The lyrics to the video come from Obama's "Yes we can!" speech:
It was a creed written into the founding documents that declared the destiny of a nation. Yes we can. It was whispered by slaves and abolitionists as they blazed a trail toward freedom. Yes we can. It was sung by immigrants as they struck out from distant shores and pioneers who pushed westward against an unforgiving wilderness. Yes we can. It was the call of workers who organized; women who reached for the ballots; a President who chose the moon as our new frontier; and a King who took us to the mountaintop and pointed the way to the Promised Land. Yes we can to justice and equality.
Read the comments posted at YouTube, and the word you'll see used most often is "inspiring." And that causes me to wonder about the men and women that Obama cites as his inspiration. What inspired them? Did they place their hopes in a candidate for President, or in their own work for justice? How much thought did the fugitive slaves and abolitionists running the underground railroad give to Presidential politics? Not much, I suspect. They knew that their liberation, if it was to come, must come by their own hands.
The abolition movement, the labor movement, women's suffrage movement, the civil rights movement, and the farmworkers that Obama has borrowed "Si, se peude!" from -- these folks weren't looking to a candidate to be their savior. For them, inspiration came from the people around them, the people who shared in their struggle.
Because I'm fortunate enough to work here at the Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice, I'm privileged to learn, every day, about all those amazing people who aren't waiting for an election to change things. Our corporate media usually doesn't take much notice of them. Perhaps, years from now, when they've changed this country for the better, their work may be recorded in the history books, and a candidate may point to their success as a source of inspiration.
But why wait? Why not choose to be inspired by them right now?
Here's one of them:
"Military recruiters have had unfettered access to our schools and our personal, private information for too long. We demand an immediate end to this war based on lies and deception, and that our schools shut their doors permanently to the military. We are done doing push-ups in the hallway for a free t-shirt today, and a flag sent home to our parents tomorrow," --- Emily Coon of the Mt. Mansfield Union High School Peace Club.
Emily Coon is a high school student who helped shut down three military recruitment offices in her home town in Vermont. And she's just one example of why I know that I don't need to rely on any candidate to bring me "change". I'll choose to put my hope in the social movements of today. You know, the ones that candidates will be making "inspiring" videos about in the 2048 presidential campaign.
3 comments:
Steve:
I agree with what you have said, but I disagree somewhat with something that is implied. Conciously or not, I think that Obama (who is the apparent subject of your post) is not "inspiring" people so much as he is offering them a lifting of restraint.
Much of what has historically made America a great nation, has been repressed, dishonored and disenfranchised under Bush and is now longing for an opportunity to express itself. Simply opposing the evil that is Bush and the cabal that controls him, has not been near enough to satisfy the yearning within the American soul to do good. There is a multitude of things that we want and know we can accomplish if the yoke of misguided policies can be lifted from our shoulders.
That is what Obama seems to be promising. "Inspiration" may be the term that is being tossed around, but I doubt that Obama himself would choose that term to describe the response that people experience to him.
Perhaps he "inspires" a response, but that response might more accurately be termed relief, or empowerment or maybe just hope. Hope that this long dark episode of spiritual morbidity is going to end in our lifetime.
As for "hope", mine is that we will actually rise to the oportunity as a people, and not squander it as just another reason to "party", which was the response "inspired" by Reagan for example.
Thanks for all your work,
Ken
Ken:
Good point. There's a complicated relationship between a social movement (like the peace movement) and a president, whether that president is Obama or Bush.
One thing that holds back the peace movement today and discourages many people from being involved in it is the belief that nothing we do matters, as long as Bush is in the White House.
So "lifting of restraint" is a good way to put it. Under an Obama presidency, many people will perceive an opportunity for change, and may become more active in the peace movement than they are now. In that case, it's not a question of putting one's faith in Obama, or one's faith in the movement, but in some combination of the two. In short: "He, under pressure from us, may end the war."
The risk is that, once a Democrat is elected, many Democratic voters will conclude that it's not necessary for them to be active in the peace movement and become complacent, because they trust Obama or Clinton to take care of things for them.
Which tendency will win out? I wish I knew.
Steve Burns: A donde cojes tu inspiracion?
Un amigo mio me mando este video de Barack Obama (OBAMA VIDEO HERE). Los lyricos de el video viene de Obama's "Si se puede!" discurso. Era un credo escribido en los documentos primatorios que declaro el destino de la nacion. Si podemos. Era cuchicheado por esclavos y abolicionistas cuando hacieron un rastro para libertad. Si se puede. Era cantado por immigrantes cuando llegaban y pioneros que se fueron a el oeste en contra de un desierto implacable. Si se puede. Eran la llamada de trabajadores que organizaron; mujeres que fueron al bolleto; un Presidente que escojio la luna como nuestra nueva frontera; y un Rey quien nos cojio para el cumbre de una montana y senalado a la Tierra Prometida. Si podemos para justicia y igualdad.
Lee los commentarios de Youtube, y las palabras que mas vas a ver es "una inspiracion". Y eso me hacer pensar en que hombres y mujeres que Obama cite como su inspiracion. Que lo inspiro a ellos? Ellos pusieron sus esperansas en una candidato a la presidencia o en sus mismo trabajos de justicia? Cuanto pensaron los esclavos y abolicionistas corriendo entre el ferrocarril subterráneo de los Presidentes politicos? No mucho, yo creo. Ellos supieron que su libertad, si va a venir, tiene que venir por sus manos.
El movimiento de abolicion, el movimiento trabajatorio, el movimiento del derecho al voto de mujeres, el movimiento civil de derechos,y los peones que Obama ha cojido prestado "Si se puede" por--estas personas no estaban buscando para un canidate que sea su salvador. Para ellos inspiracion vino de las personas alrededor de ellos, las personas que compartieron en sus luchas.
Porque soy suficiente afortunado para trabajar aquí en la Red de Wisconsin para la Paz y la Justicia, yo soy privilegiado para aprender, cada día, acerca de todo esas personas asombrosas que no esperan una elección para cambiar las cosas. Nuestros medios corporativos generalmente no toman mucha nota de ellos. Quizás, años de ahora, cuando ellos han cambiado este país para el mejor, su trabajo puede ser registrado en los libros de la historia, y un candidato puede señalar a su éxito como una fuente de inspiración.
Pero por que esperar? Porque no elegir de ser inspirados por ellos ahora?
Aqui hay uno de ellos:
"Los reclutadores militares han tenido el acceso libre a nuestras escuelas y nuestra información personal y privada para demasiado tiempo. Demandamos un fin inmediato a esta guerra basada en mentiras y engaño, y que nuestras escuelas cierran sus puertas permanentemente al ejército militario. Ya es el fin de hacer ejercicio en el pasillo para una camiseta, y una bandera mandada a casa a nuestros padres mañana"--Emily Coon del Mt. Mansfiled Union High School Peace Club.
Emily Coon es un estudiante de escuela secundaria que ayudó cerrar tres oficinas militares de contratación en su pueblo natal en Vermont. Y ella es sólo un ejemplo de por qué yo sé que yo no necesito depender de ningún candidato para traerme "cambio". Escogeré poner mi esperanza en los movimientos sociales de hoy. Usted sabe, los que candidatos estarán haciendo videos "inspiradores" acerca de en la 2048 campaña presidencial.
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