Thanksgiving with Occupy Asheville at Jubilee!
Shonnie, Gracelyn and I are back home from Jubilee! where this afternoon a number of Jubilants provided a Thanksgiving meal for folks involved in the Occupy Asheville movement. Howard Hanger, Minister of Ritual and Celebration, at Jubilee! organized the event, and more than 50 people joined in to break bread together. Howard led us in a blessing prior to the meal that acknowledged the Occupiers and what they are up to, and after we’d finished eating, a number of the activists shared their thoughts about events so far.
The folks who spoke were, for the most part, young, passionate, gracious and articulate, not at all like the stereotypes (destitute, scruffy, muddled, uncouth, aggressive) that some are trying to foist on us. I was particularly moved by the young man who said that the current culture is not working for the 99% but it’s not working for the 1% either, that the greed of the 1% was merely a way of trying to contend with a deeper yearning, but that owning the latest and best toys could not fill the hole in their soul.
At the end of our gathering I thanked the Occupiers for joining us, for what they were doing . . . for themselves, for us, for the folks who may not yet understand what they’re doing, for our nation, for the world. Then we joined hands, and one person squeezed the hand of the person next to them, and the squeeze was passed around the circle until it came back to its initiator.
To me, it seems that a spark has been lit, and an undeniable movement is in motion . . . perhaps just in the nick of time. For the analogy that I think fits is this: As a people we are in an automobile headed toward a cliff at 100 miles an hour. In the next election, if the Republicans were to take control of the House, Senate and Presidency, the speed toward the cliff might increase to 120 miles per hour. If the Democrats take the House, Senate and Presidency, the speed of the auto might decrease to 95 miles per hour. Either way, we’re still headed toward the cliff.
It’s become evident that, at best, our national leaders are capable of incremental change. But nibbling around the edges of critical issues such as climate change, peak oil and the state of our economy will not suffice, not in these perilous times. It’s up to us. The time is now.
Thursday, November 24th, 2011
