American Triangle...

this afternoon friends and i are attending a production of The Laramie Project by Moisés Kaufman. it is being performed this weekend at Dominican University Performing Arts Center in River Forest, Illinois. it is a powerful piece of work. i've seen it before and there is also a film version.

The Laramie Project is a play by Moisés Kaufman and members of the Tectonic Theater Project about the reaction to the murder of [Matthew] Shepard. The play draws on hundreds of interviews conducted by the theatre company with inhabitants of the town, company members' own journal entries and published news reports. It is divided into three acts, and eight actors portray more than sixty characters in a series of short scenes. It was later adapted into a film of the same name.

if you are familiar with the history of the play and if you have been keeping up with the news for the last couple of weeks, you will know that it has been consistently targeted by Fred Phelps and his Westboro Baptist Church with hateful and unchristian taunts and protests at a lot of performances. Phelps and his daughter were barred from entering England last week and prevented from leading a protest at Queen Mary's College in Basingstoke, Hampshire. though England has free speech laws, it also has laws that forbid inciting violence with hate speech.

from the timesonline.com article -

"Both these individuals have engaged in unacceptable behaviour by inciting hatred against a number of communities.

"The Government has made it clear it opposes extremism in all its forms.

"We will continue to stop those who want to spread extremism, hatred and violent messages in our communities from coming to our country.

in the United States we allow all groups to use their free speech right no matter how inciteful or hate-filled it is. that is a debate for another time.

a little over a month ago Dominican University discovered via the Westboro website [i will not provide a link] that the group is planning a protest the hour before today's performance. the latest communication i had from one of the manager's is that the daughter is scheduled to be part of the protest.

students at the University found out about the protest and have organized a counter-protest. they have, with great humility and conscience, decided to make it a silent counter-protest. it is the right thing to do. [IMHO]

below is a video of the song American Triangle that Elton John and Bernie Taupin wrote about the murder of Matthew Shepard. the piece is powerful in itself. this version was put together with scenes from the film version of The Laramie Project. you will see some of the scenes that include the Phelps' group. the man playing Phelps eerily looks like the original. the signs they carry are exact replicas of the ones the group always carry.

besides productions of the play, for quite some time now Phelps and his crew have been doing these protests at the funerals of servicemembers killed in the line of duty in Afghanistan and Iraq - with the exact same signs! one of the saddest things about the protesters is that they have always included their children, some as young as 5 or 6. the children use the same language as the adults.

i am going to post about what happens either when i get home this evening or tomorrow. i will also try to provide some photos, if possible. the University and the River Forest Police Department have prepared for this. they have set aside two areas - one for the students and one for them. i know all will go well. i will help, if need be. i may have to pull all of the Vietnam War protest techniques and experiences out of the back of my head. somehow i think it's going to be like riding a bicycle - once you've learned, you never forget.

and i did learn from some of the best...

please watch the video below. i have also included the lyric afterward.

and, please, send your good thoughts, feelings, prayers, vibes, novenas, or whatever your belief is to support the students of Dominican University.

American Triangle

Music by Elton John
Lyrics by Bernie Taupin


Seen him playing in his backyard
Young boy just starting out
So much history in this landscape
So much confusion, so much doubt

Been there drinking on that front porch
Angry kids, mean and dumb
Looks like a painting, that blue skyline
God hates fags where we come from

"Western skies" don't make it right
"Home of the brave" don't make no sense
I've seen a scarecrow wrapped in wire
Left to die on a high ridge fence
It's a cold, cold wind
It's a cold, cold wind
It's a cold wind blowing, Wyoming

See two coyotes run down a deer
Hate what we don't understand
You pioneers give us your children
But it's your blood that stains their hands

"Western skies" don't make it right
"Home of the brave" don't make no sense
I've seen a scarecrow wrapped in wire
Left to die on a high ridge fence
It's a cold, cold wind
It's a cold, cold wind
It's a cold wind blowing, Wyoming

Somewhere that road forks up ahead
To ignorance and innocence
Three lives drift on different winds
Two lives ruined, one life spent

"Western skies" don't make it right
"Home of the brave" don't make no sense
I've seen a scarecrow wrapped in wire
Left to die on a high ridge fence
It's a cold, cold wind
It's a cold, cold wind
It's a cold wind blowing, Wyoming