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January 21, 2017

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Photography, Poetry

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America the Beautiful

 

January 21 2017 Boston Women's March at Boston Common

Shoulder to shoulder
with people determined
to be heard,
holding up signs
in weary arms,
speaking in twitter-like tweets
to a man who cannot
turn his back
and ignore millions
around the country
and around the world.
No one can expect
to be heard
if he will not listen.

I hear all of you,
America the Beautiful.
Your voices matter:
We Will Not Be Silent.
Love Trumps Hate.
Insist on the Impossible.
Make America Think Again.
We are ALL Immigrants.
Black Lives Matter.
Don’t Make America Hate Again.
No One is Free If Anyone is Oppressed.
A Woman’s Place is… Wherever She Wants.
Show Up. Dive In. Persevere.
Women’s Rights Are Human Rights.
We’re Lawyers. We’re Ready.
Real Men of Quality Don’t Fear Equality.
Women’s Rights aren’t up for GRABS.
Disability Rights are Civil Rights.
Respect for Existence or Expect Resistance.

Indivisible Under God.
With Liberty and Justice for All.
Healthcare for All.
Words NOT Weapons.
Make Love Not Walls.
Resist Hate.
Roar.
Nasty Women.
Roar.
Never Surrender.

Copyright 2017 Brenda Davis Harsham

Notes: Where were you Saturday, January 21? Not everyone could march, but people gave rides, wrote in support, served food, made space at the table, honked, gave high fives, thumbs up and woo-hoo’ed out windows. Yay for women’s marches everywhere, here and around the world! I would rather roar than despair.

Poets and Writers Resist!

87 thoughts on “America the Beautiful”

  1. Pingback: Ferocious Women | Friendly Fairy Tales

  2. How can these folks claim to love when they automatically hate trump? What is resonable about caiming issues that trump hasn’t even mentioned seriously. Are they so bound by “Hillary-Love” that they cannot see the evoidence right in front of them? NOBODY TAKES CAMPAIGN RHETORUIC SERIOUSLY–Clinton didn’t…Obama didn’t–and you folks loved him–so why have a double standard with Trump! Honestly–settle down and face reality—he is working to bring back jobs. That’s his first prioruty. Stop listening to your propaganda and to your uncaring, manipulating political handlers! (enough for me–it’s hard to convince a screaming mob of anything by reason and facts when EMOTION STIRRED UP BY HATEFUL PEOPLE HAVE CONTROL OF THAT MOB!( 🙂 sORRY BEVERLY–I CAN BE DISOWNED!

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    • Are you saying I’m hateful? The women’s march was peaceful. Not a screaming mob. I don’t know about other people, but I don’t hate Trump. I fear him. Women who marched object to what Trump said on the bus. He wasn’t campaigning then. He wasn’t in a locker room. He made sexual assault sound like a fun, rich-male privilege. You’re not female and can have no idea how enraging that idea is to a woman. I had to discuss what he said with my young kids. Then he was elected, despite having said something that indicates he should be in jail.

      I don’t love Hillary. I think she deserved more respect than she got. I don’t think she’s a criminal. Unlike Trump, she has never admitted to committing a crime like sexual assault.

      I do think our president should be a person we can respect who will act for the good of the country, not the good of big business. We have limited resources in this country, and he will be further limiting those as he gives tax breaks to corporations.

      Are you seriously saying that the NY Times is propaganda and that they don’t check facts? The Boston Globe? If so, where do you get your news? Fox? I’ve watched Fox with my dad. They “interview” people who give opinions, then they report those opinions as if they are news. Opinions aren’t facts and probably shouldn’t be news either.

      Okay, I’m doing some deep breathing and picturing a successful country, that doesn’t become totalitarian and doesn’t slide back, erasing 50 years of progress. I’m picturing that Trump and Tillerson’s lack of diplomatic experience doesn’t result in WWIII, despite recent actions taken by both that defy belief. Okay, I’m calm.

      I hope you’re right, Jonathan, and that he doesn’t let you down.

