Not Just April Fools: What April 1 Teaches Us About Justice, Power, and Who Gets Counted
- Aklima Khondoker
- Mar 31, 2025
- 3 min read
Most people think of April 1st and laugh. Jokes, pranks, a little harmless fun.
But for those of us doing the work — building power, protecting democracy, fighting for human dignity — April 1 is no joke. It’s a day filled with deep history, hard truths, and powerful reminders of what’s at stake.
In a time when our histories are being banned, distorted, or erased entirely, it’s more important than ever to ground ourselves in real, inclusive truth — the kind that tells all our stories, especially those on the margins.
Here are three moments from April 1 that still speak to the work we’re doing today — and why they matter.
April 1, 2020 – We Count Because We Must
This was the official day of the U.S. Census — a national count that decides everything from how congressional seats are drawn to how billions in federal dollars are spent.
For many communities, the census isn't about numbers. It’s about being seen.
It’s about schools, hospitals, housing, clean water, and political power.
And yet, every decade, Black, brown, Indigenous, immigrant, low-income, and housing-insecure communities get undercounted — and underfunded.
In 2020, despite a pandemic and blatant attempts to weaponize the census through a failed citizenship question, organizers and advocates mobilized to make sure our communities showed up.
Because if we’re not counted, we’re counted out.
April 1, 1979 – Democracy Without Rights Is Not Liberation
On this day, Iran officially became an Islamic Republic, following a national referendum. The vote was overwhelmingly in favor — but the choices were restricted, and dissent voices were suppressed.
This marked a seismic political shift, replacing monarchy with theocratic rule. And for many Iranians — especially women, journalists, and political dissidents — it ushered in new systems of repression.
Sound familiar?
Elections alone don’t make democracy.
Freedom isn’t real if people can’t speak, vote, organize, or exist without fear.
Democracy without human rights is a shell.
April 1, 1984 – The Day After Marvin Gaye Died, the Music Kept Speaking
Marvin Gaye was killed on March 31, 1984. On April 1, the world grieved.
Across the country, fans held impromptu vigils and radio stations played his music non-stop. His loss — just one day before his 45th birthday — hit like a thunderclap.
But what stayed was the message.
What’s Going On wasn’t just a song. It was a prophetic cry. About war. About poverty. About the environment. About injustice.
His music didn’t just reflect the movement — it moved it. And it reminds us that art, voice, and truth-telling are powerful tools in our fight for justice.
The Deeper Truth: April 1 Is a Mirror
April 1 forces us to ask:
Who gets counted?
Who gets heard?
Who gets erased?
And who is still fighting to be seen?
This isn’t just history. It’s instruction.
The past doesn’t just shape our present — it should sharpen our purpose.
If you’re working to build systems that are just, inclusive, and real — let April 1 remind you that we are not the first to try. And we won’t be the last.
We are part of a continuum of people who believed — and still believe — that justice isn’t a joke, it’s a calling.
Let’s be the ones who remember. Who tell the truth. Who keep showing up.
Because our history is not a footnote. It’s a force.
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