Rivera Sun's Blog: From the Desk of Rivera Sun, page 23

Not One Penny More to the Rich – An Essay of the Man From the North

 

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When times are bleak and darkness deepens, ancient yearnings of humanity stir in our hearts. We long for the simple things that our ancestors always sought: safety for our families, roofs over our heads, food in our bellies, rest for our weary bodies. In other words, we yearn for the basic human rights have been denied to far too many generations over the course of human history.

Throughout large swaths of history, the average human has been strapped to the yoke of economic injustice. Today, we are chained to jobs and bills and mounting debt. We are the workhorses of the modern-day wealthy. We labor to build their massive fortunes in a repetition of history as old as slaves building the pyramids, conscripts constructing the Great Wall of China, or the peons and peasants laboring to build the castles and cathedrals of Europe.

Today, we raise skyscrapers instead of temples, mansions instead of palaces, and astronomical off-shore bank accounts instead of treasure troves; but the pattern is the same. The wealth that could support the well being of a whole society is hoarded by the few. And worse than hoarded: it is stolen, skimmed, raked off the backs of many. It is snatched from our lives in slivers and slices. They take pennies and dollars from millions of us to make themselves rich: a high utility bill, an increase in the rent, overdraft fees at the banks, a new replacement cord for the computer – small things, multiplied by millions, collected by a few. Tiny bits of change that add up to our impoverishment. Even the least significant laws and policies – which are written by the wealthy – affect the rich and poor disproportionately. To those with money, a hundred dollar parking ticket is an inconvenience. To those without wealth, it might be the straw upon the camel’s back, the calamity that leads to eviction or homelessness, or the shortfall that signals hunger for one’s kids.

The rich grow richer while the rest of society suffers. They demand that walls be built to protect their fortunes – large or small – from those who have had everything taken from them in the cycles of injustice. Such hoarding of wealth while others are in need is obscene. It has been since the age of cavemen and campfires. It was appalling as the feudal kingdoms arose around the world. It was shameful as hierarchies of rulers emerged and feasted while their so-called subjects hungered. It is wrong, now, that the wealthy fly around the world in private jets while ordinary people struggle to pay bills.

Longevity does not lessen the shame of the injustice. It burns as fresh and hot in the thousandth year of its existence as it did on the first day a child went hungry because a glutton ate her share of the family’s food. The complexities of global economics fall away before the simplicity of compassion. Humanity’s soul remains imperiled while some hoard while others hunger.

And who dares to demand the impossible? Who is bold enough to speak the moral truth?

Not one penny more should go to the rich until every human being has enough. Not one more dollar should be added to the stockpiles of the wealthy while anyone is hungry, homeless, sick, or indebted due to seeking education, health, or survival. We must draw the moral line in the sand of our thoughts. We must cease the attitudes of permissibility that allow the greedy to hoard with such impunity. We must be clear and firm about our values. We must declare that enough is truly enough.

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The Man From the North is a fictional writer in Rivera Sun’s novel, The Dandelion Insurrectio n. The novel takes place in the near future, in “a time that looms around the corner of today”, when a rising police state controlled by the corporate-political elite have plunged the nation into the grip of a hidden dictatorship. In spite of severe surveillance and repression, the Man From the North’s banned articles circulate through the American populace, reporting on resistance and fomenting nonviolent revolution. This article is one of a series written by The Man From the North, which are not included in the novel, but can be read here .  

Author/Activist Rivera Sun, syndicated by PeaceVoice, is the author of The Dandelion Insurrection, Billionaire Buddha and Steam Drills, Treadmills, and Shooting Stars, the cohost of Love (and Revolution) Radio, and the co-initiator of Live Share Grow: A Movement for the 100%. She is a trainer and social media coordinator for Campaign Nonviolence and Pace e Bene. Sun attended the James Lawson Institute on Strategic Nonviolent Resistance in 2014 and her essays on social justice movements appear in Counterpunch, Truthout and Popular Resistance. www.riverasun.com

 

 

Winter Webinar Series! Nonviolent Change with Rivera Sun

Exciting News! Four Free Winter Webinars with Rivera Sun On Nonviolent Change!

Sponsored by the Netherlands-based organization SVAG, this webinar series with Author and Educator Rivera Sun is offered free to the public (although donations are gratefully accepted).  The series is intended to bring US-based and international activists together to learn, understand, advocate and move towards a nonviolent world. It is offered in collaboration between Campaign Nonviolence and the Netherlands-based organization SVAG (Foundation/Association for Active Nonviolence) and its project ToNoWo (Towards a Nonviolent World).

If you would like to donate to support this series and future webinars, donations can be made via Campaign Nonviolence/Pace e Bene. The website will automatically earmark your donation for this series! Here’s where to contribute.

Introduction Webinar – Nonviolent Activism: Oppose and Propose

Wednesday, January 18th, 2017

5:30pm-7pm UTC + 01 (Netherlands)

11:30am-1pm ET (US)

Cost: Free (Donations welcome, but not required)

Learn the basic skills you need for making change with nonviolent action. Join this practical webinar that covers the basic concepts, the 198+ Methods of Nonviolent Action, strategy and campaign design, and also the “Two Hands of Nonviolence” that create an unstoppable force to oppose injustice and propose solutions. Get strategic planning tools, further resources, and learn from nonviolent struggles throughout history.

Please RSVP to receive the login info! Here’s where to register: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/0df0dc5e5a344a9e34538d7d4481ef37

Invite Others! Share the Facebook Event: https://www.facebook.com/events/621148008056153/

 

Nonviolent Responses to the Rise of Hate, Xenophobia, Discrimination

Saturday, January 28th, 2017

5:30pm-7pm UTC + 01 (Netherlands)

11:30am-1:00pm ET (US)

Cost: Free (donations welcome, but not required)

Hear about strategies and share solutions! At a time when hate and discrimination seem to be rising in society, politics and certain institutions, this online conversation offers you a chance to connect with others to hear the many creative solutions that are being used to counter hate, and to affirm respect, dignity, and inclusion. Share what’s happening near you, and find out what others are doing in this lively conversation focusing on people-power, creativity, and nonviolent responses to some of our pressing issues. Opening remarks and facilitation by Rivera Sun.

