Jean Rice: The Archives: Elder Statesman and Orator

Jean Rice and Ariel Dorfman:
A Dialogue on Global Human Rights
Text of Speech by Jean Rice
Riverside Church
November 15, 2005

Parallels In Social Justice; With A Global Dimension
(Why, Why Indeed)

My sisters and brothers, I am both honored and humbled, to have this privilege to speak to you this evening, In this sacred-time honored sanctuary. So many great leaders in the GLOBAL struggle for social justice, have addressed gatherings in this great institution, that is Riverside Church.

“Picture The Homeless”, and I are truly grateful for this opportunity to be here enjoying this fellowship. It is also an honor to share this forum with our distinguished guest, Professor Ariel Dorfman.

From the outset, let me state, that OPPRESSION and EXPLOITATION, make strange bedfellows, and companions . I suppose the late DR. Martin Luther King JR. said it best; when in his “Letter From A Birmingham Jail” he wrote “ INJUSTICE anywhere, is a threat to JUSTICE EVERYWHERE—We are caught, in an inescapable network of MUTUALITY,

Together in a single garment of DESTINY----WHATEVER, affects one directly, affects ALL indirectly”.

Accordingly, when sometime in 1999, as was the case; New York City had a prior law enforcement officer, as its chief-executive officer, (The Mayor). When this Mayo’s Police Deptartment. was running rampant through this city, rendering null and void, the Constitutional Rights and Civil Liberties, of the homeless population of this great city: It was then, in that climate of OPPRESION; that the late Louis Haggins and Anthony Williams, our two co-founders at Picture The Homeless, sat down with our director Ms. Lynn Lewis, and wrote the following:

“ Picture the Homeless” was founded on the principle- that homeless people have civil and human rights, regardless of our Race, Creed, Color, or Economic Status”

When the three of them BOLDLY stated:

“ We REFUSE to ACCEPT being NEGLECTED--- And we DEMAND that our VOICES, AND EXPERIENCE are heard—at ALL levels of DECISION-MAKING, that impact us”

And then when, with DARING CLARITY , these three , SOCIAL JUSTICE WARRIORS PROCLAIMED:

“ We Oppose The Quality of life laws that criminalize homeless people—In ANY FORM: by the CITY, STATE, and NATIONAL GOVERNMENT”

With these PROFOUND DECLARATORY statements, WITH this CONCEPTUAL VISION: “ Picture The Homeless” joined the ranks of the “ GLOBAL, SOCIAL JUSTICE MOVEMENT”

I joined “Picture The Homeless a little after a year of it!s inception and related to it’s MISSION INSTANTAINIOUSLY___ You May inquire WHY! WHY INDEED?
BECAUSE I was born in Anderson, S. C. on July 1st, 1939; BECAUSE , I was CONCIEVED, in AMERICAN APARTIED: that is WHY.

PICTURE THE HOMELESS, and Jean Rice were born, of oppression! THAT is WHY, we are natural allies – THAT IS WHY, WHY INDEED.

Actually, we members of the GLOBAL SOCIAL JUSTICE MOVEMENT, Don’t make strange bedfellows, we are bound together by our CAUSE. “IF OUR CAUSE IS JUST, THEN CONQUER WE MUST!

BECAUSE, Strom Thurmond was my PINOCHET! THAT is why I stand here before you tonight, PROUD to represent my organization “PICTURE THE HOMELESS”---THAT IS WHY, WHY INDEED!

My big brother Martin, was so right, “Injustice anywhere, is injustice everywhere! It’s a GLOBAL Construct.

If we follow the money trail, from mid-1970 through to 1990; During both the Ford and Nixon administrations, the C.I.A. was involved in COVERT OPERATIONS, that opposed Salvador Allende in Chile:. The United States had long been a hegemonic presence in the America’s., pursuant to it’s SELF_ PROCLAIMED “MANIFEST DESTINY DOCTRINE!

By September, 1976 United States aid to Chile was $350.5 MILLION DOLLARS. The situation took a major turn in the mid-1970’s when president Jimmy Carter made protection of HUMAN RIGHTS the guiding principle of his Foreign Policy In The Americas.

Carter threatened to cut off aid to regimes that violated HUMAN RIGHTS. This approach found support within the Faith-Based Community, via the reforms of Vatican two, and the Liberation Theology Movement.

In the 1970’s, centuries of exploitation, deprivation and violent repression, culminated in the outbreak of armed revolt, throughout the America’s. In 1980, newly elected president Reagan, embarked upon a program of MASSIVE, domestic spending cuts .: for example ; cuts in the national food stamp program: cuts in subsidized low-income public housing and massive cuts in Medicaid; these were three major targets of domestic spending cuts; Where did this money go, you may be inclined to wonder.

During the Reagan Administration, aid to Chile again increased; even as human rights conditions worsened. This administration favored Pinochet for economic reasons. Almost alone among the leaders of the America’s, Pinochet followed FREE MARKET ECONOMIC POLICIES; related to NEO- LIBERIALISM.

Chile , wasn’t the only nation that Reagan gave tax dollars to, for support of Neo-Liberialism, because groups like the Sandinistas and Allende, challenged United States imperialist economic policies, president Reagan, perceived them to be barriers to United States Business Interests, to be removed, by any means necessary!

Between 1981 and 1983, alone, El Salvador, received $744Million in United States “Security Aid”. Military Aid to Honduras jumped from $3.4 Million in 1980 to $79 Million in 1986. Guatemala, received $17.61 million in military and economic aid from the United States between 1978 and 1982. The Nicaraguan Contras, received U.S. aid, through many diverse channels.

In 1980 President Carter had expended $ 1 Million to begin organizing a counter-revolutionary force..
In 1981, President Reagan, authorized another $19.5 million, almost twenty-million dollars to expand covert operations in Nicaraqua. And so, as Afro-America erupted, during the turbulant 1960’s, as a result of which, the Houston Plan; and Co-intelpro; domestic COVERT operations, became a reality; here in the Land Of The FREE!

During the events I just described, our guest this evening was still in Chile, where he resided, until he was forced into exile: following the military coup of 1973.

It has been a quarter of a century now, since our sisters and brothers, who now seek universal SOCIAL JUSTICE, in vital areas , such as LAND REFORM, and DEMOCRATIC PARTISPATION, at the grass-roots level, have been challenged, by Reganomics and its aftermath, here in these United States, while its EVIL TWIN; NEO_LIBERIALISM causes an UNSTAINABLE , MARGINALIZED population, who are disproportionally persons of color, around the globe.

In 1990 with the restoration of democracy in Chile , Professor Dorfman, was able to return to Chile. I suppose there in Chile, he found much had changed; I trust he will enlighten us at the conclusion of my presentation. In closing, I’d like to leave you with three short thoughts;

Brother Castro is right, in this age of globalization We who are involved in the struggle for global social justice, must “UNITE OR DIE!

And from the STILL WE RISE NEW YORK CITY MOBILIZATION MOVEMENT “the people united, will never be defeated”

And to the likes of Karl Rowe and the Heritage Foundation from Picture The Homeless I Say; “Still We Rise” Thank You;

And now I give You Professor Ariel Dorfman.