Beyond Words

H2O Man

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Mon Jun-14-10 07:05 PM
Original message

Beyond Words

I was preparing another in the series of cups of coffee required to continue to remain awake and mildly alert for days on end, when a man walked over and took a seat at the table I was at. Unlike the other strangers in the room, he did not acknowledge my presence. So, I attempted to ignore him. But after a moment, I saw that tears were welling in his eyes, and then running down his cheeks.

In American culture, 60-ish year old men do not weep in public. Nor do other men attempt to console those who do. I usually am able to come up with words, but at this point, last week, I was not able to. So I walked around the table, and placed my hand on his shoulder. He wept openly, and thanked me.

“This is a tough place to be,” I said. We were in a “family room” on the floor of a hospital where patients were being treated for cancer. He nodded. “We're all here together,” I added, unsure if I was making any sense or not. He thanked me again, as a couple women came over and began talking with the man.

I left the room, and indeed, the hospital, at that point. I was drained. I haven't shared that story in the five days since, but I am now, for a reason. I've tried to occupy my mind with “other things” in the past couple of days, in part by reading this forum, and have noted a number of discussions about what motivates people to continue to participate in grass roots political activities these days. So I tell about this brief experience with a stranger, in order to say this: never forget your sense of humanity. Never let your sense of compassion wither on the vine.

Now, of course, I want to say more.

Often, on this forum, I talk about what people have influenced my thinking, in the context of political/social philosophy. People such as President John F. Kennedy and Senator Robert F.Kennedy. But this evening, I'll focus on three others. Please bear with me, because I think this could be important, at least to a few people here.

I'm a Malcolm X Democrat. In his early adulthood, Malcolm avoided politics. He viewed all politicians in Washington, DC, as the enemy of his people. He liked to say that the republicans were wolves that opposed common folk's interests, and would bite them face-to-face, while democrats were sly foxes, that would grin at you, then bite you from behind. There was a lot of truth there.

But towards the end of his public career, Malcolm became in grass roots political action. He backed local activists, such as the militant Rev. Milton Galamison. The Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party wanted Malcolm to run for Congress, but he passed on the opportunity, convinced that he could do more from the outside.

In time, he hooked up with figures such as Rep. Adam Clayton Powell of Harlem, Charlie Rangel, and attorney/soon-to-be politician Percy Sutton. In my opinion, Malcolm knew that while these men admired him, they were not above using their relationships with him to their own advantage. Equally important, Malcolm did not hesitate to use his relationship with them to further his goals – which were entirely focused upon improving the lot of those common folk. Now, that is the essence of grass roots political activism.

I'm a Martin Luther King Democrat. Early in his public ministry, King was a liberal grass roots political activist. He sought to put an end to Jim Crow segregation. Towards the end of his career, King found that the problems that corrupted the soul of this nation were so extreme, that the solutions would require a major reorganization of our economic, social, and political system. Hence, he was transformed from a liberal to a progressive. The right to enjoy a cup of coffee at a public lunch counter, and to pass it in a public restroom, were no longer his focus; American policy in Watts, Chicago, and Vietnam were.

I'm a Vine Deloria Democrat. The Standing Rock Sioux attorney was a prairie activist. In his classic text on activism, “We Talk, You Listen (New Tribes, New Turf),” Deloria noted that the groups that constituted the “New Left” in 1970 could learn from the example of Native American communities. Three of his most important points were that these groups had the potential to form a powerful confederacy; that the groups needed to view the U.S. Constitution – especially the Bill of Rights – in terms of defining their groups' rights, rather than a limited sense of individual rights; and that these groups should focus their combined energies on breaking the “weak links” within the federal machine.

This forum, like America, can at times be a pretty tough place. We're all in this together. (And obviously, I'm not referring to the jackasses who “visit” to disrupt.) We have a core group of progressives. There are many good liberals. And, in recent times, there's a growing number of moderate-to-conservative registered democrats here. As a result, there are areas where weare going to agree – Dick Cheney was bad – and areas where we disagree. Frequently, from what I see going on, there is an attempt by those who are moderate-to-conservative to take the stance that not only are they correct, but only they are correct. I'm sure that they see things differently. And that's okay.

What's not okay, however, is the growing attempts to discredit and marginalize the democratic left. We are not “whack jobs” nor any of the other insulting names that are too often used by establishment democrats and others to describe us. We are, rather, Malcolm X Democrats, Martin Luther King Democrats, and Vine Deloria Democrats, among other good things. Our time, money and votes are good enough come election season. Our dollars aren't kept in separate accounts, our time spent at campaign headquarters has as many minutes per hour as anyone's, and our votes aren't tallied on separate ballot boxes. Establishment democrats need to respect that, and to respect our humanity.

Thanks,
H2O Man

I am a Martin Luther King Democrat. I am a gay man. And I am a proud member of the progressive left. Thank you, H2O Man!:kick:

I am a Martin Luther King Democrat. I am a gay man. And I am a proud member of the progressive left.

Thank you, H2O Man!
:kick: