(originally at dailyKos, long ago)
Today, we honor Dr. King. But there are other heroes. You probably haven’t heard of these, some of my heroes. But I hope you will read on.
Who makes you proud?
Proud of what? Proud of being human. Name some heroes, and try to tell us WHY they make you proud or ashamed. And try to pick some people who won’t be on EVERYONE’S list unless you have some special thing to say – soem special bit of knowledge.
So….in no particular order….and I am NOT saying these are the greatest people in history….just some who I think aren’t that well known
Heroes:
S. Michael Gelber, who was my rabbi, and who I diaried about here
My father – who not only led a life that would fit into a Horatio Alger story (except Alger didn’t write about Jews) but is totally committed to giving back to the community, and who may be the least prejudiced person I know (certainly less prejudiced than I am).
Paul Farmer – for his stunning work in bringing free health care to some of the most impoverished places on Earth – most especially Haiti.
Wayne Inman – In Billings, MT, in 1993, the KKK and other groups were vandalizing the homes of the few Jews who live there, who they identified because they were displaying menorahs in their windows. Cemeteries were desecrated, swastikas painted….etc. Inman, the police chief at the time, reacted brilliantly. He publicized the incidents, got religious groups to sponsor marches against hate, and, in what I regard as the most brilliant move, got 10,000 menorahs printed up and urged residents to place them in their windows. Kudos to word is bond for helping me find the info, and posting it here
David Smith of Whitwell, TN, a teacher and assistant principal who came up with the idea that led to a great film. The basic story: He decided that the kids in this nearly-all-White, all-Christian town needed to learn about the Holocaust. Then he had the idea to collect a paper clip for each Jew killed by the Nazis. It really is a great film , and a testament to what ordinary people can do, and how ordinary people can grow.
Who are your heroes?
Why?
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that helps spread the word.
about some of my heroes like Greg Mortenson, Andre and Magda Trocme, David Simon, Malalia Joya, and a host of peacemakers.
But this man is someone I’ve actually had the pleasure to meet and work with. Its George Latimer, who was Mayor of St. Paul from 1976 to 1990. He is perhaps the most beloved person in this city, and for good reason. If you watched the infamous Wellstone Memorial on tv, George was the MC.
He is smart, funny, compassionate, and a tireless worker for people who have no voice. George’s beautiful wife Nancy died recently after years of battling a chronic illness. George cut back on his work in the community and loving took care of her for several years until the end. Recently he’s gotten busy again and last I heard he was working to get all his business friends to open up jobs for felons coming out of prison. Not the kind of nice “charity” work that so many at his station in life take on – but that’s George for ya.
…but one that many folks have likely never heard of is Christine Burns, of Press for Change in the UK. Her organization helped bring about formal recognition and increased civil rights for trans folk under British law. I maybe idolize her effort too much because from far away one doesn’t see the messy parts, but being trans and following it over many years, from hopeless case after case in the British and EU courts, to the gender recognition act in 2004, has been amazing. She meets the Campbellian conception of a hero, shifted to the activist context, someone who goes on a long quest, faces many difficulties, wins the prize, and brings it back to share. And she (and the people who fought with her) won! Not because they played politics just so, with the proper incremental twist, or fought for the grand universal of gender variance for all everywhere, but because they simply said — this isn’t right, in our lives, it’s not just. And they kept saying it until they were heard.