when there wasn’t so much to protest about,
when war was war and peace was peace,
and we saw the effects of nuclear power
in newspapers and on the television screen.
It was all about humans committing atrocities
against other humans and fighting for our rights.
Now our sacred Mother Earth is under threat
from careless humans and greedy global companies,
we juggle all the balls and find it hard to choose
between humanity and everything that’s left to lose.
Kim M. Russell, 25th May 2020
My response to earthweal weekly challenge: Protest in a Time of Pandemic
Sherry tells us that she has taken part in many protests in her life, with her strong sense of truth and social justice, which sha has always expressed in her poetry. She says that she was always hopeful that the transformation of consciousness on the planet would occur before all was lost, and has been having a hard time since 2016, with all the awful things that have happened, the unchallenged blatant corruption at top levels, and the smug grinning smiles of collusion. And now we have the corona virus.
Sherry says we must rally, and our job as poets is to ‘reflect the world around us, throw light on difficult topics, bear witness, advocate for change, at the very least leave a historical record of the times we are living through, in case humanity somehow survives, and there are people alive in the future to read our words’.
There is no shortage of things to protest; Sherry invites us to take our pick and unfurl our banners. She wats to know what keeps us awake at night, what worries us most, what we feel needs to change – what is happening in our parts of the world that concern or appal us.
writing in north norfolk 
I remember with nostalgia when we had ONE clear issue to protest. Now there are so many, it keeps us silenced and I believe that plays into the hands of oppressors very nicely. We can’t find a clear space in which to protest and are beaten down. Your words reminded me of this. I love the photo you included. So glad you added your voice to the conversation, Kim. Yay!
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I remember with nostalgia when we had ONE clear issue to protest. Now there are so many, it keeps us silenced and I believe that plays into the hands of oppressors very nicely. We can’t find a clear space in which to protest and are beaten down. Your words reminded me of this. I love the photo you included. So glad you added your voice to the conversation, Kim. Yay!
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Thanks Sherry!
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I especially like your ending lines. I protested too when I was young. I have to admit that now I question its effectiveness.
Good to read you here.
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Thank you, Myrna!
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It is hard to work out how to frame an effective protest these days, I agree. Your poem highlights the way issues have become obscured and what’s left is a strange sense of ineffectiveness.
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Sometimes I just I feel lost. Poetry gives me something to lean on and it’s a banner of protest too.
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Yes I feel like that too sometimes. Protest poetry can be very influential.
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Sherry is right, the constant barrage of distressing actions is designed to divide and leave us paralyzed. And yet inaction is not a solution. We must choose something to fight for. (K)
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I agree. for me the environment comes first, which includes tackling human greed and irresponsibility. Poetry is my march with a banner.
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I agree. Without a place to live, everything else becomes meaningless.
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You made me think of all those people camping out in St Paul’s square, protesting everything. It’s hard to know where to start. Really hard. Maybe we just need to choose the one hill we will die on.
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I can only manage a small hill these days. If we all do that, we can make a difference.
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I couldn’t agree more with your title. I could feel the sigh in between lines. Beautiful, as always, Kim.
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Thank you, Sumana.
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So sad that we struggle to choose. Well written, Kim.
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Thank you VJ.
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Welcome Kim
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It is true – we really can and do loose strength by being overwhelmed in the face of all that is happening – all that is wrong.
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That seems to be the plan. Trump is an example of that.
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I feel your pain and grief. So important to experience that. And as the poorly-scripted play on the world stage becomes more and more like a caricature, I am finding it easier to see these are the last gasps of something old on a rotten foundation collapsing at last! I’m tuning in to Gaia and the love emerging. No fear to mine here, Google, just move along…
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Thank you, Victoria.
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Yes, it used to be much easier but these days, we are overwhelmed with issues.Well done Kim.
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Thanks Linda!
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Good point, Kim, the target used to be clearer.
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Thanks Jim!
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It saddens me when people don’t love and respect the environment in which they live.I have protested , I still do hoping to give a better place for generations to come.
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