Remembering The Slain
“The time will come when our silence will be more powerful than the voices you strangle today.” -- August Spies
The news keeps reminding me of those last words of August Spies. Spies was an immigrant and activist in the fight for the eight hour workday, and they hung him for it in 1887, in what can only be described as state-sanctioned murder.
There's been a lot of that in this country recently, with more and more names being added to the list of ICE victims.
On Saturday, folks gathered at the Big Four Bridge in Waterfront Park here in Louisville, Kentucky, for a vigil for those killed by the regime's gun thugs.
To honor and remember those who should still be with us.
The Singing Resistance led the gathered throng in song, and faith leaders addressed the crowd before reading out the names of each person ICE has killed.
Was a powerful, solemn moment, a name would be read out, and as the ceremonial bowl rang out the crowd would respond "¡presente!"
Again, and again, and again. . .
When at long last the list of names was through, clergy led a procession up onto the Big Four Bridge.
Bearing flowers and the names of the slain, they continued out onto the central span of the bridge over the Ohio River.
There, clergy delivered some final words before Singing Resistance led everyone in a hymn.
As everyone sang, they released the flowers into the Ohio, in memory and honor of the slain.
May we not have to do this ever again. . .
Sometimes, when I read your posts, I feel like I'm back in the 60s. It warms my heart. I don't know if it's true for all of Louisville, but the people you feature take me all the way back to a time when people cared, came together and tried to make change (for the better!!!)
Louisville is a good town, and the Breonna Taylor protests here in 2020 really brought that out into the open a lot more. That's not to say the biggest small town in America don't have its share of issues, but there's so many folks here trying to make it a better place.
In college I took a course on anti-war movements that was taught by two professors, one had been a conscientious objector during Vietnam and the other had participated in some of the first teach-ins at Berkley. Ended up being one of the most interesting classes I had there, we spent a great deal of it on the 60s. I can definitely see the similarities, didn't the 60s have the same 'Government Gone Wild' sense to it too? I miss Abbie Hoffman. On the flip side, at this point I'm just assuming there is a modern day COINTELPRO in operation.
The supposed Chinese curse "May you live in interesting times" is apocryphal, but I can't help but think of it regularly these days.
I went to NYU, in Greenwich Village, in the late 60s. Oh how I miss it. That experience stamped on me a world view that colors everything I do, even today. This will sound silly, but striving for money was frowned upon. Of course we all have to live, and we have to earn, but money as an end was just not one of our goals. I'm sure this impacted my "success" in the world, but using money as an incentive for behavior seemed a little bit unworthy. I was a volunteer at a neighborhood outreach in the late 90s. The administrator offered to hire me, to pay me for what I did voluntarily. I said no. That would have ruined the experience.
It was a different time, in the 60s, when we thought peace and equality were obvious values. I feel sometimes now like a stranger in a strange land. Your posts are so very refreshing.
BTW, I took a course in '69 with a former Black Panther. And in '68, I took one with Connor Cruise O'Brien, who was part of the Irish resistance. Your experience with your pro-peace professors sounds memorable. As Thomas Wolfe said, "You can't go home again", and I can't go back to the 60s--but your blogs go a little way to taking me there.
I think my wife would have liked to have attended this ceremony and event.
It was a powerful event. I think originally they were supposed to walk across to your side of the river for a ceremony there but the weather curtailed things a bit.