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Nearly 100,000 people took to the streets in Raleigh, North Carolina on February 8 in a Moral March to say "NO" to the state's sharp right-wing political turn and "YES" to a new, truly progressive America.

They weren't just marching for one issue or another. They were marching for every issue progressives care about: economic justice; a living wage for every worker; support for organized labor; justice in banking and lending; high quality, well-funded, diverse public schools; affordable health care and health insurance for all, especially women; environmental justice and green jobs; affordable housing for every person; abolishing the death penalty and mandatory sentencing; expanded services for released prisoners; comprehensive immigration reform to provide immigrants with health care, education, and workers rights; insuring everyone the right to vote; enhancing LGBT rights; keeping America's young men and women out of wars on foreign soil; and more.

"They weren't just marching for one issue or another. They were marching for every issue progressives care about..."

All this in Raleigh, a metro area of barely more than a million people. It's as if a million and half turned out in New York or DC, or a million in San Francisco. When was the last time we saw such huge crowds in the streets demanding a total transformation in our way of life? This could be the start of something big.

And it was all led by . . . God?

Many of the marchers would say so. Many others would doubt it. The march organizers invited "secular and religious progressives alike," people of every faith and no faith at all. And that's what they got. "The march brought together a diverse group from Baptists to Muslims and gay marriage supporters," as USA Today reported.

But no one doubts that it was all started by a man of faith, the Rev. William Barber....

"If you are going to change America you have to think states," he says. “We believe North Carolina is the crucible. If you’re going to change the country, you’ve got to change the South. If you’re going to change the South, you’ve got to focus on these state capitols.” Spin-offs of the Moral Monday movement are already starting up in Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida and Alabama.

And you've got to change state politics at the county level, Barber advises. So he and his group are launching "North Carolina Moral Freedom Summer," a statewide registration and mobilization effort for voters in all 100 counties of North Carolina.

But that's just part of a larger program that also includes voter education, a social media strategy, and a legal strategy. "Many of these things, not just the voting rules, are going to be challenged in the courts using our state and federal constitutions," Barber promises. That's a lot of smart strategic thinking. 

As far as he is concerned, though, there's no way to separate smart politics from devout faith. He takes his inspiration equally from the Constitution, where he finds deep values to promote "the common good," and from the Bible, which he sees teaching that love and justice should be at the center of public policy: "Isaiah 10 says, 'Woe unto those who make unjust laws that rob the right of the poor.'"

“Clergypersons are choosing to move in a prophetic tradition to challenge injustice and wrongs in government and systemic transgressions against our values," Barber explains. "It’s our Jewish friends, Christian, Universalist, Muslim friends and others who are willing to put their voices and bodies on the line. That is significant when pulpits get on fire for justice.”



http://www.commondreams.org/view/2014/02/11-0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

kalm wrote:Uh oh...the godless progressives are mobilizing, and with fairly impressive numbers...

They were marching for...affordable health care and health insurance for all, especially women;

Might the religious left have a better grasp on the meaning of Jesus than the Christian right?

Cluck U wrote:Speaking of morality...

http://msn.foxsports.com/olympics/medal ... chi-021214" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Does anyone have pictures of these lovely Lebanese mountains which were bared for everyone to see?

The towel heads must be going nuts.

Cluck U wrote:

kalm wrote:Uh oh...the godless progressives are mobilizing, and with fairly impressive numbers...



Might the religious left have a better grasp on the meaning of Jesus than the Christian right?

If someone said, "I want good stuff for everyone...especially white men," that person would be seen as bigot.

I've posted it before...a large chunk of America is in the 1% compared to the rest of the world. Let me know when progressives want to have their money, TVs, phones, houses, clothes, etc. forcefully taken from them and given to the world's poor.

kalm wrote:Uh oh...the godless progressives are mobilizing, and with fairly impressive numbers...

Nearly 100,000 people took to the streets in Raleigh, North Carolina on February 8 in a Moral March to say "NO" to the state's sharp right-wing political turn and "YES" to a new, truly progressive America.

They weren't just marching for one issue or another. They were marching for every issue progressives care about: economic justice; a living wage for every worker; support for organized labor; justice in banking and lending; high quality, well-funded, diverse public schools; affordable health care and health insurance for all, especially women; environmental justice and green jobs; affordable housing for every person; abolishing the death penalty and mandatory sentencing; expanded services for released prisoners; comprehensive immigration reform to provide immigrants with health care, education, and workers rights; insuring everyone the right to vote; enhancing LGBT rights; keeping America's young men and women out of wars on foreign soil; and more.

"They weren't just marching for one issue or another. They were marching for every issue progressives care about..."

All this in Raleigh, a metro area of barely more than a million people. It's as if a million and half turned out in New York or DC, or a million in San Francisco. When was the last time we saw such huge crowds in the streets demanding a total transformation in our way of life? This could be the start of something big.

And it was all led by . . . God?

Many of the marchers would say so. Many others would doubt it. The march organizers invited "secular and religious progressives alike," people of every faith and no faith at all. And that's what they got. "The march brought together a diverse group from Baptists to Muslims and gay marriage supporters," as USA Today reported.

But no one doubts that it was all started by a man of faith, the Rev. William Barber....

"If you are going to change America you have to think states," he says. “We believe North Carolina is the crucible. If you’re going to change the country, you’ve got to change the South. If you’re going to change the South, you’ve got to focus on these state capitols.” Spin-offs of the Moral Monday movement are already starting up in Virginia, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida and Alabama.

And you've got to change state politics at the county level, Barber advises. So he and his group are launching "North Carolina Moral Freedom Summer," a statewide registration and mobilization effort for voters in all 100 counties of North Carolina.