Please RSVP to receive the login info! Here’s where to register: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/9b4ab37d8999562cdc2040ba88984b7b

Invite Others! Share the Facebook Event: https://www.facebook.com/events/415468098784898/

 

Webinar – Nonviolent Fiction and Nonfiction: The Dandelion Insurrection

Wednesday, February 8th, 2017

5:30pm-7pm UTC + 01 (Netherlands)

11:30am-1:00pm ET (US)

Cost: Free (donations welcome, but not required)

In a time that looms around the corner of today . . . when Author/Activist Rivera Sun wrote the opening words of The Dandelion Insurrection, the line between fact and fiction was already blurring. Join her for a special conversation about what parts of the story have come true – and what now looms on our horizon. Find out how this story about a nonviolent movement for change in a slightly fictionalized United States remains timely and highly relevant. Ask questions, see how the book compares to current US situation . . . and find out what’s brewing in the sequel that’s coming in 2017.

Please RSVP to receive the login info! Here’s where to register: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/7b10d64b0d47ab2c7c24e00bf0acd2b8

Invite Others! Share the Facebook Event: https://www.facebook.com/events/573343339521349/

 

Structured Dialogue – Environmental Destruction & Nonviolent Action: Creative Solutions to Big Problems

Saturday, February 25th, 2017

5:30pm-7pm UTC + 01 (Netherlands)

11:30am-1:00pm ET (US)

Cost: Free (donations welcome, but not required)

Join with others for a creative, lively conversation about how people around the world are using nonviolent action to stop environmental destruction. Share your experience and favorite stories. Speak up about your pressing concerns. Learn from others and gain fresh ideas for protecting our beautiful Earth, our communities, and ourselves.

Facilitated by Rivera Sun.

Please RSVP to receive the login info! Here’s where to register: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/68faea700c38dcad7510d14dfea9e911

Invite Others! Share the Facebook Event: https://www.facebook.com/events/110625452773527/

_____________________

Questions? Contact Rivera Sun info(at)riverasun.com

About SVAG and ToNoWo:

The Dutch NGO Stichting voor Actieve Geweldloosheid (SVAG), or Foundation/Association for Active Nonviolence was founded in 1966. The aim of the organization is the nonviolent promotion of a just society in which people interact in a nonviolent manner with each other and the environment. SVAG is a Campaign Nonviolence endorsing organization and promoter in the Netherlands. ToNoWo (Towards A Nonviolent World) is a project of SVAG. https://towardsanonviolentworld.org/the-team/

About Campaign Nonviolence:

Campaign Nonviolence is a growing movement to build a culture of peace and active nonviolence free from war, poverty, racism, environmental destruction and the epidemic of violence. It was initiated by the 30 year old nonviolence organization Pace e Bene. Find out ore at www.campaignnonviolence.org

About Rivera Sun:

Author/Activist Rivera Sun is the author of The Dandelion Insurrection, Billionaire Buddha and Steam Drills, Treadmills, and Shooting Stars, the cohost of Love (and Revolution) Radio, and the co-initiator of Live Share Grow: A Movement for the 100%. She is a trainer and social media coordinator for Campaign Nonviolence and Pace e Bene. Sun has facilitated nationwide workshops and trainings in strategy for nonviolent movements and her essays on social justice movements appear in Counterpunch, Truthout and Popular Resistance. www.riverasun.com

 

 

 

4 Days Left! A Great Book! A Fabulous Gift!

Time to get your holiday gifts for everyone who is young at heart!

Greetings everyone,

Guess what?! It’s time! These are the last few days to order books in time for Christmas. (I haven’t mastered the knack of flying, so last minute deliveries aren’t my thing.) If you’re tempted by The Way Between, pick up a copy or two via our Community Publishing campaign … there’s just four days left! Here’s the link:  https://igg.me/at/TheWayBetween. 

Also . . . something exciting is brewing. People are ordering STACKS of The Dandelion Insurrection to give to everyone they know at Christmas. Can you imagine?! What a stocking stuffer! Actually, the idea began with a post I shared on social media about the Icelandic tradition of giving books on Christmas Eve . . . and then staying up all night reading! I’m game for that! You can get any and all of my books via my website, signed and sent with a card and surprises.

Another awesome story from the book world . . . my sister Leah Cook volunteered at the tiny library in Grand Isle, ME a couple of weeks ago. We were chatting and she mentioned that the library needed some new books. Now, this is a rural Northern Maine community of 600 people. Our family farm, Skylandia (featured in my farm poetry book, btw), is home to numerous black bears, moose, bald eagles, and about ten billion black flies and mosquitos. It’s beautiful. This is the region of the world where The Dandelion Insurrection begins.  Up and down the St. John Valley (one side is Canadian, the other American), are French Acadian families, Catholic churches, and potato fields. It’s a world of its own. Anyway . . . my sister said the library needed new books, so I sent them my whole collection.  Leah put out the books and took a photo, but you won’t see The Dandelion Insurrection, because a local had already snatched it up excitedly.  I love these stories! Real people enjoying my books!  It made me think what our world might be like if we each gifted one great book to our local library at Christmas each year . . . what happens when we give a shareable gift to everyone in our community? Wow!

One last story . . . to the right is a photo of nonviolent conflict researcher Erica Chenoweth. I sent her a copy of The Way Between as a thank you gift for her groundbreaking work.  She demonstrated that nonviolent action is working twice as often as violent methods. Her book, Why Civil Resistance Works, cowritten with Maria J. Stephan, showed me that our fiction literature needed an update! Forget the swords; drop the weapons! We needed adventure stories with nonviolent action and waging peace! The Way Between is the first novel in a series that will integrate the growing knowledge of active nonviolence, peacebuilding, and nonviolent conflict resolution with action/adventure/fantasy. Our children deserve new stories with all the excitement … plus skills that will serve them well in the world that is emerging before our eyes. Find the book here: https://igg.me/at/TheWayBetween

There’s your novel news! With gratitude and love,

Rivera

PS Curious about The Way Between? Here you go!

“Between flight and fight lies a mysterious third path called the Way Between, and young shepherdess and orphan Ari Ara must master it . . . before war destroys everything she loves! She begins training as the apprentice of the great warrior Shulen, and enters a world of warriors and secrets, swords and magic, friendship and mystery. She uncovers forbidden prophecies, searches for the lost heir to two thrones, and chases the elusive forest-dwelling Fanten to unravel their hidden knowledge. Full of twists and turns and surprises, The Way Between is bound to carve out a niche on bookshelves everywhere!”

Swine, Swill, and Silver Platters – an Essay of the Man From the North

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An Essay of The Man From the North

by Rivera Sun

We are serving ourselves up on silver platters to the oligarchs and giant corporations. We have apples of misinformation in our mouths and sprigs of patriotic parsley tucked behind our ears. Must we complacently acquiesce to being pot-roasted pigs? Rise up!

The situation is more than intolerable . . . it is ridiculous . . . it is obscene. Our citizenry behaves like swine in the feedlots of the giant corporations and their rich owners. We eat the swill they slop down of toxic food, poisonous lies, mind-numbing media, and soul-crushing policies of oppression. We roll in the muck too moribund to rise up and organize for life, liberty, and love!

Have you ever seen a wild boar? Hairy, black, powerful, untamed, muscular? Have ever seen the wild sow, alert, protective and nurturing of her young? Have you seen the natural liveliness and intelligence of the lithe, quick piglets raised in woodlands and meadows, not muck and feedlots?

Are you content to live out your days, numbed and enslaved, slated for the slaughterhouse? To be destined only to put profits into rich people’s pockets? To be basted in lies and roasted in the fire of injustice? To be carved up slice-by-slice and devoured by gluttons? To condemn your children to the same fate?

Before there were masters and owners, overseers and butchers, merchants and chefs, the pig was wild, untamed, and free. It chose where it roamed. It ate when hungry. It rested when tired.

It is said that the pig is more intelligent than the dog. Yet, most of its species is enslaved to the greed of human cravings. The human being is allegedly far more intelligent than the swine, and yet, under the surface of our acculturation, are we not locked in feedlots of work, rent, bills, and debt? Are not our whole lives one long production line for rich people’s profits? Is not our freedom as equally illusory as the pig’s, lasting only as long as no one attempts to break free?

These are unsettling questions. But when abattoirs and silver platters await us, perhaps we ought to be uneasy. Perhaps we ought to be eyeing the holes in the fences. Perhaps we ought to be discussing what would happen if we all refused to go quietly to the slaughterhouse. Perhaps we ought to fast from the swill and let the pinch of hunger sharpen our eyes to the truth.

 

______________

The Man From the North is a fictional writer in Rivera Sun’s novel, The Dandelion Insurrectio n. The novel takes place in the near future, in “a time that looms around the corner of today”, when a rising police state controlled by the corporate-political elite have plunged the nation into the grip of a hidden dictatorship. In spite of severe surveillance and repression, the Man From the North’s banned articles circulate through the American populace, reporting on resistance and fomenting nonviolent revolution. This article is one of a series written by The Man From the North, which are not included in the novel, but can be read here .  

Author/Activist  Rivera Sun , syndicated by  PeaceVoice , is the author of The Dandelion Insurrection and other books, and the Programs Coordinator for  Campaign Nonviolence .

 

10 Days Left! The Way Between Gets Rave Reader Reviews!

Readers love The Way Between!

10 Days Left to Get Your Copy!

The first books have arrived and readers are writing in to say . . . they love it! Here are some of their stories and comments for you to enjoy.  There are just 10 days left while The Way Between is available before Christmas. You can get copies via our Community Publishing campaign … and please do! Here’s the link:  https://igg.me/at/TheWayBetween.

 Jay Moore was the owner of Moby Dickens Bookshop, which launched and supported my writing path. The fates would have it that we ran into each other as I picked up boxes of the first books at our tiny rural post office … so he and his kids got a copy of The Way Between straight out of the box. Here they are reading it with their dog, Pixel. (Isn’t that the best name for a little dog ever?)

M. Sophia Santiago met up with me in person and had coffee in New Mexico. She started reading her signed copy of The Way Between as the plane took off from the Albuquerque Airport to her home in Portland, Oregon. At 30,000ft she wrote: Enjoying your novel on my way back to Portland! In synchronicity; the name of the Capitol, Mariana, in “The Way Between”, is my first name! M Sophia Santiago. Cheers ~ a great read!

Clifford and Lesley Scott got a copy . . . and had to use active nonviolence to decide who got to read it first! Their furry friends seem to be enjoying it, too! Clifford wrote: Rivera Sun’s new book is out, “The Way Between”, it is a MUST READ for all non violent activists. We’re in love with the book we just received and feeling GREAT about sequels in the works!

Larson J. Prip is a special friend of mine, a member of Veterans For Peace. His weekly demonstrations were a call-to-action for me as a writer to make sure I was waging peace within the literary world, just as surely as he was waging peace on the street corners of his town.  He wrote: “I purchased two copies of Rivera Sun’s new novel THE WAY BETWEEN because that way my wife and I could have discussions about what we are reading. We both admire the writings of this fantastic storyteller and its very telling about these times of civil unrest we live in. I greatly admire this wordsmith’s beliefs in non-violence and the book is in part dedicated to Veterans for Peace; an organization near and dear to my heart.”

Carol Ranellone takes the cake with this photo of her dog, Luigi. (If you’re familiar with my writings, you might recognize him. He’s been a Cover Dog for The Dandelion Insurrection in other photos, too!) Carol wrote the sweetest message when she finished reading the book: Oh my Ari Ara~ read this cover to cover so fast I feel like a super shero! Needless to say, I loved this book. Rivera, please write the next as fast as you can! A fan of The Way Between, Carol

Pamela Twining read the story fast and furious. Here’s her review, which she posted on Facebook for all her friends: I just finished the book ~ didn’t want it to end! Rivera Sun is an Amazing Storyteller and “The Way Between” is one of Rivera’s incredible elucidations of the possibilities when we look beyond the ways of war & conflict, beyond the construct of human interaction as inherently fraught with territoriality, one-upsmanship, narcissistic bravado, scarcity consciousness… all the unacknowledged slights and insecurities that cause us humans to wage war rather than peace with each other! Looking for a gift for a youngun in your life? Or even a not-so-youngun who loves a great action story? I would heartily recommend “The Way Between”! Cannot wait for the sequel!

There are so many more stories, too! To the right is a photo of me putting a signed copy in the Little Free Library next to our credit union. I’m thrilled that everyone is loving the book.  We have just a few more days to order copies before the Community Campaign ends. Then it’ll be a little while before I have the First Edition ready for all you enthusiastic people who “forgot” to get a copy now. Here’s the link again:  https://igg.me/at/TheWayBetween

With gratitude and love,

Rivera

PS Curious about the story? Here you go!



“Between flight and fight lies a mysterious third path called the Way Between, and young shepherdess and orphan Ari Ara must master it . . . before war destroys everything she loves! She begins training as the apprentice of the great warrior Shulen, and enters a world of warriors and secrets, swords and magic, friendship and mystery. She uncovers forbidden prophecies, searches for the lost heir to two thrones, and chases the elusive forest-dwelling Fanten to unravel their hidden knowledge. Full of twists and turns and surprises, The Way Between is bound to carve out a niche on bookshelves everywhere!”

