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Friday |
 Amy Goodman, host of Democracy
Now!, has a
new book out and it's equal parts
infuriating and inspiring. It's a retrospective of
her twenty years as the USA's preeminent
investigative journalist, organized thematically:
war, whistleblowers, immigration, death penalty,
economic inequality, climate justice, LGBTQ
revolution, police brutality, racism, and torture.
And while those are all heavy topics with a dark
history and continued persistence, the overall arc
of the book is hopeful as it focuses on the
progress made by social movements. Change seldom
comes from the top down and this book is a
rallying cry to get involved from the bottom up.
It's never been easy, and the struggle is eternal.
Maybe utopia is not a fixed state but the ability
to fight for what is right. At least there's a
chance. Tonight we were lucky to hear her speak at
Town Hall in Seattle, in the same church-like
auditorium where in the past we saw Michael
Moore, Kurt
Vonnegut, and testified
to the FCC against media consolidation. Town Hall,
too, is a treasure--or as Amy called it, "a
sanctuary of dissent." I recorded
her talk, which revealed a lighter side of
her usually stoic on-air persona. I laughed, I
cried, and left the building wondering what I
could do to be more engaged in fighting the good
fight. |
