Occupy movement – Page 3

A new birth of freedom

Posted on February 9, 2012February 5, 2012 by kathiemm

“[W]e here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain–that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom–and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” (Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg, PA, November 19, 1863)

Abraham Lincoln, 1858. Image in public domain.

As we celebrate Lincoln’s birthday on Sunday, let’s reflect on freedoms that still demand pursuit. There are many:

Freedom from racism, sexism, prejudice, and discrimination
Freedom from tyranny and injustice
Freedom to have control and choice in regard to one’s body, one’s mind, one’s labor
Freedom to live by the ethic of reciprocity without being punished for doing so.

Right now, important efforts to obtain freedom and democracy are underway in many parts of the world, and often without the support of our own democracy in the U.S.

Our own democracy is in need of support as well, as it is often undermined by our own government and citizens in the name of national security.

The United States does not have a good record regarding support for democratic movements elsewhere in the world. As a Muslim friend of mine said, the election of Barack Obama was in many ways revolutionary—an effort to take back the power of the people, by the people, and for the people from the ruling military/industrial/media complex.

The pro-democracy and Occupy movements throughout the world offer an opportunity for the President and the American people to put our money, support, and understanding where its professed values lie—to advance freedom, democracy, and peace.

Kathie Malley-Morrison, Professor of Psychology

Vaclav Havel, crusader against tyranny

Posted on December 19, 2011December 27, 2011 by kathiemm

Yesterday, December 18, 2011, saw the passing of Václav Havel, an exemplar of moral engagement. Havel was a playwright and poet who became the leader of the opposition to Communist rule in Czechoslovakia starting in the 1960s.

He helped launch the nonviolent “Velvet Revolution” in Prague on November 17, 1989—which began with student protests, expanded to include labor unions, and led to his election as president of Czechoslovakia on December 29, 1989.

For his role in the Velvet Revolution, Havel has been recognized as a leader comparable to Nelson Mandela and Mohandas Gandhi.

What resemblances do you see between the Velvet Revolution and the Occupy Movement that is spreading around the world today?

Havel was a model of moral agency, both inhibitive moral agency (he was a gentle man who resisted any call to violence) and proactive agency (criticizing Communist domination and seeking democracy, even though he was harassed and imprisoned for his views).

He used his plays, poems, and essays to spread his anti-Communist message. Even while plays such as The Audience gained critical acclaim around the world, they were banned in Czechoslovakia.

Havel’s best-known essay was “The Power of the Powerless,” a title carried forward into the award-winning documentary “The Power of the Powerless,” narrated by Jeremy Irons. (See trailer.)

Tom Stoppard’s play Rock n’ Roll, is dedicated to Havel, and part of it was inspired by Havel’s writings. (See trailer.)

Like Nelson Mandela, Mohandas Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., and other great crusaders against tyranny and terrorism, Havel’s name should echo in history as an example of what a single individual can achieve on behalf of peace and justice.

Kathie Malley-Morrison, Professor of Psychology

Veterans and the Occupy movements

Posted on November 10, 2011November 9, 2011 by kathiemm

Tomorrow, Friday November 11, 2011, is Veterans Day in the United States, and for many it will be a holiday. Unfortunately, as has often been true historically, veterans in America are not doing well. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) rates and suicides among veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars are skyrocketing. (See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ycDZFKNAHEM .)

KMM at Iraq War Vets at Occupy Boston — Kathie Malley-Morrison visits the Iraq War Vets tent at Occupy Boston. Photo by Dan Goodwin, used by permission.

Although these wars have generated huge profits for corporations like Lockheed Martin, veterans can have a very difficult time obtaining the benefits that were promised when they enlisted.

In these financially troubling times, perhaps it should not be surprising that many people in power are arguing that veterans are not entitled to all of their entitlements.

It should not be surprising, then, that many veterans groups, like much of organized labor, are very attracted to the movements to Occupy…Wall Street, Boston, Tampa, Albuquerque, Atlanta, Baltimore, Burlington….the list goes on and on, in the US and beyond.

Most veterans are probably well down near the bottom of the 99% of our society who are suffering from current political policies and economic inequality.

It is not benefits to veterans, all of whom have probably been wounded in one way or another, that have caused the economic problems in this country. It is the bankers and war profiteers, the speculators, the fraction of the 1% at the top for whom profits are king and other lives are dispensable.

Probably the greatest barrier to peace is that many of the people in power have not figured out how to profit from it.

A recent Pew Research Center poll (see report at http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/MSNBC/Sections/NEWS/Pew-Military-Report.pdf ) finds that 1 in 3 post 9-11 veterans view the Afghanistan and Iraq wars as a waste. What is your view? Where and how can you express it?

Kathie Malley-Morrison, Professor of Psychology