Message from canaise

[Anonymous]

The presentation on Human Trafficking was not new to me. Long ago, when I became involved in the 1960's and (for me) 1970's second wave of feminism in this country, I took a class at Louisiana State University called "Literature of the Women's Movement." This class was responsible for my loss of my sense of humor for about three years. It opened my eyes in a way no class ever did. I haven't shut them since, but I have winked a few times. I recalled that as a senior in high school I was pondering over which of two books to take off the library shelf: BLACK LIKE ME or THE SECOND SEX. In this moment, I realized later when looking back, I decided that the stuggle for racial equality was a far more important topic that anything about women. How well brain washed a young woman I was at that time. In fact, at that time I considered women's topics in general to be quite trivial. After all, what had women ever done? They had done a lot, but I did not know that then. Though, if I'd have had eyes to see, I could have looked at my grandmother's life: married at twelve-and-a half, mother to nine children because family planning was against God's law, and though a kinder spirit never took flesh, it was no secret to her or to me that men were the important gender, the ruling gender. I often wonder how my life would have turned out differently had I taken THE SECOND SEX off the shelf. However, my awakening was postponed until eight years later and in, of all places, the deep South.

I read an article in National Geographic some years ago about places where slavery still exists. They provided a map. What was new to me, but not surprising, was that Lisa Fischler named multi-national corporations, globalization, captitalism (Westernerization, and secularization), consumerism and even the strange bedfellows of the KKK, fanatic Christains, organized crime and terrorists groups who want to deny women full and meaningful equality as forces driving this trafficking. It makes sense. See the documentary "Life and Debt" if you have any doubts about multi-national corporations being involved. We live in a time when anything and anyone can be commodified, quantified and sold to the highest bidder.

During the battle for the democratic nomination, some students were talking about who should be the nominee. One student said, "It's got to be Hillary. We need a woman to get us out of this mess." Another said, "You can't think that the cause of having a woman president could be more important than having a black president, can you?" I remembered my thinking in high school decades ago:Race or gender has to trump the other. It can't be both. We can't move together; we are forever separating ourselves into our special interest groups. This keeps us all stuck. Thinking has not changed in some ways.

I had an interesting experience today. As I was leaving the post office, a woman asked me if that was my car. Yes. Is that your bumper sticker (Who would Jesus bomb?) Yes. Are you a Christian? Yes. (I realize you all think I'm a Buddhist because of my intense interest in things Eastern, but I'm not. I am an unprogrammed Quaker. The programmed Quakers resemble conservative Christians, but the unprogrammed Quakers are generally liberal folk and free to investigate all ideologies without being accused of infidelity. My roots are deeply embedded in the Christian tradition and it is a stream of nourishment that I could not turn from.) So, what did she have to say? Well, this and I quote: "I'll tell you who Jesus would bomb! He'd bomb Sodom and Gomorrah, that's who!" I said. "So, you think that all the people and children of Iraq should be bombed, killed?" "Yes!" she said as she self-righteously stomped off. My silent prayer: "Forgive me my tresspasses as I forgive those who tresspass against me. P.S. Could you make people a little less stupid? "

What has that to do with Human Trafficking? Only this, she has a lot in common with the fascists who deal in human bondage, her own bondage being her stupidity and ignorance; AkA, "I'll kill you if you don't agree with me." Don't kid yourself, people, if they could kill you and get away with it, they would. [Edit by="canaise on Aug 9, 4:51:31 PM"][/Edit]