Me Three

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Let Freedom Reign

By Nick Allanach

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The anxiety and tension of this summer’s build-up to the Republican convention is now a fading memory. The heavily guarded protests, the threats of terrorist attacks, the skirmishes with delegates in the streets are now nothing more than discarded newsprint and babbling blogs. Last week only reaffirmed the passions and beliefs of both the Right and Left. Admittedly, these passions are extreme; yet, when both sides “are involved in a struggle of historical proportions” how could they not be?

I sometimes wish I could say I have, as a writer, professionally distanced myself from the protests and speeches of this week’s circus to gain a clear, more appropriate understanding of the overall social, political climate. But I can’t hide my biases. I just have a tough time associating the hate of Zell Miller with the love America is supposed to represent. Furthermore, I cannot throw on makeup and smile with empty, complacent, Stepford Wifesque ignorance (i.e. Laura Bush) as America foolishly tries to sustain empire through violence and war. And finally, I’m just not persuaded to the view that President Bush can provide “steady consistent leadership” partly because he can barely make it through a speech without nervously stuttering or uncomfortably sneering when interrupted - three times - by protesters (whom somehow infiltrated the heavily fortified convention hall).

Or perhaps there is something more. My thoughts go back to a specific moment this week when I was unexpectedly overwhelmed by the passions of my own concerns. No, it wasn’t during Sunday’s UFPJ protest, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s action packed performance, or even while defiantly standing outside Madison Square Garden, staring down cops with M-16 assault rifles. My moment came suddenly (as powerful situations tend to so often do, which is why meticulously planned out conventions disappoint).

I spent Day 3 of the convention as I usually spend Wednesdays – at work. As usual, when my shift at the New School was done, I walked to Union Square to catch the train. But before rushing underground I took some time to take in the gathering of activists, cops, and media that had made Union Square a lively and invigorating place for the week. Although I was originally disgusted by the amount of T-shirts and pins being peddled (which made this whole event seem more like a rock concert) I grew to accept them as valid advertising. What got to me, though, was a display by the group Eyes Wide Open, of nearly 1000 boots, each symbolically representing soldiers killed in the “just” war in Iraq.

Normally, I would dismiss such a display as ineffectual and heavy-handed. But there was something about the way the shadows stretched across the concrete as the sun set on these rows of boots, while a woman read off the names of each soldier killed that really struck me. I began to feel tears swell up in my eyes, but not the forced tears from President Bush’s speech. These tears were real, so were these boots, and so were the lives lost. Maybe it was the names and ages marked on each pair that made the whole thing meaningful? Maybe it was because of the historical significance of the ground I stood on? The statue of George Washington confidently riding his horse (into battle? into the future?) has seen draft riots of the American Civil War, labor movement protests at the turn of the century, Vietnam war protest, 9/11 vigils, and now – this.

Maybe these boots placed in even rows are not as moving as the vigils of 9/11, and admittedly, the protest of the 2004 RNC could never hold the same significance as those from the Civil Rights movement. However, this week will still play an essential part in America’s ongoing historical project. “Freedom is” as George Bush rightfully (even if a touch too religious) said “on the march.” Yet, as these boots and the charged history of this square suggest, freedom will always break through the shackles of illusion. Bush wants to “extend the frontiers of freedom.” But as activists on the streets and anger throughout the global community clearly indicate, this freedom will only fail if it is defined through moneyed interest and sustained only through militaristic force.

Liberty boxed into “opportunity zones” is not liberty at all. And just because “we have historic goals in our reach,” and when it comes to achieving them “nothing will hold us back,” we cannot forget the vital lessons of our past as we eagerly embrace the future. These lessons show us that empire cannot maintain control through extremist beliefs and violence; it needs the legitimate support of the world and its people. Unfortunately for Bush, the people (despite new poll numbers) are not giving him the support he needs, as exemplified this week in New York. Change is coming.

Nick Allanach is a writer living in New York City. His work appears in Canon Magazine, and he can be reached here.