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  Magdalena Gómez

Reflections on the Boston March 1.21.2017

1/23/2017

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Yes, I went to the Boston March, 1.21.2017. I wore my Pussy Power hat that was knit by my Sukie Sister with so much love.  I didn’t jive with that hat. I wanted my black beret. But when love comes to you with purity of heart, you must never turn it away.  I wore it for Lauren as a sign of our sisterhood and for no other reason.


The march was glorious in many ways, and there were other sides to reflect upon as well. I didn’t "March for America”; I didn’t march against T----p. I marched against the ongoing economic swindling of our country. I marched against all that has come before, including public apathy, that has permitted this product, not President to be marketed and sold to the most vulnerable of society made desperate by an intentional economic collapse. This collapse is the gateway to oligarchy designed by elitist thugs who have ransacked the coffers, controlled the military and turned prisons into the new slave mills. This machine will churn on its own bilious greed until only the blood and death of the poor remain.


Let’s not get too smug or comfortable...long days are coming...make sure you’re not alone...the marches around the world were glorious, but there is more, so much more to get done...whose in your world?  Do you speak for others, assuming they are voiceless instead of letting them speak for themselves?


The conspiracy of tyranny
did not just begin
it’s been warming up for centuries
don’t put all sights on him
the orange man of ill repute
petulant child in a big boy’s suit
though evil rots his heart and brain
he’s just one passenger on hatred’s train
a cabal of wealth filthier gets
devoid of conscience or regret
grabs our country by the shock and awe
as they sharpen fang and claw
to distract, conceal, pillage then rape
gang bang us into a corporate state
as we grapple with the grabbing of the pussy
Black men get slaughtered for selling loosies
First Nation Peoples are killed with impunity
we’d better redefine the meaning of our unity
who gets to speak?
who calls the shots?
who gets the podium?
whose on the bus?
who do you have
at the center of your life?
do you embrace diversity
when your daughter has a wife?
the conspiracy of tyranny
thrives when we get cozy
nice-nice is good
till you can’t afford your groceries
where will you stand
when troubles come
is your love for all humanity
or in reserve for special ones?
who walks through
the center of your world
who gets your platitudes
who gets your pearls
who sits at the table
who gets the crumbs
who do you embrace
when the troubles come?


Kumbaya won’t cut it
when the tanks roll in
The conspiracy of tyranny 
didn’t just begin
we celebrate Mandela
as Biko fades away
nice-nice and safe
won’t send tyranny to its grave
nice-nice didn’t kill Jim Crow
it didn’t free the slaves
Read Letter from Birmingham Jail
if you think baking cookies is brave
if you want it safe get out of my way
things might get a little rough
something’s got to give
when that peace sign’s is not enough
the conspiracy of tyranny
didn’t just begin
every time we play it safe
a little more seeps in
Constitutional rights slashed with impunity
we’d better redefine the meaning of our unity
who gets to speak?
who calls the shots?
who gets the podium?
whose on the bus?
look around
then look again
whose on the bus?
Never assume
ask “what is it that you want,
what is it that you need?"
Who gets to the front of the line?
Who gets to speak?

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A Day of National Disgrace

1/20/2017

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On this day of national disgrace, I honor those who are standing up to tyranny, refusing despair and moving forward not only against something, but more importantly, for something.

Today the name of the great revolutionary and political prisoner of the Roman state, Yeshua, was weaponized at the inauguration by inference, inflection and the lack of an ecumenical embrace. That for me, is a true meaning of blasphemy.

When Yeshua, in righteous rage overturned the tables at the temple gates, it was not against the earning of a livelihood, it was for thievery. When he turned the other cheek, it was not to submit, but to see things another way. He despised elitism, and championed the poor. Yeshua learned from history, was a scholar at a young age, and valued unconditional love above all. He defied tyranny and questioned the intentions of the authorities. He was a threat to the State because he loved truth and his faith was rooted and driven by the hunger for justice and equality.


Let's live our prayers out loud by our actions. Acknowledge despair when it shows up, and then refuse it: Don't Deny; Defy!
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Checklist for Marching

1/19/2017

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  • Reminder to those of us who are marching:​ pack  and prepare well:
  • Easy to access water;
  • food (extra for others who might forget);
  • comfortable walking and standing shoes;
  • medications you may need;
  • a small first aid kit;
  • know where bathrooms are and where to charge phones;
  • bring toilet paper - will be portable toilets at most gathering sites;
  • documentation devices;
  • dress in layers;
  • sunglasses for glare;
  • easy to read and raise posters;
  • small cross body bag or wallet for essentials like money and ID you can wear inside your closed coat (not everyone at a march is there with good intentions);
  • hats that cover ears and scarves that can cover face if needed.
  • Do not react to provocations - keep it moving;
  • be aware that cell access could be intentionally interrupted (it has happened at marches before-been there).
  • If you are making a plan to meet someone, plan time and place in advance-don't assume you'll have cell access).
  • Be aware and alert, well-rested and do not march without a buddy or a group.
  • Be clear on meeting places and times BEFORE the march (can't stress that enough).
  • Know the approved march route BEFORE you arrive. Write it down and have it with you to avoid instigators with diversionary tactics who are appointed to create confusion - experienced this in 2003 in NYC. ​Contemplation. Strategy. Action.

We'll be out in the millions across the country!!! Focus. Calm. Purpose. Take beautiful images-you will be documenting history.
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White House Thanks

1/18/2017

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Magdalena Gomez
20 hrs · I wish to thank all of the invisible ones in the White House who make those in power comfortable and support their lives: The housekeepers; custodians; chefs; prep cooks; administrative assistants; furniture movers; the ones who make the mid-night snacks; the lighters of candles; the setters of tables; the buyers of supplies; the launderers; the unofficial, personal secret keepers; the drivers; the delivery people; the postal workers; the lifters; the pullers; the draggers; the ones who notice when pens run dry; the personal care attendants; the nannies; the tutors; the gardeners; the landscapers; the greeters, the tour guides; the Pages; the interns; the ones who make sure the toilets are clean and the paper is on the roll. Especially to all who toiled as slaves to build the House that is about to be desecrated. It will withstand the onslaught of disgrace by the grace and humility of all who walked those halls and rooms because they truly believed in the heart and soul of our Constitution at its intended core, our Bill of Rights, and the intrinsic meanings of what it means to be President and to be on the team that makes it all work. You worked for us with all of our flaws. Thank you, you who are nameless and faceless to the bigger world beyond those walls. Your grace, dignity and humble fulfillment of jobs well done will live on. You are the ones who will bring dignity to the office regardless of what depravities are to come. The walls will stand, and so will The People.
"Every morning I wake up in a house that was built by slaves."
-First Lady Michelle Obama at the 2016 Democratic Convention
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    Author

    I've been called a provocateur-always by people I respect.  It has been meant as an affirmation and compliment, and that is how I receive it.   To be provocative is a  necessary component in the creation of art.  If not to move people, then what?  I don't create to be liked, I create to provoke thought, to evoke visceral response and ultimately to inspire positive action  for social change.

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​Magdalena is the Co-founder and Artistic Director of Teatro V!da:
www.teatrovida.com
Learn more:  
www.latinapoet.com
www.latinapoet.net
"Don't despair, create art and take action."