Moving location

 

 

 

Yesterday, we did a banner drop from the overpass right next to the Chamber of Commerce. I had thought that showing up at the Chamber would be a good idea because it would highlight its role in this deal that brought Pratt & Whitney to town. True, but once we were there, and had some big banners for the bridge, I realized that the exposure we got from being on the overpass was even a better idea. The number of cars whizzing by during the rush hour was stunning. And we did get a lot of horn blasts in solidarity.

 

Being on the street and in front of the building was also good and gave us the opportunity to pass out flyers and interact with people.

 

 

There were about 30 of us there and we were pretty much fired up about the location. Our other locations have been good - at the site of the bridge construction and at Biltmore Park - but this one was the complete package. What could be better than using the Chamber of Commerce building as a backdrop (not to mention taking advantage of its parking lot), interacting with people coming from the nearby residential neighborhood, and flashing big signs at the massive flow of interstate traffic, all in one fell swoop? It's a prime location.

Bearing witness effectively is connected to location. I think of powerful actions I have been part of that have carried the most umpf: in front of the White House with Witness Against Torture; at Kings Bay Naval Station calling out against the Trident nuclear submarines; in the Arizona desert outside of Eloy detention center in solidarity with the asylum-seeking prisoners inside. The message is intimately connected to being at the scene of the crime.

In the case of our efforts to show up against the Pratt & Whitney deal here, we have put ourselves in locations that might all be said to be crime scenes, whether it be the place of physical destruction or the places where it was planned and paid for. It's all been right on point in my mind. And moving locations has been important to telling the whole story. Each location, in its own way, has been a moving experience.

I've been thinking for a while that we should not just move our locations, but organize a moving action: a peace walk from one place to another. I've done a number of peace walks over the past few years, usually of several days duration. I've even organized and managed a 10-day peace walk. I love them because I like the movement and the exposure and - when led by Buddhist monks drumming and chanting, as many of mine have been - they carry a spiritual tone that conveys a deeper understanding of why we are seeking justice. It's not just about practicalities, it's about moralities.

 

I see that having a Reject Raytheon peace walk could be another moving location that would be an effective bearing of witness. We could connect the dots with such a walk, going from the Chamber of Commerce to the bridge construction site. It would not only be a way to get a lot of attention, but would tie together two fundamental locations of this disastrous P&W deal: one the cause, the other the effect. Our walk would hopefully move people to see the connection.