Split This Rock Supports One Nation Working Together Rally

By: Carmen Calatayud

Photo credit: Jim Hayes
Split This Rock poets and friends gathered on Saturday morning, Oct. 2^nd, to march and show their support for the One Nation Working Together rally on the Washington Mall. One Nation Working Together inspired thousands of like-minded organizations and citizens to attend DC’s rally in a quest for jobs, justice and peace.

Together, a Split This Rock crew, draped with signs created the night before, made its way from 14^th and Constitution Streets, NW to the Lincoln Memorial for the 12 noon rally. Here are some of the lines of poetry we wore:

Many men died—although we know the fate
Of none, nor of anyone, and the war
Goes on,.................................................................Photo credit: Carmen Calatayud
and the moon in the breast of man is cold.
-- John Berryman

My son smells of peace when I lean over him. It isn't just the soap.
Everybody was once the child with the smell of peace.
-- Yehuda Amichai, Israeli Poet

Ravaged animals
creep, bleeding,
from the once-green world.
-- Ellen Wise

things sometimes work as they were meant,
like the torturer who finally can’t sleep

-Bruce Weigl

Photo credit: Carmen Calatayud
Split This Rock poets passed out poems with information about Split This Rock and its festival, met kind and hard-working advocates for justice along the way, and ended the afternoon of speeches with five poets reading poems on Free Speech TV.

The One Nation Working Together movement includes human and civil rights organizations, unions and trade associations, nonprofit organizations, youth and student groups, religious and other faith groups, educational, peace, environmental, and ethnic associations, and other groups and individuals who are committed to uniting our country for the good of all of its people.

Split This Rock was proud to bring a poetic voice to the call for justice on the Mall.

Photo credit: Carmen Calatayud

Photo credit: Jim Hayes

Photo credit: Carmen Calatayud