Shanti's updates from the Pilgrimage of the Middle Passage

Dear friends,

I am sending you this message on the road, from Atlanta, as a participant
in the Interfaith Pilgrimage of the Middle Passage, a year long walking
vigil to heal the history of racism. The plan from now until the end of
next May is to walk from Atlanta to New Orleans, go by boat through the
Caribbean to Senegal, Africa, and then to walk down the west coast of
Africa, and to end up in Cape Town, South Africa.

It is my intention to send out updates from the Pilgrimage as much as I am
able (there is very little free time and difficulties with access to send
email). Sometimes this will mean a barrage of messages when I have time and
access, follow by periods of inactivity when I don't

If you want to be taken off my personal list of folks I email these
updates to, please just let me know.

Please also let me know if there is any one else you know who would like to
receive these updates.

To prevent folks from accidentally replying to everyone else on this list,
I am sending it to another address I have, and blind cc:ing everyone on my
list.

Also please note that I will often send you things straight from my
journal, and with little time and a funky keyboard, I will sometimes send
out updates either poorly written in haste or with lots of spelling and or
grammatical errors. Please ignore this and try to feel what it is I am
trying to share with you. Thanks.

Below is a copy of the letter I sent out hardcopy this summer about my
participation in this pilgrimage.

-----------------------
Shanti Om Gaia
37 Westmoreland
Longmeadow, MA 01106


	July 28, 1998


Dear Friends,

	Happy Summer! I hope this summer finds you well. I am doing well,
and I have some big things to tell you about, and I need to ask for your
help. My partner Joyce and I participated in the beginning of the
Interfaith Pilgrimage of the Middle Passage this month, and we were moved
so much by the power and importance of this event, that we have decided to
rejoin the walk later this year as they retrace the slave trade back to
Africa. We are planning to rejoin them in Atlanta in mid-September and walk
with them to New Orleans, where we will all get on a boat that will carry
us along the reverse shipping route of the slave trade. The boat will stop
for a couple of days at various slave trading ports, touch down in the
slave trade port of Recefe, Brazil, and then sail on to Africa. The boat
will land in Dakar, Senegal, and then the Pilgrimage will go by foot
through many countries on the West Coast of Africa, ending the Pilgrimage
in Cape Town, South Africa in May of 1999.
	A little later in this letter I will attempt, and most likely fail,
to impress upon you the profoundness and importance of this event. Right
now I want to let you know how you can help. There are many ways in which
your help is needed to support this special year long event:
*	to make a monetary donation that will allow Joyce and I to attend
the walk for as long as possible (we will most likely have to leave the
walk if we run out of money)
*	to attend one of the one day Reiki level 1 trainings that Joyce and
I will be doing to raise funds to go on the walk (see enclosed poster) (I
have found some friends interested in receiving a Reiki level 2 training
which can also be done in one day if the size is not too large - I will be
doing two or so before leaving, contact me if you are interested.)
*	to get as many of your friends as possible to attend one of the one
day Reiki level 1 trainings
*	to become fully aware of all the subtle and not-so subtle ways in
which racism still very much exists in this country, and most likely within
yourself
*	to dialogue with friends, colleagues, and family about full awareness
of and eradication of racism in our own lives, institutions, towns, and
cities
*	by sending prayers and good energy to the walkers
*	to work to end racism within your self
	I especially need your help with the financial aspect. According to
the planners of the walk, the rough estimate of the cost of the 9 months
that Joyce and I are planning to be with the walk is about $6000 each. I
had hoped to raise a good half of that from the Reiki trainings, but
attendance at the initial trainings was very low. So it's really crucial for
you to be able to give as generous of a donation as possible. Basically if
we don't raise enough money to cover costs, we will come home early, not
finishing the Africa portion of the walk.
	As you all know I have been on some peacewalks before, all of which
have been profound and important events. This Pilgrimage feels even more
profound and significant.  Experiencing the first 10 days of this event
really rocked my world. For one, I realized much more deeply than ever
before how much the success and wealth of this Nation of ours came from
stolen land and stolen labor. Until this experience I had never realized
the deep connection between the Africans brought to this country in slavery
and the Native American peoples. Both Native Americans and African
Americans along the way have told versions of the founding history of
Massachusetts, New England, and this country that fully acknowledge the
tremendous oppression, suffering, and the loss that these people
experienced as the White settlers used them and their land to build
themselves a new nation.  I feel the need for an important quote here:
"If we do not acknowledge our history we cannot learn from it. The
Interfaith Pilgrimage of the Middle Passage is a remarkable opportunity to
confront the reality of the horrors of slavery both in the context of the
times when slavery was common practice, and in examining our attitudes and
prejudices in the present day"
- The Most Reverend Desmond M. Tutu, Archbishop Emeritus and Chairperson
Truth and Reconciliation Commission (and on the Board of Advisors for the
Pilgrimage)

