Freedom?

"Freedom", as it appears on top of the Capitol building.  Do we really have it? 

Every couple of years Ash and I do a few days of very “normal” touristing where we check out the sights of a city, whether on a bike tour or simply going someplace to navigate the urban jungle adventure.  A few years ago we “did” Manhattan, and this past weekend we went to Washington DC, which I have grown to really like:  there’s so much interesting stuff to see and do, with so many reminders of American history that I learned long ago, augmented by a ton of important fill in history/info that I never learned. 

Our visit began with a visit to Congressman Ben McAdams’ office.  Four years ago I went to Washington to lobby for the Land Water Conservation Fund (which was temporarily scuttled by our awful rep Rob Bishop, but was then revived with permanent funding as part of last year’s sweeping and great lands bill).  Even though I wasn’t able to meet with any of the congressmen themselves (the pope was in town) I got a kick out of at least being in the offices and talking to the enthusiastic legislative staffers (who assured me that they had the ears of their bosses).  I came away from that trip with the righteous conviction that it’s pretty much incumbent upon us as ‘Merican citizens to try to meet with our congressmen if/when we go to DC.  So when this trip came around I reached out to McAdams’ office and got an appointment, and I had a great half hour meeting with Ben and an enthusiastic staffer about the goings-on relative to the potential Wasatch protection legislation and the “Recreation Not Red Tape” act. 

The rest of the weekend was spent visiting museums, socializing, eating, and hitting museums. 

One of these was the “Newseum”, which is a historical celebration of the First Amendment:

The First Amendment, carved into the wall of the Newseum

Being somewhat news junkies, Ash and I loved it, especially since one of the exhibits was of the Daily Show:

hanging out with one of her heroes

 One of the most provocative displays there was the map of the world showing freedom of the press:

Green means a very free press, yellow is sorta free, and red means state run press.  There's a lot of yellow and way too much red in this image.

Tragically, the Newseum is closing on December 31^st.   For some reason it is not a Smithsonian museum so it’s not free, but despite this it’s had 10 million visitors over the last 11 years that it’s been open, but apparently that model was not sustainable.  It seemed so ironic that one of the thrusts of the impeachment hearings happening a coupla blocks is – at least, according to Devin Nunes – a function of The Media and its influence over our politics.  But the Newseum reminds its visitors of Thomas Jefferson’s famous quote:  “Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.”  It’s hard to not imagine that there’s something odd happening when a very popular museum in Politics Centrale is not supported and allowed to die….because the folks who could save it are the very ones that the museum is celebrating the exposure of. 

Even Reagan was a fan:

As I left the Newseum on our last day and headed west down the Mall, I reflected on our visits to the Capitol and the museums.  The Air and Space is always a great reminder of the race to the moon that America “won” with a mindbogglingly-difficult and sustained effort:  

the African American Museum is a comprehensive view of the bad (slavery, Jim Crow, police brutality) and the good (the zillions of contributions) of African Americans:

the Holocaust Museum is a profound experience and an all-too-vivid account of what happens when a country and a people go bad, and getting a Capitol tour is a vivid reminder of the ideals that our country represents.

Ash celebrating freedom!

On the way I went by the Washingon Monument at sunset:

Which is certainly dramatic, even if it’s a bit weird; it’s always struck me that GW was a pretty humble and practical guy, and “his” monument is very much neither. 

Further along is the World War Two Memorial, which has this engraved on the base of the two flagpoles:  “Americans came to liberate, not to conquer; to restore freedom and to end tyranny.”  As a guy whose dad fought in WWII (but didn’t like to talk about it much) it felt pretty lofty.  

 Therefore, as I approached the Lincoln Memorial I was feeling….not really “patriotic” per se, but maybe just happy that I was an American who has been able to have a very fulfilling life, in no small part due to people who have indeed sought to battle against oppressors, maintain freedom of the press, sacrificed their lives to end slavery and tyranny, and liberate the oppressed. 

 

pretty inspiring

I had walked up the steps, found the spot where Martin Luther King gave his “I Have A Dream” speech, and gazed back over the reflection pond to reflect, when I realized that there was a bit of a commotion going on inside the memorial itself.  It was jammed, and there was a woman speaking who was fired up and getting the crowd wound up as well.  I saw a sign:

Justice for Bijan

I felt sorta stoopid:  who was Bijan?  I know about Michael Brown (Ferguson), Trayvon Martin, Eric Garner, and others, but I didn’t know Bijan.  I didn’t have time to hang out and find out, so I left, trotting for the edge of the mall towards Georgetown.  At the crosswalk I waited for the light with a guy who also had a sign, so I asked him “Sorry to sound like a dunderhead, but who’s Bijan and what’s the story?” and he told me the tale.

Bijan Ghaisar was a young guy born in the US to an immigrant, and two years ago he was in a minor traffic incident near the mall that he drove away from (a misdemeanor) and was then chased by National Park police.  He stopped once and a policeman approached him with his gun drawn, and Bijan drove away, eventually hitting 57 mph in a 50mph zone.  He was pulled over again by the park police – who had left their jurisdiction, which is not allowed unless a felony has been committed – and as he again tried to drive away…..they shot him nine times, and then claimed they shot him in self defense.

Bijan was on life support for ten days and his family had very limited access to him.  He was taken off the respirator and died. 

Since then the Park Police stonewalled any investigation, with Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke refusing to even release the names of the officers.  Two DC congressmen and Senators Kain, Warner, and Grassley have gotten involved and the FBI has it “under investigation” but earlier this month the Park Service issued an announcement that the two officers would not be charged (more details here).  Yesterday’s Washington Post had an article about the protest I saw. 

Suffice to say, the balloon of satisfaction with and gratitude for my country was popped.  Two hundred and forty years of “progress” that lasted through many wars and countless trials tribulations have resulted in….this?  The impeachment of an amoral president on one end of the mall and at the other end a protest for an unarmed guy shot dead by police for a misdemeanor, with the cops' superiors holding his family and any investigation at bay, with no regard for congressional pressure? 

I am not proud.