There is something happening. Now. It is sad and it is uplifting at the same time. Probably all of you know about the tragic shooting of students in Parkland, Florida on February 14th. Maybe you are even sick of hearing about it. I have been following what has happened afterward fairly closely. A few days after the event I was explaining to my husband an interview I had seen where a father spoke of the loss of his son. Among other things, the father said he was ‘pissed’. I’m sure. My voice cracked and I began to cry, having to pause to be able to finish the story. Imagine losing your child to such senseless violence.
In their abject grief and shock, the students of Margory Stoneman Douglas High School, wasted no time. While grieving their best friends and classmates, their anger cut through the BS that has surrounded this issue for decades. Because they are young, a large portion of their journey has played out on social media. It is one of the times when I have been glad to have some connections on Twitter and Instagram. It has been so impressive to see how these young people handle themselves. There has been very little ego, hubris, double talk or any of the things adults are given to using. They just tell it like they have experienced it. This has happened to THEM. To their friends. They are the targets.
It is humbling. It is powerful. And totally frightening.
Things do not ever stay the same. Change happens whether or not we are ready for it or invite it. The United States is the country of my birth. It is where I lived the first 30 years of my life. I still carry an American passport as well as an Australian one. But most importantly, I am still a member of the human race. I’m a human who values life. I’m a human who doesn’t want to see senseless tragedy.
We should all care about violent death from terrorism, war and oppression in every country. But it is nearly overwhelming, and hard to know what to do. In this instance I have seen enough to recognise a genuine movement and one to which I can contribute a small amount. My small amount has been to follow the students, trying to understand and support their journey with comments and sharing. And this blog post. This week I also downloaded a song from iTunes, part of the proceeds from which will go to support the students who have organised Marches in all 50 states of the United States. The song is a ‘mashup’ (combination) of two songs from two major Musicals, ‘Hamilton’ and ‘Dear Evan Hansen’. The songs are titled ‘The Story of Tonight’ and ‘You Will Be Found’. The creative genius of Lin-Manuel Miranda, who wrote ‘Hamilton’, has penned this anthem called ‘Found Tonight’. Miranda and Ben Platt, winner of a Golden Globe for ‘Dear Even Hansen’, sing it and I have included it here for you to… contemplate.
Saturday, 24 March is the March for Our Lives day. I hope it is a peaceful but powerful day. In his Golden Globe acceptance speech Ben Platt said:
‘Don’t try to be anyone but yourself, the things that make you strange are the things that make you powerful’.
Let’s all find our strange and powerful selves, and strive to make a difference. Lots of little tiny powerful moments together can cause a big thing to happen. The students are showing us the way.
ardysez 
Simply yes! Thank you . . . . conscience . . . moral obligation . . . and that for all of us, not only those born in the United States.
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Thank you Eha. I understand a person can watch the March in Washington live on YouTube, so I may give it a try!
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Beautiful post!
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Thank you so much Debi.
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I hope they are able to bring about changes that adults have either not been able to or Congress has not been willing to. It’s time and it’s needed.
xxx Huge Hugs xxx
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It is passed time, and yes, it is sorely needed. Thank you David. Hugs back to you!
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Fantastic post…..these young people may well be the force that forces change on the willful, selfish and unbalanced gun lobby in the US. Bravo.
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Bravo is exactly the word I have used on many of the comments to support them. It is an amazing thing to watch.
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Wow. That song. I have tears in my eyes. And when I think the tears are not worth anything I will remember what you said here: “My small amount has been to follow the students, trying to understand and support their journey with comments and sharing. And this blog post.” There is always something we can do, even if it feels useless. I had not been paying attention to this for a variety of reasons, although seeing on Twitter, and admiring, what the youngsters are doing and mentally applauding. I shall buy the song too. And try and watch some of the march live. And applaud on Twitter if nothing else.
Thank you, Ardys.
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(Can’t download. Will see if I can donate instead – my system is showing it’s insecure at the moment. But thanks for alerting me – I see there are marches all over the place, wish I had known.)
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Yes, even if the only thing you can do is educate yourself so that in conversation you can explain to others what is going on, that is worthwhile. Apparently the live coverage on YouTube begins in about 80 minutes from now. Thank you for caring enough to try, Mary. The song made me teary too. It is a stunner when you hear it through your earphones!
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The world needs this change. It needs these young people, and all people to make a stand in any way they can. Geography does not define an issue. We are one, connected in our humanity. That things do not ever stay the same is of much comfort to me. Happiness can be fleeting but genuine & generous in its manifestations. Misery and oppression relentless, violence all too commonplace does not make it acceptable. Too many arguing the necessity of that which perpetuates it are not actually living it.
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Until these students began their movement, I was really in disbelief that every time one of these shootings happened things seemed to just be swept under the rug and everyone moved on. It had become the commonplace tragedy. I cannot imagine what it would be like to be a parent sending their child to school in a country where this happens with such regularity, or worse, being a child who grew up in that environment. Thank you for your thoughtful comment Dale.
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As a child of the 60’s living then in America, we fought bad government policies and decisions and I believe we made a difference. So, I fully support the peaceful protest which occurred in mass yesterday in my home country. America’s young are the voters of the future, but will the current “greed machine” running the country listen? Sadly though, my years of life say they will not.
One simple beginning to a solution is “gun control”. That doesn’t mean disarming America. It just means putting in place better control. Here in Sweden we have very strict “gun control”, but trust me, anyone that wants to go hunting or range shooting can do just that (provided that go to classes and get a license). What you don’t see here (but see in the US) are people walking into your local grocery store, parks, movie theaters and so on packing (wearing) an exposed sidearm. You don’t see bump stocks and assault weapons of any kind except those in the hands of the police, army and terrorist that smuggle them in. Thanks Ardys for your frank and passionate post.
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Thank you for your contribution to the discussion, Ron. Yes, I think it is important for the people who are hunters and shooters to realise this movement is not to disarm everyone, but to put stronger controls in place, making it more difficult for people who would harm others, to get ahold of the powerful automatic weapons. The Swedish are so sensible about so many things! We loved Stockholm when we visited several years ago.
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Thank you Mary, very glad it ‘spoke’ to you.
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I watch in disbelief most of the time, to see on media and hear folks talking about the gun control issue here in the states, with complete ignorance of the root of the problem. Are we not an evolved enough people to look at and try to understand the individuals who commit these crimes and see what we have created (as a society) in this country? This isn’t really about guns or any other weapon. It is about the mentality of our society.
I found this news clip to be the ONLY one worthy of watching regarding the student’s march, and this young woman to have the wisdom to see the problem with simplicity. The way humans treat one another is a horror. https://ijr.com/2018/03/1076514-brave-student-confronts-classmates-during-gun-control-walkout/
I understand students speaking out. But so much of it is just more anger and festering laced with hate. Kids acting out not so differently than their parents.
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It is a very complex issue, and one I couldn’t begin to fully explore, but I felt I wanted to highlight this particular aspect of the movement because at least they are making small gains in what is a huge and complex situation. Thank you for the link, Lori, I had seen it here in Australia and can appreciate what this girl is saying and I admire the strength it would have taken her to speak her mind.
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