Fri, 8 Jul 2022 08:45:02 +1000
Katherine Phelps <muse [at] glasswings.com.au>
In the early Civil Rights Movement people like John Lewis used a tactic
whereby they intentionally filled the prisons with protestors, then sang
protest songs and hymns. The act of Rosa Parks to intentionally take and
keep a seat on a segregated bus is now a historic moment.
On 8/7/22 07:36, Andrew Pam wrote:
whereby they intentionally filled the prisons with protestors, then sang
protest songs and hymns. The act of Rosa Parks to intentionally take and
keep a seat on a segregated bus is now a historic moment.
On 8/7/22 07:36, Andrew Pam wrote:
<https://theconversation.com/today-is-not-my-day-how-russias-journalists-writers-and-artists-are-turning-silence-into-speech-185120>
"“It is impossible to stop a speeding train by throwing oneself onto
the tracks,” wrote Russian poet Dmitry Kuzmin back in March. He was
commenting on Olga Gordienko, a young teacher who, before she was
arrested, stood for several minutes on a Moscow street with a sign
that read:
At least don’t lie to yourself. War is death. Enough of this bloodyfight for peace!
While acknowledging the teacher’s bravery, Kuzmin warned protestors to
take care. Change would not come through such isolated acts, however
admirable.
What would you do if your country launched a war of aggression,
causing tens of thousands of deaths and displacing millions? What if
the price of protest or even posting objections on social media was
arrest and imprisonment?
What if you knew that over the past decades many of your country’s
most outspoken journalists had been killed for refusing to the toe the
government line? What if even mentioning the word “war” online, in
print, or on the street was illegal?
Would you speak out, or keep quiet and bide your time?
These are the difficult questions facing those Russians who oppose
Vladimir Putin and his invasion of Ukraine. They are, of course,
nothing compared to what Ukrainians face as their country is
brutalised, their towns destroyed, their people raped and murdered.
But they are still important questions for the future of both
countries and the world at large.
They are questions of ethical, familial, and national obligations.
They are questions of personal risk, strategy and tactics. They are
questions about how best to speak through silence."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
