Evidence Of Things Unseen: The Rise of a New Movement
(Page 7 of 7)
October 2003
By Tom Hayden, Alternet.org
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If we do not succeed, we at least will have reached millions more people with our message and networking, and we will need that public support in the years ahead. Even if our best efforts fall short, remember than even those who have the power can be forced to make big concessions.
SDS burned out and McGovern lost, but Nixon had to retreat from Vietnam and recognize China. There came the vote for 18-year-olds, the end of the draft, the creation of the EPA, OSHA, the Clean Air and Water acts.
Bush won the presidency with the help of his Supreme Court, but the same Court ruled in favor of the gay-lesbian community against sodomy laws after 40 years of struggle that began with riots in Greenwich Village. The recent Court decisions on medical marijuana show the formidable power of public opinion on the move.
It comes down to recognizing the dignity in all things. Dignity has intrinsic value, it cannot be violated without a resistance. It cannot be defeated. Wherever there is life, dignity resists suffocation and oblivion. That's the world we want. That's the world the world wants. Not an empire, not even a world of great powers, but a world of democracies based on dignity.
Tom Hayden is a progressive activist, author and former California elected official. His most recent book is Irish on the Inside.
Reprinted with permission from AlterNet.org
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