One Human Family

January 18, 2020







Debbie Murcasel-Powell

One Human Family

One of the things that I love about living in Key West is the amazing diversity of our community. There are people from all walks of life here and for the most part, everyone is accepting and we all get along. Even when there are vast differences of opinion, we tend to treat each other with respect, dignity and with a lot of love. This One Human Family spirit has been on display in full force this past week as there were a couple of events that really highlighted it.

Clayton





John

 The first was the scheduled appearance by well-known evangelist Franklin Graham at the Key West Amphitheater as part of his Decision America Sunshine State tour of Florida. Graham, is a titan of the religious right and the son of the late Rev. Billy Graham who has unfortunately spent a lot of energy preaching against what he suggests are the sinful lifestyles of the LGBT community. In response a protest was organized and attended by about 200 local activists that included both Key West Mayor Terri Johnson and Monroe County Mayor Heather Carruthers.







Larry

The part that was the most satisfying was that the protest was more a show of support and love than an angry protest against anyone or anything. In fact the protesters, were respectful, loving and in some way supportive of the rights of Graham and his group to exercise free speech and practice their religious preferences. They just disagreed with what has been a core element of what Graham and his group seem to spend an inordinate amount of energy and focus preaching.

Erika

Virginia

Nan

I must say that I knew personally the vast majority of the people protesting, but I also wanted to experience just what Graham and his group was all about, so I went into the rally myself. I was really surprised by a few things, mostly by how packed it was and by how many people that I knew as friends and neighbors were in attendance. The atmosphere was more like an upscale rock concert than any spiritual experience and while Graham preached his version of the word of God, the people seemed truly moved in many respects. He tactfully avoided any mention of the type of comments that had drawn the ire of those protesting and focused a lot on the good work his organization performed in assisting the Keys in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma, which was truly a good thing.







With Gwen

But in spite of seemingly saying all the right things, I personally felt ill at ease with the event. Even though it was a free event, it felt from casual observation that the whole thing was more about raising money for Graham and his ministry than about anything truly spiritual. It saddens me that so many good people can be so swayed by their religious fervor that they do not recognize why so many in their community find the message hateful and painful.









The second major event of the week saw many of the same familiar faces from the Graham protest participating in the annual Woman’s March down Duval Street. The local march is part of the larger International event that  sees millions of women and allies around the world joining together for the fourth annual Women’s March Global, a yearly Event that brings together all those who are committed to fighting for equality, justice, and women’s human rights worldwide.

Jo

Kathy







Kathryn

The local version was sponsored by the ACLU and organized by my friends Natalia and Kathryn and featured a few hundred activists who gathered near the Southernmost House to march the length of Duval Street to Mallory Square where a small gathering and some speeches followed. I enjoy going and supporting the women who are so dedicated in their ideals of improving women’s rights and working for real change.



Natalia



Trish



It was a beautiful afternoon and the march went off without a hitch. There was a tremendous amount of support and encouragement from the crowd lining Duval Street watching as the march passed by, there were also a couple of snarky comments that I heard, but the overall spirit was really positive. Our local Congressional representative, Debbie Murcasel-Powell was on hand along with her family. She was also celebrating her birthday and enjoying time in the Florida Keys.





Debbie and John





http://www.womensmarchflkeys.org/