Corporate Demons Possess Our Nation

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An Essay of the Man From the North

by Rivera Sun

Corporate demons possess our nation’s soul. They crept in stealthily, full of trickery and deception, but now they’re lodged in place, as surely as if they had stormed our homes and halls of power with guns and tanks. Perhaps we’d recognize their coup if they had assassinated a flesh-and-blood president instead of merely stealing the souls of all our elected leaders.

A corporation is an invisible entity. It has no body to appear on television or slip into a congressional seat. It is the living, breathing human worshipers possessed by corporate greed who kill, maim, and destroy. For a lump of money, a human soul is bought and turned into the pawn of corporations. For a bribe or a salary, a human being averts their eyes and does the dirty work. For a sweet deal, a real life person decides to allow a corporation to injure and oppress, impoverish and harm.

Without us, corporations are nothing more that words written on documents. They cannot drill for oil. They cannot foreclose on homes. They cannot deliver eviction notices. They cannot pass legislation. They cannot poison water or spew toxins in the air. They cannot arrest those who rise up against them.

There are millions of people railing against corporate power in our government, and rightly so, for corporations have stolen the souls of public office holders. They have corrupted the hearts of elected leaders. They have bought the obedience of senators and representatives, judges and sheriffs and presidents. But, the struggle is far vaster than just our political power-holders. It is not just a monetized, secularized, or politicized conflict. This struggle goes straight to the heart and soul of every man, woman, and child in this country.

Who is willing to be the first to evict corporate power from their heart? Among the citizens, who will expel the twin demons of our habit-forming consumer conveniences and corporate greed from our lives and pocketbooks. Who will decolonize their minds from the entertainment, advertisements, logos, slogans, and ideologies of the corporations? Who will refuse to bring one more purchase of the corporate overlords into his or her house? When the early American colonists were rebelling against the British, they sacrificed the luxuries of imported British cloth, tea, and more. Young girls wore dresses of homespun cloth to the old-fashioned versions of the prom. Among the modern Americans, who is willing to sacrifice our ease, convenience, consumerism, in favor of freedom from political injustice, diversity in our economy, and economic justice?

If we want to evict corporations from Capitol Hill, we are going to have to evict them from our own lives in ways that will not be easy. We will have to sacrifice. We will have to make do and do without. We will have to pay more for the product from a local, small, or independent company that does not have the same economic advantages as mega-corporations who enjoy tax breaks and subsidies, the ability to pay unjust wages unchallenged, the luxury of externalizing the true costs of their products, the insider industry deals on shipping and bulk product purchasing, and much more.

But each time your heart balks at a sacrifice, look at the horizon of possibilities. Fix your eyes on the vision of what we’re working toward . . . it is far greater than the sacrifices we face. We are striving toward functional democracy that represents, cares for, nurtures and sustains the whole of the populace, not just the ruling elite and corporate profit. We are working toward economic justice and vibrant, diverse, local, small, and independent businesses that have a fair and level playing field. We are moving toward protection of our beautiful planet that keeps us all alive, renewable energy, and a world free of pollution and toxicity. We want political justice so that we can assure and maintain economic, cultural, racial, gender, and all other forms of justice. We want arts, culture, and entertainment driven not by monopoly and narrow agendas, but by the beauty and bounty of our diversity and many perspectives. The list goes on.

The possibilities on the horizon line of change are tremendous. Fix your eyes on them as we make changes in our own lives during the efforts to erode and evict corporate power and greed. Remember what we’re sacrificing for as we overthrow corporations from the halls of power of our country. We are struggling for the heart and soul of our nation . . . and we have a vision for which it is worth wrestling corporate demons until, at last, every man, woman, and child is free.

______________

The Man From the North is a fictional writer in Rivera Sun’s novel, The Dandelion Insurrectio n. The novel takes place in the near future, in “a time that looms around the corner of today”, when a rising police state controlled by the corporate-political elite have plunged the nation into the grip of a hidden dictatorship. In spite of severe surveillance and repression, the Man From the North’s banned articles circulate through the American populace, reporting on resistance and fomenting nonviolent revolution. This article is one of a series written by The Man From the North, which are not included in the novel, but can be read here .  

Author/Activist Rivera Sun, syndicated by PeaceVoice, is the author of The Dandelion Insurrection, Billionaire Buddha and Steam Drills, Treadmills, and Shooting Stars, the cohost of Love (and Revolution) Radio, and the co-initiator of Live Share Grow: A Movement for the 100%. She is a trainer and social media coordinator for Campaign Nonviolence and Pace e Bene. Sun attended the James Lawson Institute on Strategic Nonviolent Resistance in 2014 and her essays on social justice movements appear in Counterpunch, Truthout and Popular Resistance. www.riverasun.com

Fuel For Change: Excerpt from The Dandelion Insurrection

 

(This is an excerpt from Rivera Sun’s novel, The Dandelion Insurrection, which you can find here.)

 

Charlie and Zadie drove down the main street of the rural Pennsylvanian town. The locals stood in the doorways, frowns carving their faces as they stared at the teeming soldiers. The waitresses at the diner peered through the windows with their arms folded tightly over their aproned bosoms. Behind the backs of the passing soldiers, men spat onto the asphalt. Surveillance drones hovered overhead. Tanks idled in front of the small town’s post office. Gas drilling equipment rolled down the street. Soldiers barked out orders. Military law had superseded local and state regulation and was escorting the extractive energy industry right into people’s backyards.

Charlie swallowed hard and sent a silent apology to Zadie’s father for doubting him all this time. Operation American Extraction was definitely not a conspiracy theory. The continent was being raped for fossil fuel export. In his mind, Charlie heard Bill’s humorless laugh.

“Conspiracy theory is a neat little label that the government uses to fool people into discounting the truth,” Bill had once argued, “but pipelines don’t lie. Twenty new coal shipping terminals on the west coast, refinery upgrades, permits, licenses . . . the evidence is all part of the public record for those that have the persistence to track it down and put the pieces together.”

The once-peaceful streets of the town seethed with infuriation. Tension twanged metallic on the air. Animosity fumed from the people like churning smokestacks. Everyone knew fossil fuels were a death sentence for the entire planet. The carbon emissions, global warming, climate change, even the extraction processes for oil, natural gas, and coal destroyed the earth and poisoned the water . . . but as long as export to China, India, and global industry remained an option, the Butcher, the Banker, and the Candlestick Maker continued to move full-steam ahead toward destruction.

