Dorothy Day's Anniversary

Today ( Nov. 29, 2018) is the memorial of Dorothy Day's death in 1980. I am not an enthusiastic promoter of her canonization but I believe her values and many of her actions for social justice and peace and the poor are a beacon for people to contemplate and follow. Dorothy supported me and many others who were associated with the Catholic Worker over the years. We all learn from each other and I learned a great deal from Dorothy and others at the Catholic Worker. Anyway, here is a little clip for folks who may not have known of her.

Seeing the pictures of Dorothy below, sitting in vineyards in California in 1973, surrounded by California Highway Patrolmen, supporting farmworkers, reminds me of her strength and commitment. She carried her three legged portable stool due to her arthritis making it difficult for her to stand for long periods. I think I know how Dorothy would be responding to the issues we see today on our southern boarder.

                                                                 

Stan Lee, Denny O'Neil, Batman and Dorothy Day

Stan Lee, the genius and leader behind Marvel Comics died on Nov. 12, 2018 at 95. When I heard about his passing in the news it brought back some memories from the 60's in my head. I began to remember a visit to the Marvel Comics office in Manhattan. Colorful posters of comic book characters hanging on walls popped into my head. Why was I there? To visit a friend at the time by the name of Denny O'Neil.

But Stan Lee's passing forced me to do some searching and some memory poking. I needed to fill in the gaps. Lots of information between comic book posters and Denny O'Neil. I have thought of Denny in the ensuing years and had already done some research on him in the past few years but now I needed to know and remember more. You see there was a connection between Denny and the Catholic Worker in NYC where I spent some time in my youth. I remembered going to parties at Denny's apartment where he and his wife lived, somewhere in the East Village. A group of young Catholic Workers would gather, perhaps after a Friday Night Meeting (a tradition at many Catholic Worker Houses of Hospitality, an opportunity for clarification of thought) or after a day of demonstrating against the draft or the war in Vietnam. Denny was supportive of our activities and his wife, Ann, had been involved at the Catholic Worker.

My research found video interviews and articles about and by Denny. In many, he talked about his growing up in Missouri, his Catholic upbringing, his military service, his marriage to Ann and his connection to the Worker. He started at Marvel Comics after taking the 4 page writers test in his early to mid 20's. He eventually moved to DC comics and took on the authorship of Batman and many other characters including Green Lantern/Green Arrow and Wonder Woman. Denny has had a brilliant writing and editing career at both DC and Marvel.

But I still wasn't sure about all of those memories swishing around in my head so I reached out to some of my old friends from that time period to see if we were remembering any of the same things or if my memory could be jogged a bit. Nicole remembered Denny's wedding to Ann. It turns out she was a witness at the wedding which did take place at the neighborhood church frequented by folks from the Worker. She can recall Denny's makeshift ring at the wedding and the parties we attended at the O'Neil's apartment. Paul sent me information on a book Denny authored with some fictional characters telling the story of Denny's comic book life. So he also had some memories too.

The most amazing thing I found though was some writing from Denny himself where he talks about a character he created in the Batman series, Dr. Leslie Thompkins. Denny explains that his character of Leslie was based on Dorothy Day who co-founded the Catholic Worker movement. Here are Denny's own words in an excerpt from an article in 2015:

"I had a real person in mind when I was writing Detective #457, someone I’d once met named Dorothy Day. Dorothy began her professional life as a journalist, wrote a novel, lived the Greenwich Village life. In 1939, she cofounded The Catholic Worker, an organization located in a section of lower Manhattan not much frequented by the white shoe crowd. The Worker had three missions: to serve the poor by providing food, shelter and clothing; to help drunks get sober; and to protest war – all war, any war, and any violence.

We incorporated Dorothy’s pacifism into Leslie. There wasn’t much; I can’t recall any particular story in which it was a major element. But look for it and you could find it."

So yes, Dr. Leslie Thompkins is a pacifist doctor who works in the toughest part of Gotham's criminal slums. She was an old friend of Batman's mother and father. The character appears in 200+ Batman comics.

Yup, that's the same Dorothy Day arrested over the years in protests over war and social justice. The same Dorothy Day proposed for sainthood in the Catholic Church. Funny and appropriate. Now that it's been brought to light can you imagine all of the prelates in Rome, cardinals and priests, perhaps even Pope Francis, pouring over copies of Batman comics and trying to find references to Dorothy and determining if she should be named a saint. Good luck folks and thank you Denny for helping to confuse the confused. Ah, memories!

How Should Journalists Deal With A President Who Lies - All The Time?

I, along with so many others, have watched President Donald Trump stand before reporters and cameras and lie with a straight face. The examples are way too numerous to recount here but all anyone needs to do is search Trump's comments on just about any topic - payments to Stormy Daniels, knowing Matt Whitaker, discussions with North Korea, tariffs, polls, faked videos, etc.

Initially the press has tried to confront him on lies or mistruths but they have a couple of things going against them. First, Donald Trump is tricky. He is fast on his feet. He makes rapid fire comments and gives rapid fire responses. Most of this trickiness is based on his acting and entertainment role as the reality 'apprentice' President. It's mostly an act and it's meant to entertain. It has nothing to do with any search for the truth. The other tactic he uses very effectively is something I call "question interruptess". Pay attention and you'll notice that he usually doesn't let the reporter complete their question. He'll start answering and if the reporter continues to try to clarify, he'll say something like "hold on, let me speak". That tactic confuses the reporter and any audience trying to figure out what's going on.

