Imagine my surprise when I realized I’d neglected my website for a full half year. A lot of what’s kept me busy was peace and justice work: demonstrating, making banners, teaching banner making, leading Peace Sings, and writing letters to all sorts of political persons and entities, including the Chicago City Council and Mayor Rahm Emanuel.
In mid-January, I joined other protesters at Chicago’s City Council chambers for the sessions at which the Budget Committee and the Special Events Committee informed the full City Council about the preparations for the NATO summit. Protestors sat quietly through the meetings, then spoke our comments for transcription into the Council records. Most moving to me was an elderly World War II vet who reminded the Council that he and his buddies had risked their lives for American civil liberties, including the right to peaceably assemble and petition the government for redress of wrongs. Later that same week, I came out to Federal Plaza in support of a Constitutional amendment to reverse the Citizens’ United decision.
February 3, Kristin Lems and I joined with West Suburban activist Dave Martin to present our fourth version of the Peace Sing at the Two Way Street, the longest-running coffeehouse in the Chicago metro area. It was a lively evening, in front of an audience that sings along with enthusiasm. Also in February, the Bittersweet Band began working on recording songs we’d added to our Holiday concert repertoire in the last two years.
In March I did some political phoning for a progressive Democrat running in the Illinois primary. The response to my calls made it obvious that both local and national groups were calling for this candidate, and no-one had been keeping track of which voters had already been called. Some who had intended to vote for him had decided to change their vote, because they’d been bothered by so many calls. I asked the guys I was working with whether we shouldn’t quit calling; their answer was they couldn’t do that, because the big organization they worked for had decided otherwise. My personal take on this is that the entry of big organizations into local politics is likely to lead to unintended negative results, even if the intentions of the big organization are benign.
A visit to the Holocaust Museum a few days later strengthened my determination to stand and march for American civil liberties during the NATO summit. When the Nazis moved against the Jews, they first mocked them, then vilified them, then declared them non-citizens, revoked their civil liberties, and denied them the right to work. It was a short step from there to declaring the Jews non-humans, and ruthlessly slaughtering them. This is not a direction I want this country to go.
I served as an Election Judge for the Illinois primary, and will serve again in November.
