Are we in the middle of a Civil War

The more I think about it, the more it feels like I’m in the middle of a Civil War. It’s thorny for me to assert that claim given I wasn’t there when the dudes in gray scraped with their kin in blue.  I do know that it was a war like no other, a fight not for land or oil, but over the right to define what it means to be an American.

The air is oozing with this complex definition crap.  Underneath all those layers of determination is stuff so deep that common folks get  fooled into believing the fight is over something other than hatred.  Yes, this is about hate and insensitivity.  It’s about defining what it means to be human and taking no prisoners in the quest to force people into adopting common ideas.

This Civil War is different than the first one.  Yes, it’s true that both used the Bible to minimize the legitimacy of the humanity of a select few.  That first was about state rights, but cloaked beneath it all was the matter of defining the worth of the slaves.  Brothers fought brothers, and cousins killed cousins because the hatred for an entire race was so deep they were willing to die to prove a point.

It’s sad how much people are willing to give up coercing others to adopt a mindset.  The first Civil War stands as America’s saddest moment.  It is a reminder of how hatred can move people to design ways to force an agenda of hatred.  The Bible is used.  The law is used.  All that is good and sacred become the weapons of hate.

This current Civil War is painful to watch. This war isn’t relegated to a select group.  No, this is not a quarrel over the humanity of a race.  This war is an all out blitz to wane the voice of all who aren’t white, heterosexual and male.  This war is to demean black and brown people.  It is a war to aggravate the gains of women while forcing them back into roles of subjugation.  This is a war to label gays and lesbian as less than human, and, as a consequence of their subpar human status, to deny them the protections of America’s laws.  You can’t protect what isn’t human.

This is a war to determine who gets treated fairly.  After years of toying with the Constitution, America has gone to war to resolve who is protected by the provisions mandated in the document.  This is that, “I didn’t mean you” moment that so many have always felt.  Is this an opportunity for white men, with power and a chip on their shoulder, to ratify what has always been on their minds?  Instead of hiding behind the façade of political correctness, they can come out of the closet and yell their truth – this is a white man’s world.

It’s an ideological civil war that has dire consequences related to the future of all public policy.  Once the Constitution is eroded by wording that defines what love looks like, the next step could be to collapse the civil rights of others by forcing language granting people the right to hate and discriminate other groups.  Before long, the Constitution will adapt to legitimize all forms of hatred.

One step at a time.  Next up, immigration rights.  Follow that up by going back to the original wording of the U.S. Constitution – to define black folks as less than human.  One step at a time. 

These ideological wars can get tricky.  They look innocent on the surface, but, once you unpack the language, it’s all about hatred.

My pen is my weapon.  I fight with my words.

I fight on the side of love.

Join the Rev-elution at May Day Triangle

Schedule
3 p.m. Arts and Cultural Festival (including children's area) at People’s Plaza (CCB Plaza) in Durham
5 p.m. Potluck
6 p.m. March through downtown Durham starting at People’s Plaza
7 p.m. Rally and speeches at People’s Plaza

We invite everyone to participate in a May Day 2012 mobilization together.

May 1 is celebrated around the world as international workers day and originated in Chicago after the 1886 Haymarket Massacre, in which police fired on workers during a general strike for the eight-hour workday.

On May 1, 2006, in the largest single day protest in the history of the United States, massive migrant marches re-ignited May Day as a day of resistance, a near-lost tradition in the US. May Day is important this year as a day of action for economic justice and equality.

Over the past year, we have been inspired by people’s movements, resistance and actions around the globe. We have experienced an awakening over the past year that has created a new political movement and a focus on economic justice, and we believe that May Day 2012 is an opportunity for us to cultivate a broad and potent coalition of communities, organizations, and others seeking to build a different city and a different world. We believe that it can be not only a moment to demonstrate our discontent, but to begin to think together toward building self-determination for and from our communities.

Join us on May 1 as we rally for:
* Good jobs and living wages
* The right to join a union, the right to organize for all workers, and the right to collective bargaining
* Justice for immigrants, including amnesty and an end to deportations
* An end to police brutality, mass incarceration of communities of color, and all forms of oppression and discrimination
* Public sector jobs and services and public budgets that meet human needs