woman in black

I stood on the street in Roseburg today with the Woman In Black. They have been standing in front of the BLM office on a main street in Roseburg every Friday since the war started, 6 years ago now. They stand, in quiet and solidarity against violence.

This is a very powerful thing to see, a long line of woman standing solemnly stretching down the street. And an even more powerful thing to be a part of. We had one sign that said, "End the Circle of Violence", and one that said, "Woman in Mourning". There were of course several people who gave us a strong thumbs down, most people just looked uncomfortable, like we reminded them of something they didn't want to be reminded of. One person kept mouthing "circle of violence" like he didn't understand it. There were several cars of supporters, giving us the peace sign. Most people just ignored us though, like when someone's dog takes a dump and they pretend not to see it so they don't have to do anything about it.

And of course on the opposite corner there were several pro war ralliers, holding two huge American flags and "support our troops" signs, dressed in red, white and blue, and yelling to passing cars, which were honking in support. Honk Honk Honk. All the big trucks honked and then laughed at us. Yea, Honk if you love war. Honk if you love cheap oil. Honk if you want to see this country bankrupt.

I don't understand what it is about peace that scares people. Peace is patriotic too.