Thus the recounting of what really happened, the true and brutal history of
the slave trade (that most of us have never heard, and most certainly have
never read in our history text books) will be a very important liberating
step forwards in the mission of eliminating racism. To give an example, I
will tell you of a couple of events that happened during the first week of
the walk:
*	In one town there was an African American woman who upon
researching the history of slaves in her town, dug up the names of all
known slaves in her town, as well as some of their accounts. Upon telling
these facts and stories to us, she then told us that in just this act of
reclaiming this history and then sharing it with the Pilgrimage, she had
felt a tremendous weight lifted off of her back, liberating her from a
large burden she had not realized was there. She also worked with the local
town historical society so that they now have a branch of that society that
keeps alive the history of the slave trade in their town.
*	In another town, the local organizers had also researched all of
the names of known slaves kept in their town, and when we arrived they held
a special church service to offer light and prayers of liberation for the
souls of those slaves. Present in the congregation that day were a small
number of direct descendants of these slaves who lit the appropriate candle
for their direct ancestors who had been enslaved in the town. I can not
even put into words how powerful this service was, nor how important it was
to the local African American community.
*	In Boston, we learned a lot of the history of the slave trade that
was unknown to us all. One example being the fact that the famous Fanuiel
Hall in Boston was built by (and named for) a fellow who became rich
trading slaves, and on the very steps of that building many a slave were
auctioned off in the 1700s - almost all strong African boys with their
faces greased up to make them look as robust as possible.

Another major thing that happened for me during these 10 days of walking,
was the discovery of subtle ways in which I have racism subconsciously
ingrained in me due to my cultural/societal upbringing. This despite
parents who very much encouraged me to experience and learn about racial
tolerance and diversity. What hurt most in realizing this was that it was
present in me despite all that I have done in my 10 years of activism to
make the world a better place, and despite the intense desire I have to
help make the world a more loving, peaceful, harmonious place through my
words, actions, and deeds. It just never dawned on me the incredible extent
to which racism is ingrained in this society and culture. I have a
difficult time explaining all the ways in which I have realized that I am
subconsciously racist, because the ways are subtle and I don't understand
all of them fully enough to be able to clearly explain them. Here is an
attempt to explain some of the ways:
*	I have had thoughts of why do so many African Americans in poverty
seem they are not really doing something about their condition of poverty,
when we all have potential to be and do such great things.
*	When people sometimes say racist things, especially pertaining to
poor African American communities and individuals needing to do more to
improve their lot, I often have mixed feelings of what to say in response -
usually not wanting to agree, but being unable to disagree.
*	When passing random African American men in the street, as much as
I don't want to, I often feel a bit of anxiousness or fear, as if
subconsciously something is saying to me black men are dangerous.
*	There is a way (that for me is somewhat hard to elucidate or agree
with) that universalist thinking (that I often have) was pointed out to me
is racist. An example for me is in the way in which I think universally
about human kind: That we are all humans and we all have potential to do
great things and we should all get along together nicely. (this is a little
simplistic for explanation purposes). When we watched an independent movie
called "The Color of Fear", it was pointed out by an African American
fellow that this universalist way of addressing things is a distinctly
white way of seeing things, of glossing over human cultural differences, of
subconsciously saying that our way (the 'white' way) is the right way and
why doesn't everyone else just do it like us.

