First They Came...

"In Germany, they came first for the Communists, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Communist; And then they came for the trade unionists, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a trade unionist; And then they came for the Jews, And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a Jew; And then . . . they came for me . . . And by that time there was no one left to speak up." -Friedrich Gustav Emil Martin Niemöller

First they came...is powerful in its simplicity. The poem comes to mind often, every time I read an article about poverty, exploitation, discrimination. Most recently I have been preoccupied with Propostion 8, even though I am only about 1/8 gay I don't feel that any of us, gay or straight, can experience complete 'freedom' or 'equality' with such discrimination written into California's constitution. In other words I believe that we are all effected by the world around us even when it doesn't seem that we are directly touched by such discriminatory legislation.

We have all seen photos from the civil rights and feminists movement; I am always surprised by the lack of white faces in the civil rights crowds just like I am surprised by the lack of male faces in the crowds of feminists fighting for equality and basic freedoms. When one stands up for another person or group of people one is actually standing up for oneself. We are all connected by the thread of humanity.

http://jointheimpact.com/