Requiem

Eugene McCarthy, 89 and
Richard Pryor, 65
Both men died on December 10th, 2005.
That seems to be all they had in common.

It is interesting how Eugene McCarthy, and his activism against the Vietnam War, was a peripheral issue to me. In the early ‘60s, I was a young mother raising two daughters. Parenting is hard work, to use a Bush euphemism. Frankly, his description of hard work has nothing to do with parenting, commitment, or honor. A child is a blank canvas on which one paints faith, hope, love, and, above all, HONOR. And that, my friends, takes a lot of hard work!

You can google Senator Eugene McCarthy’s biography for an accurate history of his contribution to our great country. When McCarthy ran for the presidency, he directly opposed Lyndon Baines Johnson. McCarthy was adamantly opposed to the Vietnam War. The people in our country were divided and overwhelmed with unrest. America was jerking and jolting its way through a nasty phase of its history. Americans witnessed the gruesome reality of war day after day as it played out on televisions in every living room. Flag-draped coffins were off-loaded night after night, reminding us of the terrible cost of war. The message was clear. My goal, in those chaotic days, was to protect my sweet, innocent babies in a country suffering a nervous breakdown.

During the McCarthy days, we worshiped at a progressive church. Remember, it was the ‘60s, and the churches seemed to be suffering a degree of unrest, too. We heard of Catholic priest after Catholic priest leaving their vocation. Our little family attended Mass in several different parishes, traveling up to forty-five minutes to any particular one in an attempt to protect our babies. We didn’t always succeed. Hence, there was the ultimate experience of a sandal-clad priest distributing Ash Wednesday ashes from an infantry helmet.

Although the ‘60s were troubling, one must look back in admiration at the country’s citizenry. Americans everywhere expressed their dissent with the status quo through music, art, civil disobedience, dress (or lack thereof), and writings. Today’s message seems clear: the masses must demonstrate, peacefully or otherwise.

McCarthy knew it could be done. He knew that an inept government could be overthrown by a national movement. Likewise, this year, America saw irrefutable evidence of a national movement in the massive number of marchers that showed up on August 24, 2005, in Washington, DC. That was a peaceful march not only to support Cindy Sheehan but to demonstrate love for our country. We must continue to demonstrate all across America, just as did the peaceniks of yesteryear. We must rescue our democracy. A substantial number of Americans is eager to take back the country. It will be messy, but it will be democracy at its finest. In the ‘60s, McCarthy had a vision. Americans chose a different path. Let’s not make that mistake again.

The Revolution Starts Now!

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Just imagine hearing that Richard Pryor set himself on fire free-basing. That didn’t seem particularly unusual during the ‘60s and ‘70s! Just another nutcase, I thought. As it turns out, Pryor was the same age as I am. That explains what attracted me to him and his crude, absurd humor.

Pryor used his craft to point out the inequities hidden in our society: inequities based solely on the shade of one’s skin. We didn’t get it then; we don’t get it now. There is nothing funny about discrimination. Not since Pryor has anyone even tried to teach that.

What is happening to our democracy isn’t funny, either. Not even Pryor’s edgy humor would help.