It’s not quite Bull Connor and water hoses that many of us saw in Birmingham, but not much better. On Friday, the Broadview, Illinois, protesters were not blocking a gate; it was a peaceful protest against government policies. The overwhelming majority behind a barricade set up for the protest. Some spilled over into the street.
Look at the video: officers carrying batons and pulling people out of the group of persons simply standing there with their signs and placards. Pulling them out from behind the barrier they were given to stand in protest, and four or five of the officers throwing persons on the ground and beating them, dragging them off, including one marked as a medic and another one with a press badge.
Yesterday was a totally different type of peaceful protest in cities across the Nation. Estimates that there were millions joining the many walks and marches, many young parents pushing baby strollers, older people, of all ethnicities. This march pointed at the architects of censorship, environmental, and immigration policies.
Prayer for the Day
God of and justice, who created us all as your children,
You gave us eyes to see and ears to hear, but we do not see or hear;
Your Spirit calls us from our history to living in our time,
And we struggle to find guidance us in our daily decisions.
Move us from our failure of ourselves and of you,
So we are able to speak your truth to the world around us.
In the name of the One who opens us to your truth,
Even Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.
Thoughts for the Day
Action is the antidote to despair.
Joan Baez, singer
Nonviolence is the answer to the crucial political and moral questions of our time." -
Martin Luther King Jr, civil rights leader (1929-1968)
Hear what the Lord says:
Rise, plead your case before he mountains,
And let the hills hear your voice.
Hear, you mountains, the controversy of the Lord,
And you enduring foundations of the earth;
For the Lord has a controversy with the people
Micah 6: 1-2