A Stone of Hope

It was a stressful trip in some ways. There was stuff going on at home that made me feel uncomfortable about traveling to DC, but I am glad I made the trip.  I mixed some business with pleasure.  I got to the Memorials at sunset and saw the Martin Luther King, Jr. memorial for the first time.  I was struck by the quotations carved in the stone - they seemed to glow as the sun set.

The next day I took some personal time to go to the Hirshorn to see the Ai Wei Wei exhibit.  Wei Wei is known for his collaboration in designing the bird's nest stadium for the Olympics and also for criticizing the Chinese government's promotion of the Olympics. I saw a documentary about him last year and liked it so much that I went a second time.  I have been pretty obsessed with him ever since.  He uses Twitter to share his life and art with the Chinese and he is open about critiquing the Chinese government.  Upset about the architecture that led to the deaths of thousands of Chinese citizens during the Sichuan earthquake and he led an investigation of the children's deaths and ultimately made a backpack sculpture inspired by the earthquake victim's backpacks.  His photography shows a good eye for observing life and a sense of humor.  I have a poster of "Middle Finger" - him flipping off Tianamen Square as if to show distance scale.   The pots make me feel sick to my stomach a bit - Han Dynasty pots dipped in bright colors or painted with the ColaCola symbol on them - his statement about the government's vandalism of ancient antiquities.  I knew to expect the pile of ceramic crabs, made after a protest picnic at Wei Wei's studio days before it was razed by the Chinese government.

He used to blog, but his blogs were censored.  He began using Twitter to communicate and share political/social ideas (the tweets are retweeted in an astounding way - there is no way to censor them).

On my final day in DC I took part in what was called the largest protest for climate change policy ever.  With 50,000 people I held signs and marched from the Washington monument to the White House.  I talked with people from Maine, NY, PA, NC, DC, all over the place, really, and felt a part of a free speech event that has inspired me in ways I did not entirely expect until I was a part of it.  I felt downright patriotic about my right to assemble and protest with other citizens.

I felt the theme of the weekend wrap itself around me - MLK who symbolizes free speech and civil rights, Ai Wei Wei who boldly speaks when so few do, and the 50,000 citizens who want the President to listen to us about our concerns for our planet and our future.