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      • Many women and men were…screaming, smashing things,setting fire to lady journalist’s shoes! Are you hateful—I believe NOT! If Trump lets us down…he lets all of us down. The news media in general is all biased. 10-25 years ago, a survey said 85 % or more liberal. Judging from the way “news”is slanted around here–basically championing everything Progressive as perfect, nearly, doesn’t that giver you pause and fear? Of course FOX news plays the same games. If i could stop making typos…! 🙂

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        • I wonder if journalists are liberal because they caught some contagious disease or because they get out there and talk to people who’ve lost their houses in a fire, or who’ve lost their spouse in a war or survived rape. They talk to the relatives of people murdered, to people laid off, to survivors of tragedies and accidents. I would think that talking to people in great distress would change you, make you more inclined to think we need social welfare. As for what I read, I read for facts and disregard opinion, speculation and other filler. I don’t have time to care about so-and-so who thinks that Trump is doing everything right (for instance, someone with the initials KAC) because I want to see evidence. But then, in addition to being a lover of fairy tales, I’m a lawyer. I’m trained to evaluate the evidence. So far, the evidence is that Trump is pro-big business and anti-environmental issues. He will be making decisions that benefit him and his family (pro-business and pro-pipeline) and will ignore anyone who doesn’t agree with him. Or he will attack anyone who doesn’t agree with him. He’s dangerous. He has all the markers of someone who could become totalitarian and fascist. I’m not quoting anyone when I say that except myself — from what I’ve read of history. I’ve seen Hitler’s speeches. He was angry, too.

          The first thing dictators attack is the press and their opponents. Once they are hobbled or muffled, next, actions are taken in secret. The full effect doesn’t become clear for awhile, but helping the little guy is never the result.

          My hubby is so outraged that Trump is president, he can’t even discuss it. I’m going to call it off there. I’m tired. Have to get up early with the kids.

          Have a good night.

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  10. Pingback: America the Beautiful – Art and Life

  12. Women’s Rights aren’t up for GRABS.
    Disability Rights are Civil Rights.
    Respect for Existence or Expect Resistance.

    This are Excellent and Profound Words. . Some years back we had our own simlar version of Trump, on a State level. He only lasted 3 years but another 3 years on, we are still feeling the after effects of his “reign.” One hopes that common sense will prevail. Keep the faith!

    Liked by 2 people

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            • They can’t under the Affordable Care Act. They used to. People who get cancer are too sick to work, leave their job, lose their health plan and can’t get another. Insurers used to give you healthcare and take your money, but they would deny coverage to any health problems that began before the date coverage started. So if you had a preexisting condition, you could never change insurers or leave a job or you were out of luck. I know people who were bankrupted by health care costs for this reason. Most people cannot afford catastrophic illness bills without health insurance. Especially sick people who are out of work. This affects everyone in this country, but some may not remember or understand this issue. I know people who are terrified, who do.

              Liked by 1 person

            • It must be a terrible worry for people who are aging! They are too old to work or to find employment, and if health insurance is tied to one’s job, then they miss out. We have independent insurance here, not tied to a job. The government gives you a rebate on some part of private health insurance costs, however, it gets more and more expensive every year. Not everyone can afford it and then they must wait in the queue to see the free public hospitals and Doctors. I am so sorry that American citizens have this concern, particularly as the population is aging overall.

              Liked by 1 person

  14. My head is spinning from the news of the last few days. And this guy has been president for only 2 days. We don’t have to like him but we can’t tear each other apart because of him either. We are all we have. Our friendship, our support. Things must cool down. Must.

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  15. Very powerful,Brenda, very well done!
    It’s absolutely amazing and truly wonderful to watch this progress, look at all the flags on the map! Keep walking! 👣don’t tolerate hate 👣

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    • Woo-hoo to us!! I hope you won’t be upset if I point out that I love your typo. We’ll set the world aflame with our peaceful protesting. Not a single arrest in DC despite record-breaking crowds. And all Donald can do is call the media dishonest. That is starting to sound like whining. Or as the Brits would say, whinging. So sad. The first thing he did in office was to take the heart of healthcare for all. I sat on the train home next to a woman who is dying of cancer and is about to lose her healthcare. But Donald doesn’t know or care. We have to make him hear us.

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  26. This is beautiful Brenda. I tried to get to Miami today. I wanted to participate in the protest against what is happening but I was unable to! I truly believe he does not hear the outcry around the world because he has surrounded himself with the closed minded and power hungry . We must not be silent. Thank you for this lovely statement .

    Liked by 1 person

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