Equal: A Speech

I am physical pacifist, a vocal activist, a man with a view of the world that is perhaps too simple; simple in theory, simple in strategy, complex in installation. I am one man who is a grain of salt beside humanity which is a grain of salt beside the universe and eternity. I am one man who holds no grudges even though I have been cut enough times to be nothing but scar tissue.

I see the man next door, the man next city, the man next state, the man next country, and I see a man. I see the woman from the city that beat my team, from the state that voted against my rights, from the country that warred against my homeland, and I see a woman. I see a CEO whose company put mine out of business, and I see a father, a brother, a son. I see a lawyer whose firm took my house through a loophole, and I see a wife, an aunty, a daughter.

I see common ground through breath and through heartbeat. I see common goals through my loneliness and their love. I see invisible walls between them and me because they do not see what I see.

I see peace, I see love, I see humanity.

I breathe, they breathe, I believe we are equal.