Everyone was
bundled up on MLK Day here in Baltimore where the temperature plunged into the
single digits in cahoots with a blustering wind. We took along a friend’s dog,
Reese, a mature Lab who seemed to lap up the attention given her by the
African-American children who petted her along the route. Their mothers smiled
and waved and chatted with us. About 65 per cent of Baltimore is
African-American. Over the past several months since Freddie Gray’s death we
have participated in marches and vigils in support of Black Lives Matter and an
end to police terror.
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| Left: Janice Sevre Duzynska, ARCWP, Max and Justice Activists from Baltimore, MD. |
We marched with
the Veterans for Peace, Phillip Berrigan chapter, carrying our signs. As the
Capitol police took my banner (Stop the War Machine: Export Peace) on January
12th as evidence until we go to trial, I held up the simple "Give
Peace a Chance" and Max, “Support the Troops, Bring Them Home.”
Ahead of us with
yellow and red signs were members of the Healthcare for All, contingent, in
support of single-payer health insurance which means Medicare for all. The
Baltimore Ethical Society and Women in Black comprised the four justice groups.
We saw Dr. Margaret Flowers campaigning for the Senate and fellow Green Party
members who have worked tirelessly against the TPP. Here and there we moved in
sync with the beat of the African drums and the school-age dancers dressed in
shimmering royal blue tights and white tops.
As we walked, I
reflected on Martin Luther King’s stand against racism, militarism and
capitalism. Max reminded me how right wing Republicans opposed this holiday,
including Barry Goldwater, Ronald Reagan and John McCain. In 1986 MLK day was
finally voted in as a national holiday.
Reese the Lab
enjoys her time with us at various protests, but she was exhausted from this
three-mile trek and could barely make it up the hill to our
van.
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