But that's just part of a larger program that also includes voter education, a social media strategy, and a legal strategy. "Many of these things, not just the voting rules, are going to be challenged in the courts using our state and federal constitutions," Barber promises. That's a lot of smart strategic thinking. 

As far as he is concerned, though, there's no way to separate smart politics from devout faith. He takes his inspiration equally from the Constitution, where he finds deep values to promote "the common good," and from the Bible, which he sees teaching that love and justice should be at the center of public policy: "Isaiah 10 says, 'Woe unto those who make unjust laws that rob the right of the poor.'"

“Clergypersons are choosing to move in a prophetic tradition to challenge injustice and wrongs in government and systemic transgressions against our values," Barber explains. "It’s our Jewish friends, Christian, Universalist, Muslim friends and others who are willing to put their voices and bodies on the line. That is significant when pulpits get on fire for justice.”



http://www.commondreams.org/view/2014/02/11-0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Might the religious left have a better grasp on the meaning of Jesus than the Christian right?

Baldy wrote:

kalm wrote:Uh oh...the godless progressives are mobilizing, and with fairly impressive numbers...



Might the religious left have a better grasp on the meaning of Jesus than the Christian right?

"Estimated Crowds"

The NAACP estimated the crowd to be 100K, but people who were actually on the ground marching said 25-30K...maybe 40K, and people were bussed in from all over the country.
Gotta love a good 'ol faux protest. It gets the "progressive" mouthbreathers all juiced up.

GannonFan wrote:Great, all that's missing is the how to accomplish a lot of that agenda. All sounds great, we just don't have the means to magically make it appear. Affordable housing for all, super schools for everyone, a green economy, living wage for every worker who wants one. Great ideas, now we just need to figure out how all that happens.

kalm wrote:

GannonFan wrote:Great, all that's missing is the how to accomplish a lot of that agenda. All sounds great, we just don't have the means to magically make it appear. Affordable housing for all, super schools for everyone, a green economy, living wage for every worker who wants one. Great ideas, now we just need to figure out how all that happens.

According to the Reverand it's by following the bible and the constitution...

Cluck U wrote:

kalm wrote:Uh oh...the godless progressives are mobilizing, and with fairly impressive numbers...



Might the religious left have a better grasp on the meaning of Jesus than the Christian right?

If someone said, "I want good stuff for everyone...especially white men," that person would be seen as bigot.

I've posted it before...a large chunk of America is in the 1% compared to the rest of the world. Let me know when progressives want to have their money, TVs, phones, houses, clothes, etc. forcefully taken from them and given to the world's poor.

GannonFan wrote:

kalm wrote:
According to the Reverand it's by following the bible and the constitution...

Wow, that easy? Never knew you to be a blind faith person. Do we need to click our heels three times too? Would that help? Maybe we should all go to Disney since they always advertise that it's a place where dreams come true?

kalm wrote:

GannonFan wrote:
Wow, that easy? Never knew you to be a blind faith person. Do we need to click our heels three times too? Would that help? Maybe we should all go to Disney since they always advertise that it's a place where dreams come true?

Where did I say it was that easy? When did I say I was a blind faith person. You seem rather confused by all this.

GannonFan wrote:

kalm wrote:
Where did I say it was that easy? When did I say I was a blind faith person. You seem rather confused by all this.

And you seem amazingly devoid of ideas of how to accomplish any of the things you touted in your first post. I wonder why you are avoiding that question?

dbackjon wrote:If this had been a conservative march, Fox News would be covering it non-stop, with crowds estimated at near a million.

kalm wrote:Nearly 100,000 people took to the streets in Raleigh, North Carolina on February 8 in a Moral March to say "NO" to the state's sharp right-wing political turn and "YES" to a new, truly progressive America.

89Hen wrote:

kalm wrote:Nearly 100,000 people took to the streets in Raleigh, North Carolina on February 8 in a Moral March to say "NO" to the state's sharp right-wing political turn and "YES" to a new, truly progressive America.

And so ends my interest in the article.

89Hen wrote:

kalm wrote:Nearly 100,000 people took to the streets in Raleigh, North Carolina on February 8 in a Moral March to say "NO" to the state's sharp right-wing political turn and "YES" to a new, truly progressive America.

And so ends my interest in the article.

kalm wrote:

89Hen wrote: And so ends my interest in the article.

So if it was for a regressive America, you'd be interested? I suppose that makes sense...

89Hen wrote:

kalm wrote:
So if it was for a regressive America, you'd be interested? I suppose that makes sense...

I think you got my point. Anyone who calls themselves a "truly progressive" is not.

kalm wrote:

89Hen wrote: I think you got my point. Anyone who calls themselves a "truly progressive" is not.

Same for anyone who is truly anti-progressive...

It's a word.

89Hen wrote:

kalm wrote:
Same for anyone who is truly anti-progressive...

It's a word.

There's only one group that really uses the word progressive, and that's Liberals.

Baldy wrote:

dbackjon wrote:If this had been a conservative march, Fox News would be covering it non-stop, with crowds estimated at near a million.

...and MSNBC, CNN, and the alphabet networks would have called those conservatives racists, violent, and only protesting because the president is a black guy who they believe is from Kenya.

dbackjon wrote:

Baldy wrote: ...and MSNBC, CNN, and the alphabet networks would have called those conservatives racists, violent, and only protesting because the president is a black guy who they believe is from Kenya.

LOL -yeah, the supposed liberal media barely covered this one.


Give it up - the Myth of a Liberal Media is just that.

They are all corporatist.