For a long time, everyone thought the threat of climate change would stop this madness, but the corporate-controlled media created a complete obstruction of common sense and scientific truth. The United States was playing a sinister blend of make-believe and monopoly at the cost of human extinction. The landscape of the immediate future was choked with oily rivers, cracked deserts instead of fertile farmland, toxins leaching through watersheds, mountains blown apart, and radiation left to blow on the wind.

“People won’t stand for it,” Charlie had once argued with Bill, “they’ll revolt.”

“You think those in power don’t know this?” Bill had replied. “They’ve got the laws in place for mass arrests, civilian murder, indefinite detention, military tribunals, and martial law. The people, for the most part, are clueless.” He swept a gesture to the nation. “Lambs at the slaughterhouse! Jews on the way to the Holocaust!”

The people just didn’t want to believe it was happening. They would sit around chewing on the cud of rumors for endless hours while the machinery of extraction crept closer to their doorsteps. They would bicker and argue themselves to death, not wanting to believe the horror of the truth. Charlie’s heart turned sad as he pictured his cousins sickened with toxins, his mother weary and rundown. He pictured his grand-père’s eyes, so often laced with mischief. He heard the old man’s words, life, liberty, and love? Who will stand up for it?

I will, Charlie thought as he drove past a row of soldiers.

“This is insanity!” Zadie protested. “They’re using martial law to march the corporations right in and poison the watersheds! How can they destroy all of life for the greed of a few?”

“Why should they care?” Charlie questioned bitterly. “They’ve got enough money to buy the last pristine places, purify their private homes, and live out the remainder of their days in relative comfort while the rest of the world dies in agony.”

“But how can they? They have no right!” Zadie argued.

“They had no right to enslave Africans,” Charlie mentioned, “or to take this land from the native tribes, but that didn’t stop the powerful from insisting on their right to profit from their property.”

Zadie’s expressive eyes glowed like burnt embers.

“This is it, Charlie. This is the final showdown between the force of greed and the power of love. Either we’re going to stop this extraction, or we are going to perish.”

They swung into the parking lot behind the public library. Bill had heard the news of the gas company’s military escort from a local man named Rudy and had arranged for Charlie and Zadie to drive down from New York and meet with him. The stocky fellow was found leaning on the circulation desk talking in hushed tones with the head librarian. She caught sight of the two newcomers and nudged his shoulder. Rudy turned, shook Charlie’s hand, and doffed his baseball cap to Zadie.

“Glad you could make it. We’re in a real sight of trouble, oh Lord, let me tell you.” His eyes flicked outside to where the soldiers idled in the street. Rudy led them down into the partially renovated basement of the library, between some rolling bookcases, and into a small musty side room made of stone. There were no windows. Water ran down the old granite walls. The lamp overhead struggled vainly to shove out a dim patch of light. Zadie shivered at the chill, pulling her sweater coat tightly around her torso and wishing she’d worn thick pants instead of thin leggings under a skirt. She ran her fingers up and down the goose bumps on her arms. She had been uneasy about driving down, but Rudy was desperate for advice, and Charlie wanted to see the situation firsthand. Rudy pulled out three folding chairs from a stack against the wall.

“This old storage room dates back to the Revolutionary War. I’d have taken you to my place,” he explained apologetically, “but they’re watching it ’cause I told those soldiers to get the hell out of my town.”

Rudy looked unrepentant. There was a time and a place for soldiers . . . and his rural little town in Pennsylvania wasn’t it! He tolerated their shenanigans on the Fourth of July, but that’s as far as his patience went. He was a God-fearing, flag-waving American citizen, but soldiers were for defending this country – not for protecting a bunch of greedy corporations as they extracted fossil fuels against the will of the people.

Rudy whipped off his baseball cap and smacked it across his knee.

“The army rolled the tanks right down Main Street with the gas company machines in the middle and soldiers marching behind! I couldn’t believe my eyes. I asked ’em what the hell they were doing. They told me they were enforcing the Constitution.”

Charlie gaped.

“Uh-huh,” Rudy nodded, “they said the gas company’s got mineral rights, and they’re here to make sure those rights get upheld. Told me that we passed some unconstitutional laws, so they’re here to make justice. Well, I have to confess to losing my temper.”

Rudy had plunked himself down smack in front of the tanks and let loose a spew of outrage that gathered half the town as he ranted about crooked politicians over in D.C. who passed unconstitutional laws faster than beans passed gas! And speaking of gas, the military had no right to escort the gas company in here. Ain’t nowhere in the law book did it say the military got to decide on justice! That’s what the justice department was for – at which point the soldiers informed him of the nuances of justice in times of martial law – to which he roared out, martial law my ass! Get your thievin’ conniving tank-wielding hides out of my town!

“See,” Rudy informed Charlie and Zadie, “a long time back, this town passed a Community Rights Ordinance to ban fracking for natural gas and to protect the rights of nature. We all risked sounding like tree huggers ’cause we had to do something to keep the gas company from poisoning our wells. The scumbags up at the state and federal levels will allow nuclear testing at your dinner table if someone pays ’em enough. So, we passed the darn thing ’cause we didn’t have much other choice. There was talk of lawsuits, but I dunno, it just stopped all of a sudden. I thought we were off scott-free . . . until now.”

Rudy shuddered and rubbed his rough palm across his two-day stubble.

“Anybody with two bits of common sense to rub together can see that what’s going on is just plain wrong,” Rudy said. “Those soldiers out there should be protecting the people from being poisoned, not escorting the corporations right into our backyards!”

He snorted in outrage.

“The troops got real nasty about my li’l sermon. They threatened to court-martial me, but settled for simply reading the town the riot act.”

The commanding officer had told the people in no uncertain terms that he expected compliance with orders and obedience of curfews at dusk. He wanted no backtalk, and demanded full cooperation with the troops as they settled this matter with the gas company.

“Essentially, we were supposed to lie down like a bunch of cowering dogs! We broke curfew right off – no sense in obeying that – and held a meeting that night. Folks were all up in arms, crying foul and reaching for their guns, but I said, you’re all a bunch of damn fools. What’s your shotgun gonna do to a tank?”

“That was quick thinking, Rudy,” Charlie sighed in relief.

“Just common sense,” the man shrugged. “I told ’em, if we wage war, we’re just gonna get butchered. We gotta wage peace until we send ’em all packing! So, I got folks cooled down, but I can’t claim to be no Gandhi, you know? I need advice ’cause there ain’t no way in hell we can let ’em frack this town. We only got one watershed and if that’s poisoned, that’s it.” He made a choking sound in his throat. “The whole town’ll go. I’ve seen it in other places.”

