For several years now, in my very small way, I've been urging folks to reclaim jingoistic holidays. The fact that, for example, the US government hides its war crimes by characterizing those they sent to die in Iraq as having been "fighting to protect us and our freedom" does not mean that it is bad thing to memorialize those who died for freedom. There are many such. And this year, I thought I'd ask everyone to remember those who fought for freedom in the most straightforward possible sense. So from Spartacus to Haiti and beyond, let's devote a moment tomorrow - Memorial Day in the US, for our non-US readers - to thinking of those who gave their lives in slave rebellions through the centuries.
And if you have two moments, maybe a thought about how one can support those who live in effective slavery today - whether they endure prisons or sweatshops, CIA torture facilities, or military occupations.
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