Just heard Representative John Conyers speaking live at the funeral of Rosa Parks. In his closing he said that Rosa Parks taught him:
"You can't maintain a democracy and an empire simultaneously."
As Frist and Bush try to speak well of her, I cringe. Frist: "Rosa Parks' bold and principled refusal to give up her seat was not an intentional attempt to change a nation, but a singular act aimed at restoring the dignity of the individual." I think Frist clearly sees that Rosa Parks demarcated empire from democracy and began a series of actions that fight against empire. And so, he must conjure words to hide that demarcation.
There is a creative, forceful co-generative relationship of our words with our actions. Although words can try to hide injustice, actions reveal it. Thankfully, Conyers Conyers continues in the Rosa Parks' tradition of speaking and acting in consonance, truthfully.
am
