebody jumped the line.
You say queer, and they hear someone’s tryna teach it in kindergarten.
That’s the world we’re livin’ in. 🤷♂️
But here’s the deal:
People ain’t scared of folks like Greisa. They’re scared of being forgotten.
When your town lost its mill, nobody marched.
When your cousin got priced out of insulin, no cameras showed up.
When your boy came back from Iraq with a limp and an empty VA claim, nobody listened. 🏭💊
So yeah — when a young woman on national TV says she ain’t even legal and gets a mic and a crowd and a movement, some folks feel invisible. Left behind. Less than.
And that’s where the fire starts. 🔥
But let me tell you something: that fire ain’t her fault. It’s the system’s. It’s the politics of division. It’s the billionaire boys club makin’ us fight over crumbs while they toast in boardrooms. 🍞🍷💸
So while I ain’t here to throw a parade, I will say this:
That girl’s got grit. And she didn’t take anything from me by speakin’ her truth. Hell, maybe she reminded us what speakin’ truth even sounds like.
We need more of that. 👊
— Joe Bob
CLOSING WORD: Liberty Lane
Joe Bob’s right about something real: folks are scared they’re invisible. 🫥
But here’s the thing — visibility ain’t pie. Her spotlight don’t dim yours. Her truth don’t erase your struggle.
We’re all trying to build a life worth living. That takes courage. And compassion. And sometimes a little porch light left on for the next soul finding their way. 🕯️🏡
If you’re LGBTQ+ and undocumented, your life matters. You are not alone.
If you’re from a rural town and feeling left behind, your voice matters too.
Let’s make room for both. 💙
Because we’re either building a country where we all belong — or we’re not building much of anything at all.
—
CALL TO ACTION
If you want to learn more about how to support undocumented LGBTQ+ individuals, start here:
🪑✨ Leave a comment below with what these words mean to you.
🔄 Share this post with someone who needs to hear it.
☕ And come sit with us every Wednesday. The porch is open.