 |
| By Mohonk Ridge, Spring 2020 -- Photo by Barbara Kidney |
In ancient Ireland, May Day, which falls halfway between the Vernal Equinox and the Summer Solstice, marked the beginning of the summer season. Cattle were taken from their winter quarters near the homes of their humans, and driven to their upland summer pastures. The night before was celebrated with bonfires and revelry. This traditional holiday is often referred to as Bealtaine, the Gaelige (Irish) word for May.
In later times, the day was celebrated in parts of Europe by parades led by milkmaids and chimney sweeps, and so became associated with the working people. Today, for example, the working people, the creators of wealth and the supporters of health, strike, to protest their exploitation by those few who accumulate excess wealth at their expense. For one of many examples, see
https://www.wired.com/story/amazon-instacart-target-coronavirus-may-day-strike/
On Earth Day, which this year was the 50th anniversary of the original Earth Day in 1970, I posted here to invite readers to share their reflections of their first Earth Day. Those who responded have all walked the Earth long enough to have participated in the that original Earth Day.
Thank you to all who share your memories and reflections:
 |
| Tres Chic and Lasting Love Tulips - photo by Barbara Kidney |
"What
I recall of the first "Earth Day" protest is that I wore green face
make-up for the first time on 4-22-70. The protest was around the water
fountain of Washington Square Park in NYC with many fellow students from
NYU. The students and I
spontaneously joined a guerrilla theater troupe that was leading the
protest but green face make-up was a requirement. But for a young Puerto
Rican male face make-up was tabooed but it helped me tear down some
walls. My 50 year memory reminds me of an essay
by Che Guevara who wrote in 1961 in an essay- "The guerrilla fighter
needs full help from the people...From the very beginning he has the
intention of destroying an unjust order and therefore an intention...to
replace the old with something new." The quote
I found on Wikipedia and should be a guide for all Greens." (From Edgar Rodriguez)
"In April, 1970, I was working on writing/publishing an article in Vol 1 # 1 of Majority Report, the Feminist newspaper of New York which
I co-published/mothered for 14 years and about 283 issues. I was so
involved in liberating us women, I can't say I remember celebrating Earth Day, until I moved up here to the gorgeous Hudson River Valley in 1987. Then, to me, every day was Earth Day,
and still is!" [And on Earth Day, 2020]
"I was out in the yard re-securing my peonies by a long plastic sheet and rocks. It's going down to the 20's tonight, like last night. Happy Global Warning Spring!" (From Joanne Steele)
"Since we almost all have two hands:
On
one hand, I have in some years found myself in the midst of Earth Day
celebrations and had an uplifting time, not so much with relation to the
earth, but rather with relation to the passion and ingenuity emerging
from the people around me. Perhaps connected to that, Earth Day has
felt ungrounded to me (that is to say, like choosing to celebrate a
person's birthday who her/himself has no interest in it.)
On
the other hand, as with most everyone else, I am often thrilled and
uplifted by the marvels of nature, as I enter into a way of
comprehending and perceiving all that is around me.
It
seems to me that we share the great fortune of having evolved in a way
that enabled our continued survival up to this point. And if
celebrating Earth Day assists our selves and our planet to survive,
bravo for it." (From Sandy Lindenbaum)
"I was in Union Square selling political buttons that day" [the first Earth Day, 1970, and this Earth Day, 2020] "They just opened Cricket Valley, and someone pretending
to be Michael Moore came out with a film trashing renewable energy.
HAPPY EARTHDAY!" (From Ed Haffmans)
To add my own reflections and thoughts--
I'll start by saying that Planet of the Humans, the just-released film to which Ed Haffmans refers, was indeed produced by Michael Moore and directed by Jeff Gibbs, and in fact, does not trash renewable energy. Instead, the film points out that energy which is touted as renewable often isn't, sometimes egregiously isn't. It also proclaims that "infinite growth on a finite planet is suicide." Some have criticized the film as Ed has, and myself, I perceive that such criticism is unfounded. Others criticize it as having made a straw man argument at a number of points, by amplifying some examples of greenwashing, and ignoring endeavors towards green energy and sustainability that truly minimize harmful impacts to people and planet. Here's a link to the free film:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bop8x24G_o0&feature=youtu.be
And here's a link to a brief video of Michael Moore explaining his intention in making that film to Stephen Colbert and the world at large:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zp8qpa3fGxI
And now to share my answer to the question I originally posed: For the first Earth Day, I organized my high school to officially observe the day. My friends and I walked to school, for the first time, together, rather than taking fossil fueled transportation. I still remember the softly cloudy spring morning, and how enjoyable the walk was, for the camaraderie as we shared thoughts about saving the planet along with other thoughts and recountings that friends will share, for the gentle physical exercise in the gentle spring morning, and for the hope. I wanted to devote my life to saving the natural environment.
The hope of the '70s (in which we friends often signed our letters to each other with, "Yours in the Revolution") gave way to the Plutocratic Empire Strikes Back of the '80s and '90s, garnished with the jingoistic War on -- (sic, should read, "of")-- Terror of the early 2000s, followed by the 2008 -2016 motif of 'War of Terror is OK when it's led by a dark-skinned Democrat.' Meanwhile, we experienced the Arab Spring of 2011, followed by the Occupy Autumn. Like the Prague spring before them, these manifestations of hope ("A Better World
Is Possible") were pushed into retreat.
 |
| Photo by Barbara Kidney |
Will they, and more importantly,
the sociological sanity they represent,
re-manifest into establishment,
as did the Prague Spring?
Yours, in the days of COVID;
420 ppm of CO2, 7 billion humans, and counting;
and yours too, in the Revolution,
Barbara Kidney
Chair, Hudson Valley Green Party
GP Candidate, NY AD101
(see April 13 posting on this site)
