Citizen Reporter

Martin Luther King Jr. day has almost ended here in Amsterdam. Not that you hear anything about it on the streets, since it’s not a holiday, but I did manage to ride by Martin Luther King Park today. (nevermind that one has nothing to do with the other, its good enough for me today!) MLK Jr. day is always a wierd one… because of the very neutered image of the man and his work that you hear about from political leaders, mainstream media, and even many school teachers.

Now I certainly had some great teachers in high school, many of whom taught me to be critical about the bullshit society serves me on a platter. But when I think back to what I was taught about Dr. King, it was a white-washed, disneyfied, feel-good story… devoid of the details of all the goals that still have not been accomplished, and most importantly, of what the great man had been working on at the time of his death: The Poor People’s Campaign.

You don’t hear about it cause it scares the shit out of the powerful in society that want to keep things more or less where they are. That reap the benefits of the incomprehensible gap between the rich and the poor, and more importantly, the terrible conditions so manly countless poor people endure day after day. He wanted congress to enact a “Poor People’s Bill of Rights,” it was to be the largest and most widespread campaign ever undertaken by a movement. Yet you never hear much about that in the clean and pure story of MLK as an American hero. If you heard about that children might grow up demanding to know what happened to that campaign and why isn’t there such a movement. And there are few politicians who could afford such a change of political winds.

And of course just to further re-enforce how scared the government was of MLK and his goals, you can try and gain access to the over 16,000 pages of surveillance and investigation the FBI has on him. Only 201 available online, clearly they’re still hiding most of the pages, and probably still very scared at the idea that people may rise up and demand economic justice. But nevermind that concept, it is a more useful tool to those who profit and thrive on inequality if it simply remains a dream.

During the chilly ride from the bicyclemark ranch to crazy dr. m’s super delicious paella dinner, my dear roomate summarized the experience of living abroad as being like a relationship or a marriage; initially you’re crazy about each other and every little thing and day is wonderful and new and a joy. And then a year or two go by, and that initial magic wears off, and then you’re left with this things that you still adore about the place where you live, but you also have a bunch of things you do not like at all – that’s where I am at with Amsterdam.

It is year number 4 and the initial magic has certainly worn off. The student life-magic has also faded, and rightfully so since I’m a working stiff now, doing a million little jobs in the hopes of having money to do things like – go to Cuba. Suddenly I see bills I’ve never really had to deal with before. They’re certainly less than I would have to deal with say, in New Jersey, but still – I have never felt more like an adult with responsibility than I do at the start of 2006.

And then comes a paella dinner with the good dr. and good people. Followed by one of those nights, where as BlondebutBright, Mindcaster, and I ride along the gorgeous and peaceful canals of Amsterdam’s oldest neighborhoods en route to yet another party… I just can’t stop laughing. Maybe its because life in Amsterdam can be so random and hilarious sometimes. Maybe its cause the percentage of vokda to orange juice in my drink was slightly off. Or maybe it’s because I hadn’t been out with these two together in so many months. Whatever the reasons, after evaluating how I’m doing in relation to this town, Saturday night reminded me that I’m right where Im supposed to be… on my bike, with great friends, riding down the streets of the dam.