Saturday, October 26, 2002 (Permalink)

Like many, I have felt completely undone by Paul Wellstone's death, sobbing uncontrollably at various intervals. I've been noticing how so many of us, nearly everyone I know, is overwhelmed, exhausted or sick. We stand on the precipice of yet another unjust war. We feel the anxiety and fear generated by the DC sniper regardless of where we live. Now we face the devastating loss of a man of conscience, one of the lone voices of sanity and vision in an arena where integrity is sacrificed at the drop of a hat. I feel like I’ve been punched in the stomach.

My despair was countered somewhat by a successful anti-war vigil today in Durham. Upset that he couldn’t go to Washington for the big anti-war rally at the Capitol, my friend Tom Stern had drafted an email 36 hours before proposing a local solidarity event, and five of us circulated it around. The result? 250 people turned out to line the sidewalks outside a busy shopping area on a main street, holding signs with numerous anti-war messages. (Mine said “Honor Paul with Peace.”) Even the police officer and the shopping center security guard were all smiles by the end, though they were clearly a bit concerned at the beginning. I counted maybe five or six people in their cars who gave us the finger or told us to go home. (“I am home!” I said, smiling) But they were hugely outnumbered by the hundred or more cars who honked their horns in solidarity or held up the peace sign with their fingers out their car windows was inspiring. People do not want this war.

At the end of the vigil, we gathered in a parking lot so folks could see each other’s faces, make announcements, and here about the connections with the folks who had gone to DC. We ended by singing: "We have come too far; we won't turn around. We’ll flood the streets with justice. We are freedom bound."

And here is the other great news: we got good press coverage. Tonight we were the lead story on ABC local news, WTVD-11. They did a long, thoughtful piece on the vigil (and the DC rally) with excerpts from three interviews with participants, and many shots of people standing with their signs. It was such a blessing to see this story up-front and well-covered, when peace and justice work is so easily marginalized in the mainstream media. I called the station immediately to thank them. The Durham Herald-Sun ran a wonderful story that captured both the spirit and the message of the event. We also had a smaller mention in the News and Observer.

A few obvious lessons stand out for me from today:

-The turnout was email-driven. Of course, we need additional outreach strategies for more substantive work but it’s vital to recognize what a tool this has become. I know many of us are overloaded with email, but it remains the quickest, most cost efficient means we have of getting information across.

- Relationships go a long way. Those of us who helped to guide the vigil activity were able to stay organized and make quick decisions because we have known and loved each other for a long time. We didn’t have much of a plan, but we had a lot of trust in each other. And we each stepped up quickly to play various roles: talking to the media, collecting email addresses, leading the song, handling the police, doing a head count, etc.

- I want to keep preparing to be surprised. I was amazed at the coverage we got on television. Of course it’s sad that this would be so surprising, but still, it deserves recognition.

The truth is marching on. We’ll miss you, Paul.

(For remembrances, go to www.wellstone.org)

.: posted by Claudia Horwitz at 5:34 PM