The seventh annual Independence from America Day parade was a thing of beauty, colour and rhythm.
By a sun kissed ocean a bunch of citizens stood up alive, spoke up and spoke out for peace and justice in these times and went samba-ing through Byron to the markets.
What a glorious harvest of smiles and gestures of solidarity followed our passage.
"Detach from tyranny. End the US Alliance!" Yes siree, the way to go.
Thank you Paul Barrett and Samba Blisstas for the uplifting colour and rhythm.
Thanks to all who gave this year's production a hand and a smile.
It's certainly a pretty as a postcard event.
The attendance at the SpeakOut was smaller this year because my pre-publicity was slight. Mercury in retrograde, my astrologer friends told me was the cause. Being out of town and 800 km north at the Yeppoon Peace Convergence in the week before also had its influence.
But the impact of the event was no less.
It complemented the local good news about the success of the Peace Convergence and vividly and vibrantly claimed public place to make its pro peace, anti US Alliance sentiments known.
The Byron Shire ranger and the cops were co-operative, expressed opposition was all but absent and many were the cheers and signs of support from pedestrians, passing motorists and Byron Market stall holders and patrons.
There was no question that we were the people joyfully and artfully expressing the will of the people; Murdoch media be damned.
Let the gulf grow between the people and the power elites and the lackeys who must toe the US/Murdoch line. Know for certain that illusion's shaky building will fall down! The lies of war unravel and as the resistance of the people grows stronger.
In a sense the glory of the celebration was essentially this and it was the fruit of persevering sustainable resistance building over seven years.
And it's not over yet!
The 2007 Independence from America Day made me aware that the celebrations needs more depth, more complementary events surrounding it such as forums, public addresses, book launches and so on in the days on and about 4 July.
The opportunity exists to use these days and the media opportunities associated with the Independence Day celebrations in the US, to bring forth counter ideas and information about the US Alliance, its impacts and costs in terms of security, sovereignty and well being in this land, economic, social and cultural.
Byron could evolve becoming a leading ideas garden on this issue.
In the Byron Echo I put out a call for help in this regard, saying:
"Imagine:
a place where peace thrives and independent spirit flourishes
a place of pilgrimage for the Australian peace and independence movement
a place where activists are bred and find refuge
a place peace workers might fail, take heart and try again.
a place where resistance ideas and counter strategies to the war machines of Empire come to birth and find nurture, challenge, artful expression, cultivation and propagation."
Call me if you want to help.
Graeme Dunstan
captain, Peacebus.com
0407 951 688
