I truly believe that God, Karma, destiny or maybe just the force of luck sends people your way to inspire you when you need it the most. I was feeling disheartened this week about George Bush’s impending visit to Furman University and the loud and angry opposition to any planned protest in response to this visit. I was feeling alone in my despair and impotent in my ability to do anything about all the things that are wrong in this world right now.

In the midst of these feelings I drove to Furman University and listened to one of the most powerful and inspiring speakers I’ve ever heard in my life. Chris Hedges, Pulitzer Prize winning writer and former foreign correspondent for the NY Times spoke last night about the legacy of George W. Bush. He also spoke about another speech he delivered in 2003. He was the commencement speaker at Rockford College, shortly after President Bush landed on the aircraft carrier to declare ‘mission accomplished’ in Iraq. Hedges spoke of the folly of the invasion and how America had become enmeshed in a quagmire that would end in disaster. To say the speech wasn’t well received would be an understatement… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAWMgYyAtHU

I flashed back to the spring of 2003 and my own experience in speaking out against the war. I was screamed at, called names, persecuted without end, and then fired from my job, essentially ending my career. When Hedges was asked about the futility of his outspokenness then and even now, he replied that his training in divinity school helped to see him through. Hedges said when your role model is a guy who was beaten, persecuted and finally hung on a cross to die alone, you realize that being honest and moral doesn’t always pay big dividends. Hedges also shared a quotation, “Hope has two sisters, anger and courage,” you simply have to be angry and strong enough to speak up.

Hedges said it was important for folks who disagreed with President Bush and his policies to speak out to make their feelings known but in a respectful manner. Hedges was booed off the stage at Rockford College. Two young men charged the stage and tried to physically remove him before college officials hustled him off. Before Hedges left the stage he was heckled and many stood with their backs to him during his remarks.

Hedges said he supported their right to protest but would have appreciated the opportunity to deliver his remarks without interruption.

President Bush has every right to come to Furman University and indeed it is an honor to entertain a visit from a sitting president. However if we are to preserve our democracy, it’s essential that those who disagree with policies enacted by this president also have the opportunity to demonstrate those feelings. It would appear that protestors on Saturday will be allowed to gather in a visible location on the Furman campus and display signs, serving as a visual reminder of President Bush’s current historical low approval rating of 22%. Greenville, South Carolina is indeed friendly territory for this President, a safe haven but those of us who vehemently disagree also must be recognized; their voices must be heard. As J.B. Priestly once said, “We should behave toward our country as women behave toward the men they love. A loving wife will do anything for her husband except stop criticizing and trying to improve him. We should cast the same affectionate but sharp glance at our country. We should love it, but also insist upon telling it all its faults. The noisy, empty “patriot,” not the critic, is the dangerous citizen.”

 Love of country should include a healthy discussion of what is wrong in our nation and how we can make it right.

For information on Saturday’s We Object protest at Furman, please go to www.weobject.info