“Have you been in touch with the other towns in the area?”

“Yeah, they got soldiers, too, same as us and every other place that passed laws to keep the extractive energy industry out. They expect resistance.”

“Well, they’re going to get it,” Charlie promised. “First of all, where do the local police stand?”

“They’re pissed off and squirming under the thumb of the army. So far as they’re concerned, they swore an oath to protect the people. We passed a law banning fracking, fair and square. Their job is to enforce the laws.”

“Wow. You’ve got some good cops here.”

“Yep. We do,” Rudy said proudly.

“And how about the people? Are they just blowing hot air and waving shotguns, or are they ready to act?”

Rudy gave him a look. He knew his people. They’d bluster and procrastinate to high heaven, but dammit, when something had to be done, it got done. They were working folks. They drove trucks, dug ditches, poured asphalt, hammered steel, cut lumber, baled hay, loaded freight . . . they weren’t afraid of hard work and you couldn’t call any one of them a coward. He nodded.

“Alright,” Charlie said, running his fingers through his hair. “If we weren’t in martial law, there’d be a lot of ways to slow the gas industry down and make this hard on them. Even as it is, they may still need certain permits, road clearances, and licenses. If you insist on those things, you’ve at least got a place to dig your heels in and resist to the fullest extent of the law. Just because they’ve got an army guarding them doesn’t mean the town clerk can’t make their life miserable. Can he or she misplace some files for a while?”

“Cathy?” Rudy snorted. “That’s her specialty.”

“Perfect, try to slow them down with paperwork. If the military waives it all, well, then there are other options. Have they got their rigs completely in yet?”

“No. That’s what they’re trying to do now, but the mud’s too soft.”

“Good. Slow them down, maybe dig some large ditches for culvert replacements on the roads that go out to the wells.”

“But we don’t need any culvert – ” Rudy truncated his words as he suddenly got what Charlie was driving at. “Mmm-hmm, I know the guy who owns the backhoe. He’d be happy to dig some deep, wide ditches in those back roads.”

“Exactly. It takes a long time for culverts to come in, especially if they never got ordered. Where are they getting their water from?”

“John Payton’s cow pond.”

“Can you get him to drain it?”

“Sure. He’s been fuming ’bout breaking the dam since they marched in with the army. He said he ain’t never given them no permit to take his water. They got his family’s mineral rights back in the Depression . . . but this whole nonsense about building a road smack on top of his wife’s petunia garden and suckin’ his cow pond dry is just plain too much! A man has got to draw a line.”

“Great,” Charlie encouraged him. “Also, those soldiers and the gas company workers are going to need services while they’re here – ”

“Well, I’ll be damned if they get it!” Rudy cried. “My sister’s got the best diner in town and she says she just plain won’t serve them. If they make her at gunpoint, she swears that she’ll piss in the soup.”

“Good for her,” Charlie chuckled. “Talk with the other shop owners and especially the gas stations. Some folks will be too scared to resist, but let’s get the others on board. They can close down for a while, maybe put up a sign; closed for death in the family.”

“Gone fishin’,” Rudy wisecracked.

“Okay, you get it,” Charlie said. “Be creative about it, but be careful, too. Get the other towns around here to follow suit. Hunker down and hold on. Keep your ear to the ground for friends or neighbors who are getting too pissed off and simmer them down. Don’t monkey wrench or destroy gas company property, either. It’s grounds for arrest and makes the company men feel like they have a right to beat people up. You’ve got to make it clear to everybody that the government is out of line to send in troops when they ought to be fighting laws in court.”

“The community rights ordinances have held up in court more than once,” Rudy mentioned.

“Yeah, that’s why this is all happening. The rights of nature are one and the same as human rights, and the oil, gas, and coal industry has been tromping on them both for far too long. Now that we’re facing major environmental crisis, the handwriting is on the wall for fossil fuels, but they just don’t want to lay down and die.”

“Hell,” Rudy snorted, “neither do we.”

“We won’t,” Charlie assured him firmly. He paused and thought for a moment. “There’s only so long the President can continue martial law . . . the people are already blowing steam out their ears because of it, and the morale of the troops in the city is sinking lower every day. If you can hold out and resist long enough, we can work on ending martial law and getting the military out of the equation.”

“We’re gonna need some support with basic things,” Rudy pointed out. “If our stores close down, we still need groceries and the like.”

“Yeah,” Charlie sighed, “and it’s not just you guys. Every town that has a pipeline, coal mine, a shipping port, or an oil refinery is probably also looking at soldiers and tanks right now. We need to get some infrastructure in place for basic necessities for all the resistors. Zadie? Do you know anybody who likes to be a switchboard operator?”

“Yeah, Charlie, but – ”

“Good. Let’s get ahold of them and start planning some resource strategy.”

“My wife runs the local branch of thrift stores,” Rudy offered.

“Really?!” Charlie’s eyes lit up.

“Yeah, they got trucks and delivery routes into two other states, too. They’re a real regular thing. Folks drop off their junk, and my wife’s team sorts it and sends it out. They got networks with other chains, too. I’ll talk to her ’bout it.” Rudy promised.

“That could make all the difference in the world. You’re going to have to try to outlast this martial law.”

“Charlie,” Zadie interrupted anxiously, “we gotta go. I have a feeling – ”

Charlie glanced at her. She was already on her feet, eyes flicking around in alarm, worry written all over her face. They heard a rustle coming through the basement. The head librarian rushed through the narrow passageway of the rolling stacks.

“Rudy,” she hissed, “there’s a cop upstairs! He says he’s looking for a terrorist. Some guy known as the Man From the North and he’s got a photo of – ” she broke off. Her eyes widened in recognition as she pointed at Charlie.

” . . . him!”

Find The Dandelion Insurrection here.

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Author/Activist Rivera Sun, syndicated by PeaceVoice, is the author of The Dandelion Insurrection, Billionaire Buddha and Steam Drills, Treadmills, and Shooting Stars, the cohost of Love (and Revolution) Radio, and the co-initiator of Live Share Grow: A Movement for the 100%. She is a trainer and social media coordinator for Campaign Nonviolence and Pace e Bene. Sun attended the James Lawson Institute on Strategic Nonviolent Resistance in 2014 and her essays on social justice movements appear in Counterpunch, Truthout and Popular Resistance. www.riverasun.com

Resisting Operation Extract and Export

Public Domain Image CCO Support the Commons!

