Category: diversity

Thoughts onVigils, Protests, and Movement Forward

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It’s been over a week now since Madison police killed Corey Ruiz at the corner of Williamson and Baldwin streets. The vigil honoring the life of Ruiz and all the victims of police violence has continued to block the corner since then. There are many feelings arising in the neighborhood and the city. Being that I’ve been recovering from surgery all week I’ve not gotten to spend much time at the vigil, or anywhere else beyond my apartment for that matter, but still my inner organizer/activist is feeling the need to grapple with some questions and thoughts. I can only hope that my writing might help some others dig deeper into their own hearts and minds as well.

I find myself wondering what would justice look like? We can’t bring Corey or any of the many other victims back to life. We can’t make the lives of those killed by the police better. We can’t change their situation in life now. It’s done. They are gone.

But, they did live and by that mere fact they deserve to be remembered in some way, as we all do. Coming together in mourning of their passing and celebration of the fact that they lived is important. But, I think of the many cultures who don’t speak the name of those who’ve passed, who don’t hang their photos, or continue to gather in their memory once they are sent on their way. Many cultures believe that such actions that hold tight to the person lost prevent their soul from reaching their final glory. I wonder how we can let Corey reach his final glory? Is the vigil still honoring him and others or is it holding them back?

What do we seek? Flowers and drawings and monuments are beautiful, but do they assure that no one else will experience the same end?

I keep remembering an old friend of mine who some years ago was suffering from some significant, untreated mental health issues. We were at a meeting together when he stabbed someone in the chest. Thankfully, the wound wasn’t life threatening. More thankfully, everyone in that room recognized the stabbing wasn’t a crime. It was a result of illness and things not working in life for a person. No one saw a criminal. We saw someone who needed care and support. I am thankful that my friend was able to get that care and support to allow him to address his illness and get his life back on track.

Corey, and so many more in Madison and everywhere, face life challenges whether that be mental health issues, joblessness, homelessness, poverty, or so many other issues that we, as a community, need to change if we are to expect any different outcomes. Yes, we need to police the police. Yes, it’s important to expect only the best from our law enforcement officers. But really, that’s all slogans and slogans don’t mean much. What I’m wondering is what happens when the vigil space is taken down? Who is committing themselves to living lives that change us all for the better? We’re not going to get any answers this week or next. Even if laws change, the world won’t unless we operate every day in ways that live out what we believe is right. Vigils and protests are important, but what’s really important is the work that goes on in the day to day. It’s those times when we can see the person and what has made them. That’s where the change will happen.

I saw a post somewhere recently making a comparison between the vigil at Willy and Baldwin to the Montgomery Bus Boycott. I just shook my head. Rosa Parks sitting on the bus didn’t just happen. She was a trained and well prepared activist working with others who’d been fighting segragation for years before that fateful day. She didn’t win anything that day either. It took 381 days for the busses to finally be technically desegrated and generations more for the White and Black people to even start to really come together. The road is long and it is hard. Now, how can we travel forward?

Rallying with Joy

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Over 9 million people attending No Kings rallies nationwide, including many in Wisconsin, demonstrated a strong community spirit. The rally in Madison transformed into a celebration, featuring diverse participation and joyful interactions. Amid serious discussions, this atmosphere of unity and resilience suggests that finding joy is key to enduring struggles and achieving victories.

Reaching Out In Peace

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Like millions of others around the world and thousands here in Madison, I stood holding a candle last night to honor the passing of Renee Nicole Good and the far too many others who have been murdered along with her by ICE. Standing there in the cold I found myself thinking about the past 30+ years that I’ve spent standing on those capitol steps at rallies and vigils, working toward justice and peace, and recognizing the connection of my years to the those of others. We’ve stood for so long and each time the crowds are larger and stronger.

I thought about the Anishanaabe prophecies of the eight fires and wondered if we are indeed at that place spoken of in the seventh fire where we are facing that critical choice between destruction and balance. I believe we are and we must seek that balance both internally and as a whole if we are to find peace. Afterall, peace doesn’t come through war. I wish I had some answers. All I know right now is that we must reach out in peace. We must find those seeds of joy admist the chaos and nuture them, help them grow into the trees of celebration that they are meant to become.

