Buddhist Peace Fellowship

Today the meeting I have been planning so carefully, for so long, happened. Sixty-five people came, including the poet and activist Alberto Moreno, seen here on the left, in blue. I wish I had his statement to give you, but I don't. Instead here is what I said to introduce the meeting. After that, it was all the voices of other people, and I was moved and encouraged by their passion, their commitment, and their ideas. (This photo by Sue St. Michael.) 

Kendall's statement to the Buddhist Peace Fellowship, at the meeting Feb. 25, 2017: I think we agree that this is a time for protest. Protest often means megaphones, sound systems, chants, and masses of people lifting angry voices loudly. I’m angry, and I support forward movement fueled by anger because anger turned inward can lead to depression and paralysis. But anger is not my prime motivator. Justice is. 

Sometimes silence speaks louder than words.  

Quiet calls attention to itself.  

Quiet is uncommon in the public arena. 

Envision with me a group of quiet protesters in public, silently standing, walking, or sitting, holding signs or wearing signs, quietly BEING PRESENT for what we love and hold in our core. Maybe we hold hands or link arms. Maybe we walk in single file behind each other, leaving peaceful footprints on the earth. Maybe there is a drum. Maybe there is humming, or laughter, ... or mime, I don’t know. Maybe we have a Buddhist banner, maybe not. Maybe others around us are shouting and we hold the silence among ourselves. Some wear Buddhist robes. Some are not Buddhist. We stand near each other, feeling the power of unspoken connection. We stand still, or we move, together. We stand in power, with respect for each other.

That doesn’t mean quiet protest is the only thing. It doesn’t mean quiet is right and other tactics are wrong. We are in this room to organize quiet public demonstrations in support of the earth, immigrants, Black lives, Muslims, refugees, old people, children, homeless or unhoused people, people with disabilities and pre-existing conditions, and all who are vulnerable to the agenda of this administration. We are a moral movement. We have as our foundation Buddhist principles: right speech, right action, do no harm. We express loving kindness and compassion through quiet direct action. Metta. We are here to figure out how to make a forceful, quiet statement in the world.