9 May 2025
You’re Already Part of the Rebellion
Yes, I’ve seen Sinners & I’ve got LOTS to say about its message for us. I DID say quite a lot about it already on our latest episode of The Articulate Coven (https://youtu.be/JWrdiDpNTYQ?si=fk6g60NxIiR5Hp3M). YES, I’ve got an episode coming soon where I explain the name of this show, Always Listening in full, but NEITHER of those things are the focus today. Today, we’re talking about rebellion, and how you’re probably already a part of it, even if you don’t know it.
I’ve been part of two “empty chair” town halls recently, one in Monroe, one in Ruston, Louisiana and next week, I’ll be filming stories from people at the Shreveport empty chair town hall. They’re all “empty chair” town halls because our fairly spineless government officials have all refused to show at all. Senators Cassidy and Kennedy, Representative Letlow & Speaker Mike Johnson all were elected to represent my area but instead have been continually representing the interests of their dear leader, Donald Trump & his billionaire owners like Elon Musk and Peter Thiel.
What are these town halls about? Well, the one consistent thing is that we’re unhappy with the job those above mentioned representatives are doing. The problem in pinpointing the anger causing issues is that there is a new one literally every day. Are we mad about cuts to education? Are we angered by the threats to our parents social security checks? Maybe it’s just the mass deportations, including of legal American citizens without benefit of any due process, no court to decide or argue or prove that legal status, just exile to internment on foreign soil.
It’s ironic, because that last one was literally one of the listed grievances in the Declaration of Independence that Donald Trump so lovingly showed off, mounted in the Oval Office recently. Let’s set aside for a moment, the fact that he seemed to believe they’d hung the original copy of the document up in the White House (https://youtu.be/MjneeKC3FzU?si=0ENlbvj5YQwQeOPE) as opposed to its actual location across town at the National Archives building (it’s housed there along with early versions of the Constitution and the Magna Carta, they’re all pretty cool to see if you get the chance).
Lately, I’ve been hearing a lot of the voice of the rebellion. While Donald Trump is posting AI pictures of himself using a dark side lightsaber, most of us grew up dreaming of being Luke Skywalker, Han Solo or Princess Leia. Scruffy nerfherders just out to save the galaxy.
And I don’t know about you, but lately it does feel like we’re fighting an empire. Daily new atrocities and constitutional crisises make this all feel like there’s NOTHING we can do, especially from small town Louisiana where even in local elections the opposition party is basically always outnumbered. BUT, I want to remind you of a few things.
Lake Charles just elected its first African American mayor, Marshall Simien, a lawyer running as an independent defeated incumbent Nic Hunter & has set Lake Charles on a new path (https://www.kplctv.com/2025/05/08/mayor-elect-marshall-simien-lays-out-his-goals-lake-charles/).
I’ve already made the Star Wars references, so you know I’m a fan. I’ve been rewatching season one of Andor in anticipation of watching season two. I’m just wrapping up season one as I record this & there are some amazing words from the manifesto that we hear some of in that show, those words have been banging around in my head, helping me keep my head high and in the game.
“Remember that the frontier for rebellion is EVERYWHERE. And even the smallest act of insurrection pushes our lines forward…Tyranny requires constant effort. It breaks, it leaks.”
The attempted & ongoing tyranny of Donald Trump is already leaking and breaking all over the place. And YOUR insurrections, no matter how small and from what corner of our galaxy, DO push our lines forward.
The frontier for rebellion is wherever you are.
Let’s all stay in the fight, and let’s keep listening to that voice of rebellion. I’m Joel Sharpton and I am always Listening.
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