I Gladly Stand Up

This is normally a place where I talk about ridiculous, frivolous, and routine things that occupy my mind - a place where I share the food I make, pictures I take, and paper I play with.

Today I want to say something serious, though.

Politics are a bit crazy in WI right now. In an attempt to balance the state budget, the governor has proposed a bill that impacts the pension, cost of health insurance, and collective bargaining rights of state and municipal employees - teachers included. The bill is facing strong opposition from Democrats and unions throughout WI and the nation.

I could say a million different things about the emails I receive each hour from the teachers' union, the allegedly unbiased news coverage, the decision of many teachers to call in sick for several days last week, the decision of WI's 14 Democratic senators to leave the state of WI to stall the Senate's vote on the bill, or the increased presence of the Tea Party in WI.

I don't want to get into a debate about the political issues here, though. I have seen enough of that on Facebook, in the hallways of my school, and in conversations with friends and family.

I do want to say how proud and fortunate I am to live in WI - to live in America.

I visited our state capitol on Thursday and again on Saturday.

On Thursday, I walked right into our state capitol building to watch more than 10,000 people peacefully assembled on every floor of the building. I didn't need to have my bag checked; I could have carried in a sign if I wanted to. There was a police presence but it wasn't obtrusive or over-bearing. I never felt unsafe. I was just in awe.

On Saturday, I marched around the capitol as part of a crowd of nearly 60,000 protesters (plus another 10,000 people inside the capitol). I saw volunteers making peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and handing out water.

I saw someone cross sides from a pro-union part of the protest to help an elderly Tea Party supporter climb over a snow bank to board a bus. I saw (and heard) quintessentially WI things happening including people grilling brats and dancing to "Roll Out the Barrel." 

 No one - not a single person - was arrested or injured during Saturday's rally.

But, news on Saturday and Sunday also talked about protests happening in other places in the world - protests in Egypt, Libya, Iran, and Yemen. News talked about people fighting for basic human rights. News talked about governments squashing protests and people being injured and killed.

All I can think about is how lucky I am. I am lucky to live in a place where people are allowed to gather - lucky to live in a place where people chose to gather peacefully. I am lucky to live in a place where my rights are protected. I am lucky to live in a place where there are an infinite number of sources of information about issues available - a place where all people are educated.