In this moment I am just reaching out to all of you, my brothers and sisters in the struggle and sharing this electronic hug and wishing you love in your lives.

The Next Chapter

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It’s hard to believe that I’ve not written in eight months. I had no idea it had been that long. It’s one of those things that seems as if it was only yesterday and at the same time feels a lifetime ago.

I got home from my travels in Europe to a stint of being underemployed that changed my life once again. Some people stay with jobs they don’t believe in and that tear apart their souls so they can be assured of a steady paycheck. That might be the smart thing to do for a lot of people, but it’s never been something that I could face. I’ve left good paying jobs because the organizations I worked for did things that were, in my view, morally unjust. Some groups I found mistreated workers, discriminated against people, or were racist and homophopic. I couldn’t stay with them and stay with myself. Other jobs ended just because in the nonprofit world sometimes there’s no money left and without money organizations stop operating and jobs end. In the case of Solace Friends, the group I worked with before I left for Europe, it was just a situation where it became clear to me that the organization needed something that wasn’t me and the work was going to burn me out like a candle lit at both ends. It couldn’t continue without me risking more seizures and burnout. It wasn’t worth it. So, I leapt into the unknown. After the vacation to Europe that I’d booked months earler, I returned to Madison and to no idea what would happen next.

What happened was dozens more resumes sent to everyone and their uncle followed by many interviews. Meanwhile, I started to sub in the Madison Metropolitan School District, mostly at Lowell Elementary as a Special Education Aide. The thing about subbing as an SEA in 2023 in Wisconsin, and in many other places I’m sure, is that a person can sub every day if they want. Schools are desperate for people to fill so many roles. I was lucky enough to find a long term subbing position that allowed me to work in the same school and with the same kids for weeks. It was a challenge. I had my favorite runners, little ones who’d simply run out of the classroom when they didn’t want to take part in activities any more. I had the kids who just didn’t want to deal with some support staff person trying to get them to go take their medicine and who’d mastered the great skill of talking back about everything. Then there were the ones who didn’t talk at all, those who hadn’t learned to speak yet. The kids trying to exist in our public school system when they were still non-verbal and operating developmentally years behind their peers.

I’ve been an activist and an organizer for a long time, about three decades as a matter of fact. Working with these kids isn’t changing the world in the big ways that I used to aim for, but it is much the same. It is changing the world for each of them through being there, caring, and taking the time to sit with them and figure out things together, so that they might become the person who can advocate for themselves.

So, it was there, at Lowell Elementary, spending time hanging out with those kids defined as having “special needs” that I turned the page to start my next chapter. After putting quite a bit of thought, I decided on a midlife career switch. I left the nonprofit world and applied to work for the Madison Metropolitan School District as a Cross-Categorical Teacher (what many may know as a Special Education Teacher). I started teaching this Fall at Mendota Elementary with a provisional teaching license while going to school to get my permanent license. It’s hard. There’s no doubt about that, but I am happy to have made the change and look forward to the chapters ahead. More stories to come.

Thoughts On Being a Part of the Wisconsin Movement

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It’s been twelve years now since thousands of angry, scared, and broken hearted Wisconsinites spent weeks camping out on the cold marble floors of our state capitol in an attempt to protect workers rights. While we didn’t win an immediate victory, we did change what organizing looked like in Wisconsin and throughout the US.

I was the person that the Teaching Assistants Association (TAA) called on when they realized that what began as a small protest was going to become a massive event and had the possibility of becoming dangerous. They asked me to coordinate non-violence trainings. During the weeks in the capitol I worked with a great team to bring together dozens of skilled trainers to provide non-violence training to thousands of people and the people of Wisconsin stood strong and peaceful. Here are few thoughts that I shared back then. I think that they may still ring true in many of the struggles that we face today.

