Evolutionary Revolution
By Wade Lee Hudson
Personal,
Social,
Cultural,
Economic,
Environmental,
Political,
Global
Transformation.
The overwhelming majority of people
In most nations
United,
Grounded in compassion,
Loving and respecting themselves
As they love and respect others,
Avoiding self-sacrifice and selfishness,
Treating others as they want to be treated,
Setting aside destructive instincts,
Liberating their higher angels,
Realizing their nation’s highest ideals,
Creating conditions that nurture the quality of life,
Good, moral, happy, honorable, productive, meaningful lives,
Rooted in dignity, worthy of respect.
Transforming their nation
Into a compassionate community
Dedicated to the common good of
All humanity,
Their own people,
The environment,
And life itself --
The people of each nation
Working toward that same goal,
Cooperating with each other,
Helping each nation stand strong against
Powerful global corporate and financial forces
That maximize profit regardless of consequences --
Individuals supporting the empowerment
Of individuals and communities,
Making their nation more democratic
And caring,
Inspiring each other,
Helping each other,
Listening to each other,
Learning from each other,
Spreading contagious happiness,
Each individual on their own path
Headed in the same direction,
Appreciating differences,
Each person,
As a member of the human family,
Affirming multiple identities,
Accepting others’ identities,
Supporting self-determination
Within community,
Setting aside ideology, dogma, doctrine, the worship of words,
Focused on what works to improve lives,
Letting go of zero-sum thinking,
Embracing positive-sum thinking,
The more others flourish,
The more I flourish,
The more they flourish,
The more we flourish.
Going beyond the old form of leadership
That defines a leader as one who mobilizes others
To do what the leader wants
And embracing a new form of leadership
That defines a leader as one who helps a team solve problems
Together
With any one person able to exercise leadership
By suggesting a step forward that makes sense,
Creating workplaces that empower workers,
Schools that empower students, teachers, and parents,
Social service agencies that empower clients,
Doctors who empower patients,
Families that empower children,
Organizations that empower their members,
Friends, wives, husbands, and parents who empower each other.
Creating democracies without racist police who use
Excessive force,
Democracies that declare Election Day a national holiday
And remove barriers to voting,
Democracies that set a limit on how much money any one person
Can contribute to a political campaign
And provide essential public support to assure free and fair elections,
Democracies that make it illegal for an election official
To lobby the government until ten years after they no longer serve,
Democracies that require that any business that gets a public licence
To use public airwaves
Will devote a substantial portion of their time
To present alternate points of view
And public service announcements,
Democracies that require elected officials to meet face-to-face
At least once a month
To hear voters’ opinions and answer their questions
On any subject,
In a forum that’s carefully structured
To assure that it’s not dominated by the official
And is fair and orderly,
With democracies that include grassroots organizations
That mobilize at least 1% of their eligible voters
Once a month
To urge their national representatives
To back a specific law,
Supported by a majority of the people,
To relieve suffering or protect the environment --
Resorting to nonviolent civil disobedience and boycotts if necessary,
Pushing their representatives
Until they respect the will of the people.
In these and other ways, achieving
Holistic,
Systemic,
Global
Transformation.
Changing the structure and outward appearance of our society,
Changing our character as individuals,
Changing whole persons and the whole world,
Changing our global social system from one that
Integrates our institutions,
Our culture,
Our ecology,
And ourselves as individuals
To enable people to climb one social ladder or another
So they can dominate
And look down on those below --
Into a global social system that
Integrates our institutions,
Our culture,
Our ecology,
And ourselves as individuals
To enable everyone to thrive,
Enjoy life,
Live in harmony with Nature,
And form productive, creative partnerships,
While respecting legitimate authority,
Noble traditions,
Stability,
And family ties,
Until the world looks and feels like a new world,
Until people feel and act like new people,
Until Mother Earth no longer screams in agony.
Holistic, systemic, global transformation.
Personal, social, cultural, economic, environmental, political.
One step at a time,
One day at a time,
Minute by minute,
Person by person,
Family by family,
Community by community,
Workplace by workplace,
Neighborhood by neighborhood,
City by city,
State by state,
Nation by nation.
With individuals who embrace this vision
And commit to steadily improve themselves
And the world
Meeting once a month
In a support team
Of three or more who embrace this vision
To share a meal and,
Before engaging in whatever other activity
They want to engage in,
Briefly,
Confidentially,
Concerning a matter of each person’s choosing,
Reporting on how they’ve been trying
To become a better person
And improve their nation’s public policies,
And then, on occasion,
Meeting with members from other nearby support teams
Who share this commitment
To learn from and inspire each other,
Until eventually growing into an enormous
Global gathering,
In multiple locations,
Streamed live globally,
Kindred spirits aiming toward
Holistic, systemic, global transformation,
A global network of support teams
Founded on the same mission,
In solidarity,
Engaged in evolutionary revolution.