Exactly twenty-two years removed from the day where soldiers, sailors and airmen of the Allied Expeditionary Force "marched with the hopes and prayers of liberty loving people everywhere," a man named Robert F. Kennedy exercised his liberty and spoke in apartheid South Africa.
This speech at the University of Cape Town has been remembered through history for this section, which reminds me so much of what so many people here have done for myself and for others around the world:
"It is from numberless diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is shaped. Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance."
Those powerful words are chiseled into a monument which lies across from RFK's grave.
There is another section of this speech which reaches through the years. As a student of history, I wanted to share it with you:
"The first element of this individual liberty is the freedom of speech: the right to express and communicate ideas, to set oneself apart from the dumb beasts of field and forest; to recall governments to their duties and obligations; above all, the right to affirm one's membership and allegiance to the body politic - to society - to the men with whom we share our land, our heritage, and our children's future.
Hand in hand with freedom of speech goes the power to be heard, to share in the decisions of government which shape men's lives. Everything that makes man's life worthwhile - family, work, education, a place to rear one's children and a place to rest one's head - all this depends on decisions of government; all can be swept away by a government which does not heed the demands of its people. Therefore, the essential humanity of men can be protected and preserved only where government must answer - not just to the wealthy, not just to those of a particular religion, or a particular race, but to all its people.
And even government by the consent of the governed, as in our own Constitution, must be limited in its power to act against its people; so that there may be no interference with the right to worship, or with the security of the home; no arbitrary imposition of pains or penalties by officials high or low; no restrictions on the freedom of men to seek education or work or opportunity of any kind, so that each man may become all he is capable of becoming.
These are the sacred rights of Western society."
Timeless, isn't it??
In the beginning, at least in these parts, there was just one man who made no apologies. His wit, his perseverance and a whole bunch of tech support made it possible for others to follow in his path at this site and have the power to be heard, to communicate ideas, to attempt to recall governments to their duties and obligations, to create ripples of hope.
Over time, a community was formed. A community of different types of voices bringing many different ideas to the table. Kos takes no prisoners. Meteor Blades is such an easy, informative read. Kaili Joy's passion jumps off the page. OPOL can lay down a rant and really ask some hard questions. And who could live without WeatherDude when the clouds darken outside our windows? Ministry of Truth, nyceve, beach babe in fl, I could go on and on. However, I wanted to talk about one person in particular whose ability to bring laughter out of the tragic state of our political discourse is a gift to us all: Bill in Portland Maine.
Bill is one of us and perhaps uniquely so, in that members of this community directly hired him to write for us five years ago. ((Man, time flies when you're having fun, huh?))
I realize that many people ask for contributions at DKos...for dire needs, for campaigns and for our own community political actions. I'm asking today that you donate to a member of our family, for a community service that gives back so much more than it costs...not in dollars and cents but in joy and in hope for a better tomorrow. Cheers & Jeers is a great expression of community here and I ask for your support of it.
Please take a moment and give what you can, as it is needed. We pay Bill's salary! Thank you!! Rec's and comments are awesome as well!! Thanks for that too!
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