Thinking and Acting in the Face of Oppression
The city of Boston, Massachusetts, USA, issued a permit for a “right-wing free-speech” group to hold a rally in August of 2017. A much larger group of about forty thousand people gathered as a counter protest to the racist ideology of white supremacy advocated by many of the rally speakers.
In my town of Canton, just south of Boston, I have been organizing people to stop climate change and to build a sustainable and racially equitable future society. This has included sharing RC ideas and perspectives.
Two days before the Boston rally and counter protest, a conversation about it began on the Canton town Facebook page. It would have been easy to simply go to the Boston counter protest, but the Facebook conversation looked like an opportunity to move things forward in my town.
Someone in the conversation asked if there were rallies in neighboring towns. I was aware of three and shared that information. People expressed a wide range of political opinions and feelings, including statements aimed to upset, target, and blame. So I then asked if people wanted to organize a rally in our own town for a better future society and against racism and the targeting of groups of people, including people of color, immigrants, and women.
In forty-eight hours I organized a rally of a hundred people. It was just what people needed. We made posters, sang together, held candles, and listened to each other. We strengthened our relationships and our community. The local paper and cable carried the event.
I think that this period presents great opportunities for reaching people and changing the conditions in society.
Canton, Massachusetts, USA
Reprinted from the RC e-mail discussion list for leaders of Jews
(Present Time 191, April 2018)