Face of a Generation

As our little memorial for the late Ken Kelley approaches, less than three weeks from now, I'm hearing from people all over. Tonight, in my inbox, this lovely photo arrived courtesy of Leni Sinclair. She doesn't know who took it, but it captures one side of Ken -- his fearlessness in the face of power (as represented by armed cops) -- that is emblematic of a generation.

Much maligned by those who chose other paths, 60s activists did something very few generations of Americans have ever done. They stood up to the entrenched power and said, "no."

No to the Vietnam War.

No to racism.

No to discrimination against homosexuals.

No to excessive corporate power.

No to imperialistic foreign policy.

No to sexism.

We were a generation who knew what we were against. Many of our peers, of course, did not appreciate our actions. But, 40 years later, it would be hard for anyone to argue that we were on the wrong side of history or of morality.

Over the past 20 years, the conservative vision for America has been polluted by demagogues who wasted everyone's time and energy on non-issues -- gay marriage, abortion, life support, religious belief, flag pins, patriotism -- all sorts of things I would characterize as personal choices, not legitimate political issues.

What we need in America is not more of this noise, but leaders with true vision about the things that truly matter. Those of us who formed the protest movement of the 60s were a small slice of a generation, in reality.

But, in retrospect, we were right. This time around, those of us still alive and sentient should be heeded. It is time for America to downsize, retreat from military adventurism, embrace diversity, reduce wealth disparity, accept globalism, lead the critical fight against climate change, and speak truth to power.

That would be a fitting legacy for my friend Ken Kelley. He was a man who never had any trouble whatsoever speaking truth to power.

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