An Essay of the Man From the North

Don’t wait until the perils of extraction are on your doorstep, in your backyard, or poisoning your water. Look around! Pay attention to the stories coming from the north, south, east, west. See the noose of hard truth tightening.

Oil and gas extraction is invading the United States of America, occupying this country like a foreign power comprised of global elites and wealthy interests. Every pipeline, drilling rig, and export terminal is funded by a transnational alliance of greedy crooks and criminals wearing the facade of respectability, big name banks, and brand-recognition corporate logos.

These are the ideological descendants of the war criminals of human history: the tyrants, dictators, genocidal maniacs, supremacists, and conquistadors. They are the Hannibals and Genghis Khans and King George’s. They are the modern empire builders . . . and they are here to pillage and plunder, murder, rape, and destroy.

They have spewed lies for decades and brainwashed half our populace. They have produced climate change denying science and mislead our citizens. They continue to claim their oil and gas developments are for energy independence when the track record of pipelines, export terminals, and financiers is clear: they have seized power to extract and export our resources, against our will, and to line their own pockets.

As the world’s nations shift toward renewables and ban fossil fuel extraction within their lands, a dangerous race is going on. Like teenagers with cars, the fossil fuel addicts are playing chicken. They are driving full-throttle to the cliff’s edge of extinction, believing that he who laughs last, laughs best. Whichever set of extractors holds the final fossil fuel card stands to win enormous profits in the era of expensive fossil fuel pricing. So, the greedy elites who occupy our halls of power are engaged in operation extract and export. The United States will become the cash cow of their greed as they mine the resources beneath the surface and sell them overseas.

We have been invaded, conquered and colonized once again. The irony of the situation stabs like a knife to the gut. Americans are descendants of centuries of conquest and genocide. The biggest bullies have always risen to the top. Now, we are all being subjugated clearly again. Long ago, the colonial pillage was for gold, timber, furs, and land. Today, the violence and repression is to steal the oil and gas that will poison and pollute every inch of its journey to the surface, across our landscape, to the end users and into the air. Our water, air, land, and entire planet will be destroyed by this greed.

We must rise up to stop it.

Three hundred and twenty million souls stand between this destructive greed and the beautiful fragile living Earth we inhabit. But many are passive, brainwashed, addicted to fossil fuels, in denial of climate change, bought off by the grimy lint of deep pockets, deluded by lies about energy independence, irrationally afraid of Saudis, Russians, the Chinese or whichever bogey-man of the day has been drudged up to keep the US populace in line.

As for the rest of us . . . we must throw our lives into active nonviolent resistance. There is no other option. The oil and gas elites control the left and the right of our politics, which is nothing more than the apparatus of wealthy pillaging and plunder. They control the courts, which have year-by-year, decision-by-decision, built up the right of corporations over the rights of people and never granted the rest of the Earth, animals, plants, or ecosystems any rights whatsoever. There are no knights in shining armor looming on our horizon. We must do the hard, determined work of not only stopping pipelines and extraction, but taking back our democracy as well.

In politics, culture, knowledge, media, entertainment, social circles, education, finance, business – in every sector of our nation, we must wrest back popular power, and insist on shared decision-making by and of the People. We must actively build true democracy, in politics and in every other aspect of our lives. Every pipeline, oil rig, gas well, export terminal must be resisted. We have to organize campaigns to divest every dollar possible from profiting off the most destructive and dangerous industry on the planet. We must mobilize in our towns and communities for renewable energy and conservation.

And, on top of all this, we must declare the truth: we have been invaded and occupied by greedy elites and corporate power. We can no longer accept this situation; we must change it. We must reject, actively, their lies and brainwashing. We must evict them from our halls of power.

And we must do this today, not tomorrow. We must act now . . . before we no longer have clean water to drink or air to breathe or a healthy planet that we can call home.

 

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The Man From the North is a fictional writer in Rivera Sun’s novel, The Dandelion Insurrectio n. The novel takes place in the near future, in “a time that looms around the corner of today”, when a rising police state controlled by the corporate-political elite have plunged the nation into the grip of a hidden dictatorship. In spite of severe surveillance and repression, the Man From the North’s banned articles circulate through the American populace, reporting on resistance and fomenting nonviolent revolution. This article is one of a series written by The Man From the North, which are not included in the novel, but can be read here .  This essay particularly references Chapter 11, which can be read as an excerpt here.

…

Author/Activist Rivera Sun, syndicated by PeaceVoice, is the author of The Dandelion Insurrection, Billionaire Buddha and Steam Drills, Treadmills, and Shooting Stars, the cohost of Love (and Revolution) Radio, and the co-initiator of Live Share Grow: A Movement for the 100%. She is a trainer and social media coordinator for Campaign Nonviolence and Pace e Bene. Sun attended the James Lawson Institute on Strategic Nonviolent Resistance in 2014 and her essays on social justice movements appear in Counterpunch, Truthout and Popular Resistance. www.riverasun.com

Countering Hate and Discrimination

Photo from the Saratogian News by Trevor Clark

by Rivera Sun for Campaign Nonviolence and Peace Voice

Many people in the United States are expressing concern over the rise of hatred, hate crimes, bigotry, racism, sexism, and Islamophobia. At the same time, a number of creative nonviolent responses have arisen for addressing discrimination and hatred on the ground. Here are a few stories from the past few weeks.

In Michigan, after someone threatened a young Muslim woman that he would set her on fire if she did not remove her hijab, the Muslim Student Association decided to hold a group Ishaa prayer (which happens at night) at University of Michigan to show that they are proud to be Muslim and will not let hatred and threats push them into fear. Concerned that there would be pushback, they asked allies to join them. To the MSA’s surprise, two hundred non-Muslims showed up on the cold night to stand guard in a protective circle around them. Read more about the story here.

In Sarasota Springs, Florida, swastikas were spray-painted on buildings and streets. One inspired person turned them into a message of love. The unknown person connected the legs of the swastika into a square where each section contains one of the letters L O V E. This was a smart and creative response to a symbol that has become synonymous with white supremacy, violence, and hate.

In response to concerns that president-elect Trump would follow through with his campaign comments about establishing a Muslim registry and requiring all Muslims to sign up, thousands of non-Muslim Americans pledged that they would put their names on the registry if their Muslim brothers and sisters were required to do so. Jonathan Greenblatt, the head of the Jewish Anti-Defamation League, said that he would, too. “If one day Muslim Americans will be forced to register their identities, then that is the day that this proud Jew will register as a Muslim,” Greenblatt said.