But the reality is that he lies and he lies often and with, as noted above, an absolute straight face. He seems to enjoy the lies and doesn't worry much about getting caught in them. Perhaps like many pathological liars, he thinks he's telling the truth even when the lies are obvious. So what are journalists to do? What is their best approach? Right now, they seem to be focusing on persistence and hoping that eventually Donald Trump will either slip up badly (which he doesn't care about), or that their truth seeking will win out over his lies. Unfortunately, none of this will work.

But there is an approach that may prove a bit more successful. When the press corp knows Trump is lying as he stands in the driveway talking over a helicopter's engine, perhaps there's only one unified choice. They should all just walk away from him and leave him talking to air and having to turn around and head for the chopper. It's not a protest, it's just a recognition that they have better things to do and better sources to interview. He loves their attention and views it as a challenge and a fight that only he can win. Walking away leaves him on his own with his lies. Yes, journalists have to stop feeding the beast. Feeding the beast just makes the beast bigger. Starve him and leave him flapping in the wind.

I'm sure there are plenty of truthful sources and people who can provide contradicting information to the lies that Donald Trump tells. That's the job for journalists in today's environment.

Transforming People's Lives

Last night (11/09/18) I had the opportunity to be a part of a kick-off event for The Arc of Schuyler's first ever Capital Campaign for what they've identified as a 'transformation' of their supports for people with disabilities, their families and the entire community of Schuyler County. It was an informative and fun event with lots of information and stories about the importance of the organization to people in general. The Capital Campaign is for a total of $1.75 million but the organization has been working behind the scenes and has raised a substantial amount of money through grants and donations from Board members and supporters that has left a balance of $280,000 to be raised.

The 'transformation' is the development of integrated employment opportunities for people with and without disabilities, and integrated employment training program and a community center that will include people and organizations from throughout the community.

Now I need to disclose that I was the executive director of The Arc for 32 years, so the organization is close to my heart. But I've been retired for 7 years and the agency has continued to meet the needs of people and families very successfully. One of the things they did last night was to share a short video that tells the story of how The Arc has impacted one family. Take a look at it here.

So that's one family's story and a great on at that. So.....if you want to support The Arc in its efforts, here's a link to a page where you can become a part of the Transformation 2020 Campaign:

The Arc Transformation 2020 Donor Page

Roger Allen LaPorte

Every year at this time, I find myself pondering and remembering Roger LaPorte, a young man and colleague at the Catholic Worker in NYC. Roger worked with me and others at the Worker, cooking meals, feeding the poor and providing clothing and shelter to men and women on the Bowery, the skid row of the city at the time. Roger also opposed the war in Vietnam, participated in demonstrations and on the morning of Nov. 9th, 1965, took his own life by pouring gasoline on himself and lighting a match on the sidewalk in front of the United Nations. He died a slow and painful death the next day. Roger's life was important as was his final act. Here are some pieces I've written in the past about Roger, his life and death:

(click here) Roger Allen LaPorte 1943-1965

My Vote Counts for Something!

I've spent too many years seeing and experiencing some very bad things that have happened to people, in their lives in general and specifically around their ability or inability to vote. As a youngster I went to Selma, Alabama because I saw people on TV being beaten and chased by horses when they were making a point, a simple point about their right to vote. Their right had been denied and suppressed by rules and tests that were not only foolish and mean but ultimately illegal. They got mad because they had seen their brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers and friends throughout the country discriminated against in the same way. They were beaten, jailed and killed over this right to vote. I was lucky. I was only called names and arrested.

I saw young men drafted and sent to Vietnam, thousands killed while government officials were eventually shown to have lied to the American people while winning elections and asking for votes. Many of those young soldiers never had the opportunity to vote.

For many years I worked with people who had intellectual disabilities. I saw the time when those individuals were housed in institutions with little care, support or education and in addition no right or ability to vote. I remember the times when people would laugh about giving someone "like that" the right to vote.

The list is too long but there are some names that people have to remember, have to think about when we talk about the right to vote. People who were killed in the struggle. People like Jimmie Lee Jackson, Rev. James Reeb and Viola Liuzzo. They all died in the Selma fight. Andrew Goodman, James Earl Cheney and Michael Henry Schwerner all killed in Mississippi while working on voter registration. Medgar Evers, Martin Luther King, Jr. and on and on.

So when people tell me or tell you that our votes don't count, they're wrong. Our votes all count. Mine counts just like those people in Selma who were beaten and killed. My vote counts the same as those young men who lost their lives in Vietnam should have counted. It counts just like all the intellectually disabled people who vote or should vote. It counts like all the women who had to fight for their own right to vote. It's an equalizer, that vote. It's rich and poor, company boss and trade unionist. I get angry and frustrated when I see the same fight happening today. Things that I thought had been corrected. Voter suppression due to skin color or political affiliation.

So don't take it lightly. There are trails of blood and battles we can't imagine. Take it seriously, please. My vote and your vote do count for something. Don't let anyone take it from you and don't give it away by ignoring it. Celebrate it! Vote whatever way you want...but vote.