A Reflection on Two Marches

And you thought I was done writing. No, I happen to have put off writing about two very important experiences until I was well within the safety of my country's borders.  It wasn't anything that extreme, but one can never be too cautious. This is one of them. I apologize in advance for the length, but to leave it shorter would do it an injustice.

I think it took until today to really understand and reflect on my experience in the Philippines.  Today, I attended the People’s Climate March in NYC in response to the United Nations meeting to discuss climate change. 310,000 people attended at first estimate.  And I was one of them.  It takes about 5.5-6 hours to get from Ithaca to NYC by bus. One might think that I have better things to do with my Sunday than spend my day on a bus for only a few hours in the city. In my busy life there are exams to study for, homework to be completed, and social/club obligations to meet.  But when I saw my pastor, Taryn, post an article about the climate march, I knew I was called to be there. 

I walked with hundreds of thousands of people to show that this is an issue that I care about, that we care about, and that you and everyone in power should know we care about.  After all, true change should really begin with the people.  So I walked for those who couldn't.  I walked for God’s great earth. I walked for my future.  And I also walked for the friends I left back in the Philippines.

I don’t care what you think about climate change or how you think we should go about taking care of the issue.  That’s not the point.  People today held signs that I didn't agree with.  And that’s okay! We were united by the fact that we all want something to be done about climate change, something I witnessed first-hand in the Philippines. Just this week I read about more devastation due to another typhoon in the region. The science is there to show that the climate is changing. Whether it’s part of a natural cycle or not, the pollution that humans create is not helping.  Just yesterday I was working on some homework about SO2 scrubbers for a coal combustion reaction.  I really think that I can find a way to serve the environment using my gifts and skills as a future chemical engineer. 

I wouldn't have considered attending this march before my summer in the Philippines.  I grew a lot this summer, but I also learned an important lesson.  My presence alone can be a powerful tool.  I’m not a politician, but I can affect political change by using my voice and my presence.  I stand in solidarity with people, and I know that makes a difference because I spent most of my summer doing that.  I know what I care about and I want to make a difference.  In all honesty, if I had rolled over in bed after I shut my alarm off at 5am, it would not have made a big difference to the march.  But if everyone there said that, then there would be no march.  There would be no movement and no change.  The great thing about events like the climate march today is that I wasn't standing alone.  I wasn't one person, I was part of 310,000 people.  That is powerful.  And it gave me the courage to go.

It was a very different story a couple months ago in Manila.  The State of the Nation Address (SONA) is much like the US President’s State of the Union.  But the political climate in the Philippines is much more volatile.  There is a lot of corruption and ineffectiveness in the government.  The SONA tends to focus on the successes of the government.  The protest, where I went, tries to tell the other side of the story. 

At the end of the People’s Climate March, there was food, art, and music. 

At the end of the SONA Protest there was a police barricade.

I, as a US citizen have the right to peacefully protest my government.

The Filipino people do not have that right.  (Nor did I on my travel visa).

Knowing that we were not allowed to participate in anything political made me a bit wary about attending the rally in Manila.  But we were there to attend the worship service in the street before the marchers left, nothing more.  Once we arrived, I realized just how many people had come out for the event.  They were everywhere, slowly taking more and more lanes of the road.  They came from all walks of life.  And the best part was that I knew and recognized so many people there.  Migrante International, the migrant rights group we worked with was there.  There was a group representing the indigenous people, like the Aeta we visited.  There was a group standing behind a handmade set of prison bars representing the political prisoners we visited. (I promise I will write about that.) There were the people we had met at Hacienda Luisita. There were people from the NCCP and other missionaries and church people we recognized.  On top of that there were labor groups, women’s groups, professionals groups.  Everyone was represented in the protest.  This wasn't a problem faced by a few Filipinos.  This was a problem faced by an entire country of Filipinos.

After joining a worship service led by megaphone and witnessing the growing crowd, Nicole and I asked if we could stay and walk with the people.  We got the green light and were briefed by the legal team.  After a surge of foreigner presence at the protest last year, the police were on the lookout and could be taking pictures of us. However, there is nothing illegal about being a tourist on a tourist visa.  So while we were told it was unwise to walk in the protest, we were allowed to walk alongside and take pictures like a tourist.  So with my camera at the ready we set out along the route.  We weren't able to go all the way because there were often physical altercations when the police barriers were reached.  When we got close, we walked up over the overpass to the other side of the road.  From there, we could see the police line and the police all down the side of the road too.  But you could also see the long line of people back along the route.  And even more arriving throughout the day. 

I don’t think I can accurately convey the impact this experience had on me.  I know I've written a lot already, but I don’t think I could do it justice to say any less.  I now know how lucky I am to see police officers today and know they were there to help me, not stop me.  I realized that if I have this right, I can’t waste it.  When issues as large as climate change, human trafficking, and social injustice present themselves it can seem overwhelming to tackle them.  But never doubt the power of just your prayers and your presence.  Change doesn't come easy, but it can come.  And it starts when you decide it’s worth it to get out and do something.  

Hopefully these pictures come out okay and I can share more photos in the future!