Sanctuary Cities nationwide state their positions: they’re not backing down. Sanctuary Cities are municipalities that adopt a range of policies that resist unjust immigration laws and deportation practices. Since Election Day, mayors and police chiefs in more than 10 major cities, including San Francisco, Oakland, Los Angeles, New York, Chicago and Washington, D.C., have reaffirmed their commitment to upholding their sanctuary polices, even in the face of federal threats. Learn more about this here.

The Denver City Council issued an official proclamation to all of its citizens, announcing its position on inclusivity, justice, and freedom from fear of persecution. One part of the proclamation reads: “We commit to evaluate our systems of government with an inclusive lens. Our communities will foster and ensure equity, social justice, and freedom from fear of persecution based on race, religious belief, country of origin, sexual orientation, gender, physical ability, or age. Specifically, we must work together to support our brothers and sisters in communities of color, LGBTQ, immigrants, refugees, and those of the Muslim and Jewish faiths who at times have been targeted in unjust ways.” Read the whole proclamation here.

Everyone has heard of the outspoken comments of the cast of the musical Hamilton. Vice-president-elect Mike Pence was in the audience and treated to a respectfully, but clearly worded statement from the performers. Cast member Brandon Victor Dixon said, “We, sir — we — are the diverse America who are alarmed and anxious that your new administration will not protect us, our planet, our children, our parents, or defend us and uphold our inalienable rights,” he said. “We truly hope that this show has inspired you to uphold our American values and to work on behalf of all of us.” The statement set off a storm of reactions nationwide, including from president-elect Donald Trump. Pence, however, said he was not offended, and that the statement from the cast was, “what freedom sounds like”. Learn more about the story here.

At Baylor University in Texas, a student harassed a young black woman, Natasha Nkhama, on Election Day, shoving her off the sidewalk and saying it was for whites-only. Two days later, 300 students walked with her to class to take a clear stand against racism and discrimination. Using the hashtag #IWalkWithNatasha, they provided a powerful message to a nation reeling from the election results. They also tapped into the strength of collective action and protective accompaniment to ensure that the harassment not repeated. See videos and read the story here.

In many other places across the United States, including Gainesville, FL; Beloit, WI; and Detroit, MI, people took to the streets in demonstrations, marches, and rallies to proclaim their solidarity and common humanity with all human beings. These actions focused on common humanity, rather than political figures, and emphasized love and support for those who are feeling or being targeted by hate speech, policy proposals, or potential cabinet choices of the incoming administration.

All of these actions, and many more, offer us examples of how we can organize and mobilize in our communities to take clear and proactive stances in support of respect, dignity, human rights, civil rights and liberties, inclusion, safety, and justice.

 

Czechoslovakia’s Velvet Revolution: Know Your Nonviolent History

This week in nonviolent history commemorates Czechoslovakia’s Velvet Revolution in 1989. Campaigners sought to end the Soviet occupation of the country, as well as shifting from communist rule. They wanted to remove the laws of state-mandated censorship and demanded free elections.

Just eighteen months before the November nonviolent revolution, Czechoslovakians organized their first public mass demonstration since 1969. Roman Catholic groups seeking religious freedom organized a Candle Demonstration, and the event on March 25th, 1988, was attended by more than 5,000 Slovaks. Police forces responded by shooting protesters with water cannons and beating them with sticks and batons.

The fall of the Berlin Wall on November 6th, 1989, became a galvanizing event as Czechs and Slovaks watched Soviet control of Eastern Europe begin to crumble. Ten days later, on November 16th, peaceful student demonstrators marched from the universities to the Ministry of Education to present demands for educational reform.

The next day, November 17th, 50,000 people came out to protest in Prague. Riot police came to break up the crowds, blocking escape routes and beating up the demonstrators. A rumor, which later proved false, claimed that one student had been killed. That evening, students and theater actors decided to go on strike. On the eighteenth, all shows and rehearsals stopped in the theater district. The stages opened their doors for community discussions and the Civic Forum was established by dissident playwright, and future president, Vaclav Havel.

The Global Nonviolent Action Database reports that, “Homemade posters and proclamations were posted in public spaces, and actors read a proclamation by the students and artists to audiences, calling for a general strike on 27 November. The next day, members of artistic and literary associations joined the strike, as well as actors in Bratislava, Brno, and Ostrava. In addition, about 500 Slovak artists, scientists, and leaders met at the Art Forum in Bratislava, denouncing the attack against the students in Prague. While there, they formed the Public Against Violence organization, which became the leading force behind the opposition movement in Slovakia. In addition, dissident playwright Vaclav Havel helped establish the Civic Forum, which called for the dismissal of top officials responsible for the violence on 17 November, the release of all political prisoners, and political and economic reforms.”

By November 20th, students and actors agreed to go on permanent strike until Communist officials stepped down. Numerous mass demonstrations broke out in Prague and other parts of the country, sometimes exceeding 200,000 people. Over the next week, nonviolent actions intensified throughout many sectors of society. Television staff threatened to strike over government censorship of their coverage of the demonstrations. The Minister of Defense declared that the military would not break up the protests. Czechoslovakia TV and Radio joined the general strike. The editorial staff of the major Communist newspaper joined the movement. Two members of the riot police apologized for their November 17th actions to a crowd of hundreds of thousands.

On November 27th, as planned, a nationwide two-hour general strike took place at noon. Nearly three quarters of the entire population of Czechoslovakia participated. The next day, the prime minister agreed to form a new coalition government and overturn the sections of the Constitution that guaranteed Communist rule. The transition of the government took place in stages. As the Global Nonviolent Action Database reports, “In early December, Communist leader Gustav Husak appointed the first largely non-Communist government in Czechoslovakia since 1948, and eventually resigned. Two weeks later, Alexander Dubcek became the first speaker of the federal parliament, and on 29 December 1989 Havel was elected president of the republic. Free elections were held in June 1990.”

Learn more about the Velvet Revolution here.

http://nvdatabase.swarthmore.edu/content/czechoslovakians-campaign-democracy-velvet-revolution-1989

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Author/Activist Rivera Sun, syndicated by PeaceVoice, is the author of The Dandelion Insurrection, Billionaire Buddha and Steam Drills, Treadmills, and Shooting Stars, the cohost of Love (and Revolution) Radio, and the co-initiator of Live Share Grow: A Movement for the 100%. She is a trainer and social media coordinator for Campaign Nonviolence and Pace e Bene. Sun attended the James Lawson Institute on Strategic Nonviolent Resistance in 2014 and her essays on social justice movements appear in Counterpunch, Truthout and Popular Resistance. www.riverasun.com