América renascida

Domingo, 22 de Fevereiro de 2009

Palmira F. Silva

People For the American Way (PFAW) é uma organização fundada em 1981 pelo filantropo e ícone da televisão norte-americana Norman Lear (All in the Family, Maude, The Jeffersons, etc.). A associação tinha (e tem) como objectivo principal contrariar o poder político crescente dos religious right e dar resposta rápida aos seus ataques sortidos - em particular contra a comunidade LGBT. Na missão da PFAW pode ler-se:

People For the American Way is dedicated to making the promise of America real for every American: Equality. Freedom of speech. Freedom of religion. The right to seek justice in a court of law. The right to cast a vote that counts. The American Way.

Our vision is a vibrantly diverse democratic society in which everyone is treated equally under the law, given the freedom and opportunity to pursue their dreams, and encouraged to participate in our nation’s civic and political life. Our America respects diversity, nurtures creativity and combats hatred and bigotry.

We believe a society that reflects these constitutional principles and progressive values is worth fighting for, and we take seriously our responsibility to cultivate new generations of leaders and activists who will sustain these values for the life of this nation.

Lear deu início, sensivelmente desde a tomada de posse de Obama, a um novo projecto, Born Again American, uma iniciativa que usa linguagem evangélica para potenciar o envolvimento cívico da população. O projecto, promovido por esta canção escrita por Keith Carradine, é um rebento de outra campanha de Lear, a Declare Yourself dedicada a encorajar jovens a votar. Numa entrevista sobre o projecto, Lear explicou porque escolheu o born again, com uma forte conotação fundamentalista, para dar nome a esta iniciativa :

Q. Given your political objections to the religious right, why use evangelical language to promote a message of civic engagement?

A.Religion doesn't belong in politics, according to my Constitution and yours, but these are our words, too.

Q: How did you come up with this concept?

A: I was making a speech last year, and I was talking about having had a kind of “born-again American” experience: Years ago, (televangelist) Jimmy Swaggart was asking his audience to pray for the “removal” of a Supreme Court justice, like praying for the illness or death of someone. I was just revolted.

So, as I was getting ready to make this speech, I began thinking about other born-again American experiences in my life where I thought, “Am I paying enough attention to the Bill of Rights, to the Constitution, to all these guarantees of freedom and equality under the law?” On New Year’s Eve, I bumped into Keith Carradine playing his guitar, and I told him that I thought there was a song in this phrase. And three weeks later he called me and said, “Hey, you want to hear the song?”

Mas quiçá seja melhor ler o que o próprio Lear tem a dizer numa das suas contribuições no Huffington Post assim como um excerto da letra original de Carradine:

I’m a Born Again American, conceived in Liberty
My Bible is the Bill of Rights, my creed’s equality
I’m a Born Again American, my country ‘tis of me
And everyone who shares the dream from sea to shining sea

My brother’s welding chassis at the plant
He’s earning what our granddad did in 1948
While CEOs count bonuses behind the castle gates
How can they see
When all they care about’s the do re mi

It’s getting where there’s nowhere left to turn
Not since the crash of twenty-nine have things been so unfair
So many of our citizens are living in despair
The time has come
To reaffirm that hope’s not just for some

The promise of America’s surrendering to greed
The rule is just look out for number one
But brace yourself ‘cause some of us have sown a different seed
A harvest of the spirit has begun

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