Before I wax poetic about our evening in Madison, I should clarify that I don’t think there was anything particularly different about this stop. The energy was through the roof, which it was in Columbus and Chicago as well. (I imagine it was similar in previous stops too, but I wasn’t on the bus then.) The divestment toolkits flew off the table, the crowd was on their feet at least 3 times, and the college organizers were astounding, but none of this is new.
What made Madison so different for me was the realization that the energy in Columbus and Chicago was not a rarity. People really are this excited to get to work. The divestment movement really is catching hold, and campus organizers are truly as motivated and wonderful as they seem over email. The realization that this divestment movement has grown legs and taken off gives me a fantastic case of the goosebumps. I was fortunate enough to get a small green felt triangle, adorned only with the letter “D”, which is a symbol for this divestment movement. This pin began in Boston, on area campuses, and has traveled through the network of college divestment movements to Madison. I’m hoping to see more of them on the road, and have mine pinned proudly to my all-access pass.
Friends, we’re going to take down the fossil fuel industry. And we’re going to do so with so-called ‘average Americans’, who have shown themselves to be amazing and inspiring people, in Madison and beyond. I cannot wait to meet the folks in Minneapolis tomorrow, and absolutely believe in the power of these organizers to get their colleges, towns, and religious institutions to divest. 3 cheers for all!
Forgive the picture quality, but know that I was incredibly humbled as I took this photo.
From the bus,
Jean