Second meeting for planning/coordinating the weekend of March 14 to March 16 last night and the feedback from the progressive and activist community brings change.

We appear to be ditching the them of How Shall We Live Together.

I think the simmering resentments, the lack of accountability, the failure of justice in Gaza, in Washington DC, in Olympia make it difficult for significant parts of the community here to embrace the idea of living together with the more militaristic elements of mainstream cultures.  We aren't there yet. 

I can understand that. I get that.

We have lots of examples of unbridled use of military force against largely civilian populations around the world.

I look at South Africa's use of truth and reconciliation as a means to put a society back together, a way to figure out how the various populations of South Africa would live together, but that was done after apartheid was ended. And I think it was not as successful as it might have been as the change in political rule in South Africa has not created as great a change for the poor working class as might have happened. South Africa did not become Denmark with a happy population with a great safety net and a small military footprint in the world.

Here is what I understand to be the most current schedule of events planned:

Friday at or around noon, there will be an event at TESC to remember Rachel and her work. I am told that the following words capture some of Rachel's world view: Community, Education, Action. (Maybe that is our theme? Rachel: Community, Education, Action. We are continuing to work on that.)

Therese S is expected to be the point on that at this time.

We are planning a "teach-in" type event for Sunday from 3:00 to 6:00 pm. Event location may be the Olympia Center. We are working on that. The speakers for this event would be Steve Niva, professor at TESC, Jen Marlowe, filmmaker, and Adrien Niyongabo, survivor of Rwanda/Burundi violence and reconciliation and trauma teacher.

Peter B is expected to be the point on that at this time.

I recognize that some folks think we are stretching too far by including anything other than issues of Israel and Palestine in this discussion. I appreciate a willingness to allow the discussion to stretch to consider other large scale political, human tragedies like the one that happened in Rwanda and Burundi in 1993, like the one that is occurring in the Sudan today. I believe the path to addressing all of these is the same. We have to recognize the inherent humanity, the sacredness of each being.

The underlying causes of these various conflicts share common roots: the struggle over resources, land control. The struggles and conflicts are all exacerbated by an awful varnish of ethnicity, race, and/or creed. Sometimes I think some of these fights over the holy sites are truly amazing in their ability to venerate a site as holy, and their inability to recognize the sacred everywhere, in everything.

After the teach-in event on Sunday, a walk to Percival Landing is planned to remember Rachel. We are working on the details, candles are not allowed on the Landing. Releasing things onto the tides that own us all and meet us at Percival will need to be constrained by considerations of the various plants and animals who call the tidewaters home. These beings are sacred also and deserve our consideration.

The Chorale Society has their event at 7 pm, War and Hope. I don't know if they chose these pieces and this title with Rachel in mind, but it seems to fit.

More as time passes.