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We come together tonight to imagine a future

determined by the shining a future.

determined by the shining light of our hopes and values and faith.

It was August 26, 2020.

I had barely left my studio apartment in Chicago for over six months.

That evening I tuned into the Republican National Convention as it was

live streamed on YouTube.

Since moving to the US in 2009,

I had watched all the national conventions of both political parties.

To me, observing the rockets convention floors was witnessing democracy in action.

However, I considered skipping them this time. It was months into a global pandemic.

Trump had been president for three and a half years.

Both the political landscape and our daily lives had become unrecognizable.

But in the end, I decided to watch them.

I guess I felt nostalgic, and more importantly, I realized the stakes.

After November, this country might no longer be a democracy.

This thought crossed my mind like lightning.

For a moment, I found it hard to breathe.

I felt obligated to keep watch. I must bear witness, I told myself. Then, on the third night of the Republican National Convention, an unexpected speaker took the stage.

Greetings, my name is Cheing Guand-Chen.

...