UPDATE: Murtari expects arrest after moving his chalk writing to the Village Offices at 76 William St. in Lyons on Monday. He'll be there at 2 pm, and hopes other parents will join him.
ORIGINAL ARTICLE: John Murtari, founder of NY-based family rights group akidsright.org resumed his chalk writing campaign outside Assemblyman Oak's office (map) this week for the proposed You're a Parent Notification Act. Murtari's website describes what the Act entails.
It shall be the duty of a parent to notify the other parent upon the birth of a child. This notification shall occur within 30 days of the event. The State will maintain a registry of notifications. If the birth event is witnessed by medical or other health professionals they will assist in making sure notification is completed.
Murtari has been communicating with Assemblyman Oaks and his staff since May of 2006 about introducing the bill, but he hasn't gotten very far. He explains, "They are all very nice people, but right now [Oaks] feels there would be strong political risk in such a Bill and will not introduce it. "
Saying he's willing to go to jail to bring attention to the lack of respect for parental rights, Murtari plans on ramping up his peaceful protesting. "I'll be writing with sidewalk chalk next week," he said, "but this time I'll be outside the police station."
Murtari is best known for being fed via Nasal-Gastric tube for 123 days during a peaceful protest while incarcerated for child support he says he never owed. He was interviewed at that time by news channel 10 and film producer Angelo Lobo. Murtari can be seen in the documentary SUPPORT? System Down. He says he gave a preview of the movie to Assemblyman Oak's staff. (See trailer below.)
When asked why he is willing to sacrifice his liberty for family rights he replied with these words.
Do we remember that for the majority of "written" human history:
slavery was a norm, there was no freedom of religion, no real
democracy. The "early promoters" of modern freedoms were persecuted
and killed. They just didn't "get it." But BIG change did happen.
We think we have "arrived" in our modern time. That "all Civil
Rights" are recognized, but in the near future folks may look back and
say, "Can you believe how it was back then, just because you separated
-- you weren't an equal parent anymore! Barbarians!"
Again, again, and again I have to go back to Civil Rights history.
The GREAT rights are defined by the sacrifices people made to achieve
them. All the GREAT Civil Rights were made manifest by the will of the
people -- not defined by some Court.
By it's very nature, sacrifice is not a contract. You give up this
and you will gain that. That would make it easy. Sacrifice is you
give up this and then maybe, maybe, you will gain that? But always -
you gain satisfaction & self respect & peace. "They told me to move
to the back of the bus in my kid's life -- but I said, 'No.' They had
to carry me and hold me down."
Sacrifice - no GREAT CIVIL RIGHT has been won by talk alone, nor with
a guarantee of success. In the 50s a Black who peacefully participated
in a rally against segregation stood a good chance his home could be
burned down by the Klan. At a recent parent's meeting I asked those
assembled if they would attend a Rally for Family Rights, if it meant
a chance they would lose their homes/job -- not one hand went up...
"Nonviolent resistance ... is based on the conviction that the
universe is on the side of justice. Consequently, the believer in
nonviolence has deep faith in the future ...[and] can accept
suffering without retaliation. For he knows that in his struggle
for justice he has cosmic companionship." Martin Luther King
http://www.AKidsRight.Org/civil.htm
No comments:
Post a Comment