Thoughts on Being Part of the Wisconsin Movement

  1. Why are you here?
    If you are here to defend the capitol building, you are in the wrong place. If you are here to prove your belief that police are fascists, you are in the wrong place. If you are here to prove your righteous acts, you are in the wrong place. If you are here to prove Republicans bad Democrats good, you are in the wrong place. Movements depend on a shared sense of deeper purpose. The Wisconsin movement is complex because it brings together such a wide variety of groups with many reasons for acting. In order for us to succeed in the long haul we must have a shared sense of purpose. I would suggest that the purpose we share is to create a Wisconsin in which all people have their basic human rights met and in which the people of the state drive the government, not the other way around.
  2. What is Civil Disobedience and Why Do It?
    Civil disobedience is intentional illegal action used to address injustices in the system. It is not simply actions used to make police officers work harder or to add excitement or interest. It is well thought out and used to attain a goal that moves us toward that bigger purpose of meeting the human rights of everyone in our state and gaining control of the governmental process. Civil disobedience is a tactic to be used when the legal means don’t work. It should be well thought out in advance and taken on only with people you trust implicitly. Plans should be made in advance to deal with any repercussions of your actions. Remember that the police, the courts, and our government have been dealing with protestors a long, long time. They are prepared. You need to be too. Doing the action and getting arrested is the easy part. Dealing with the repercussions can be more time consuming and difficult. Ask yourself “how will my action help the movement?” before taking any action.
  3. What about me?
    Me is an interesting character in the movement, whoever that me is. Every action that each of us takes, positive or negative, affects every other person in the movement community. Movements are in some sense temporary minority groups. This is not to suggest in any way that movements or members of movements face the same levels of discrimination or oppression. What we share is that majority culture is quick to define minority groups by the actions of single individuals “all Black men are x,” “all women, all youth, all insert your favorite minority here are y.” The same thing happens in movements. You are a representative of the movement whether you want to be or not. So, it’s up to you to measure each action you take, even the mundane ones like the words you use or when and where you opt to play the drum or whatever else, to ask yourself is this
    going to move us toward our goal or away from it. Everyone in Wisconsin is going to be affected by the decisions of our courts, the legislature, and the governor. We need a movement that is made of all ages, all races, and all backgrounds. This
    isn’t some liberal, progressive, or even radical group. This is Wisconsin. We all drink the same water. Every person that you see could be a part of the movement. Each one could bring something that we need. It’s up to each of us to build the bridges, to win people to our side, to encourage that understanding that we all drink the same water.
  4. But I just need to be me!
    If you are in a spot in which you feel a need to do something that isn’t going to help the movement take a break, step away for a moment to come back stronger. This fight doesn’t end with this budget session or even with the recalls. We’ve got a lot of work to do and it’s going to take a long time. Governor Walker, the legislature, the cops, the media, and sometimes even your fellow protestors are going to do stuff that in your mind is just idiotic and really ticks you off. If you can deal with it in ways that are both logical, empathetic, and feel right in your heart go ahead and deal with it. If you feel worn down, angry to the point of not being able to control your actions, deeply depressed or otherwise just don’t feel yourself, step back. We are a large group. We’ll cover for each other, so everyone can have a break.
  5. Going for the long haul
    Bad stuff is happening in Wisconsin’s government, stuff that will take years to fix. We’ll need to fix it and we can. It will take a lot of work, a lot of creative thinking, and a lot of coalition building and strengthening. Right now a lot of people are burned out, more than I’ve ever seen in my 20+ years as an activist and organizer.
    Go ahead and mourn. There has been a death in the family, many deaths. We’ve lost much that we love and depend on in this last legislative session and it deserves to be mourned. Crying is welcomed here. So, is talking, writing, song, lifting weights, prayer, running, hitting the punching bag, any and all of the healthy means of processing loss and regaining strength.
    Angrier than you can explain? That’s good too if you use it. Organizers often call it ‘cold anger.’ If you can keep your anger controlled and directed toward supporting our forward movement in healthy ways, it is one of the best tools we have. Remember we are all family here. Take care of your brothers and sisters and let them take care of you. Caring for each other makes us each stronger.
  6. What’s my role here?
    In my work we say “everyone a learner, everyone a teacher, everyone a leader.” It works here too. Each and every one of us is more than a body at a rally. We need you. Ask questions. Share what you know. Support others in doing the same. Share your talents, whether it’s facilitating meetings or baking cookies. Not everyone gets the spotlight, but everyone keeps the movement alive and strong. Thank you everyone for what you’ve been doing to keep us moving!