Pueblo Narratives: Remember who we are
by Vilma Ronzón
“This is how the shock doctrine works: the original disaster – the coup, the terrorist attack, the market meltdown, the war, the tsunami, the hurricane – puts an entire population into a state of collective shock.” – Naomi Klein
As we all sit in our homes living through this bizarre reality, we can sense ourselves absorbing the distress and anguish around us. How and Why become our daily habits. It’s okay to feel this moment for what it is. An entire fictional country has been stopped in its tracks by the original disaster: The Virus.
Our attention has been centered on The Virus. But we know there is another illness present here, let us name him Capitalism. We were born into his culture and a result we have inherited trauma. It’s okay if we don’t have any answers at the moment. As always, the government promises relief, and because we are wise, we do not trust them.
We have the right to feel distrust. Although we are wise, there is so much to learn about the façade of democracy we believe in. The empire has been able remodel itself over the years, claiming to be just and fair. Regardless of the many changes, one fact remains: it maintains control at the expense of subjugated peoples – Please…
See the following receipts:
#1862 “The Dakota 38 refers to thirty-eight Dakota men who were executed by hanging, under orders from President Abraham Lincoln” – 38 by Layli Long Soldier
#1967 During the Detroit riots, three African American teenagers were killed by police. The police were exonerated by a jury.
#1968 Operation Condor
#1954 “Soon enough, Arbenz was out, and United Fruit Company was back in charge”- Guatemala, Coup
#1917 “The Espionage Act was used to imprison *people* who spoke or wrote against the war” – The United States, World War I
#1965 UC Berkeley Mafia (Go Bears!) Indonesia, Coup
“…Questions were not discussed, and it’s crucial for a well-functioning propaganda system that they not be discussed” – Noam Chomsky
The government and those upholding this culture adore our silence and complicity. It is the consent they need to carry on with their atrocities, oppressions, and exploitations. This is no longer a conspiracy, the circus and the clowns in government continue to reveal themselves for what they are: machines for the corporatocracy. Many (if not all) have been programed to ignore the wellbeing of the people. During the pandemic we hear the Millionaires, Billionaires, and Trillionaires tell us, “We are in this together.”
It’s okay to feel drained. As we continue to recover and heal in solitude, we find freedom in other ways. We understand that solitude nurtures the soul. Many of us are too familiar with confinement: closet doors, borders, injustice. We discover that our beliefs and thoughts are free to roam beyond this realm. We were destined to ask. Therefore, we can and should offer questions:
Why are the
Corporations being bailed out/where
Do the millions and millions of tax dollars go/how
Many hours of life does $1,200.00 buy/where is my healthcare
And why do I not have any/why is rent not being
Cancelled/and why is rent too damn expensive/
Deportations exist during the pandemic/
Is it even a pandemic or a plannedemic/what
Laws and policies are being passed behind
our backss/#new
#trend#2020#question
#everything/Why do we
care so much about wealth/
why money/why work/
Why labor/why 9 to 5/
why $$ in order to
survive/am I for sale/
what about the hate
crimes (both known
and unknown)/where
is the authority going
and coming from/
who is trying to take
control/what is the
role of the corporation/
define: corporatocracy/
how do I organize/
It is important to allow this moment to radicalize us in any way. The anger _fear_ sadness_and _paranoia is valid. But when needed, we can collect and transform ourselves into vessels that carry solidarity/cooperation/understanding/revolution. We inherited a cruel system, but we also inherited the rituals of resistance from our ancestors. The incompetence of the empire is obvious. This is no longer an opinion. It is a fact: we outnumber the few in power.
Let us move, let us act, let us think in unconventional ways, let us invite ideas and questions.
Let us use whatever resources we have to build maps out of history, this is where we have been, but this is where we can go. Their divide and conquer strategies are decaying. Let this moment change you. Let us search, let us ask, let us learn, let us unlearn. Let us find poetry, let us create art, let us unite. Let us revolt. Let us create something new.
I offer you these #questions#suggestions and #recommendations, so you can gather your own knowledge, power, and strength, and
I offer you these verses so you can remember who we are…
Today We Will Not Be Invisible Nor Silent – Victoria Lena Manyarrows
Today
We will not be invisible nor silent As the pilgrims of yesterday continue their war of attrition Forever trying, but never succeeding In their battle to rid the americas of us Convincing others and ourselves That we have been assimilated & eliminated,
But we remember who we are
We are the spirit of endurance that lives In the cities and reservations of north america And in the barrios and countryside of Nicaragua, Chile, Guatemala, El Salvador
And in all the earth and rivers of the americas
Sources:
The Shock Doctine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism – Naomi Klein
A People’s History of the United States – Howard Zinn
Media Control: The Spectacular Achievements of Propaganda – Noam Chomsky
38 – Layli Long Soldier - https://onbeing.org/poetry/38/
Today We Will Not Be Invisible Nor Silent – Victoria Lena Manyarrows
For more information on the sources used for this posting, feel free to contact @croiizzant via Instagram.