There was this clarity that I got about the privilege of being white that I
had really never come close to realizing before (and certainly don't have a
complete grasp on yet). Here is a way that came to me to explain it:
Imagine there is a house of privilege that the unprivileged can see and can
not enter, and the privileged generally can't see, can't leave (without
tremendous effort and giving up most things in their life), and often try
to insist is not actually there. Think about it for a couple of minutes.
Well here in our American society there exists such a house of privilege
that all white folks live in, and folk of color can't enter.

What also really surprised me and hit me particularly hard during the walk
and in this time afterwards was the incredible extent to which there is
denial that racism still exists, even though it is so thoroughly still a
part of life in this country. There is a really good book that my mother
was reading, and I borrowed from her called "'Why Are All the Black Kids
Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?' : And Other Conversations About Race"
by Beverly Daniel Tatum (ISBN: 046509127X) This book explains some of what
I have tried to convey about the state of racism in our society and our
societies denial of racism, along with much more depth and insight.

Now that I have conscious recognized these aspects of racism within me and
the society within which I live, I make a pledge to diligently and
thoroughly eradicate racism from within my mind and behavior, and to do
what I can to eradicate racism from within the communities within which I
shall live (knowing that there is much important and worthy work that
needs to be done in this world and I can't do all of it, this will be
something that I will strive to do within the context of the heart centered
compassionate activism and ecological, spiritual, healing, service work
that is my life's work).

So I really do hope you can help out in many ways. I will be taking
millions of footsteps, praying millions of prayers, meeting with thousands
of people on this Pilgrimage over the next year. Please support this walk
as generously as possible, both with your pocketbook, your prayers, and
your efforts to eradicate racism in your self and in your communities.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.


			Much Peace, Love and Happiness to You,

		Shanti Om Gaia

______________________________
below are things that were not put into the letter that I have sent out,
but I had written it in the first draft, and thought you might be
interested. Please ask if you want to hear more about any of them (nobody
has seen this below except Joyce)
______________________________
Put in here a summery of how I have been doing since Ireland pilgrimage
mailing, and what I have been up to:

Visioning + Land Use Process at Earthlands
Name Change
Ballot day for Banning cruel traps
Baha Mexico
Tumultuousness of living at Earthlands
Recognizing SAD (seasonal affective disorder)
Switching to part time consultant for SEN
Underground Railroad walk
Vision Quest with Larry and Agee
'Leaving Earthlands', and moving out of Whitney
Who Am I course
Shaktipat initiation
BRETH facilitator training
Hiroshima Day Peace Walk with Jun San
Studying massage therapy and energy healing at Dovestar
Paul and part time living in Derry
New Community
Joyce
Fasting one day a week
Leaving BRETH training
Reiki Master Teacher
Vision Quest
Healing Breath

Other, non time specific events/realizations:
Realization of significance, and impact of Transcendental experience of 1993
Spiritual trials and tribulations, oscillating between ecstasy and despair
Low level depression
Battling with fear, lust, and judgement
Complete warping of time
Battle between growing roots and spreading wings
voluntary simplicity
battle with loading plate too full
war tax resistance
conscientious objection
importance of integration of spirituality and healing with peace,
environmental, and animal rights activism



Have a great day.

Much peace, love, and happiness,


Shanti Om Gaia
shanti@igc.org

I am currently participating in the Interfaith Pilgrimage of the Middle
Passage, retracing by foot and by boat the slave trade route from New
England to Africa. For more information, please see the following web page:
www.interfaithpilgrimage.com (also a friend of mine is posting articles
about the pilgrimage on the following web page:
www.brightworks.com/quaker/midpass.html)

May all beings be happy!
May all beings live in love and peace!
May peace prevail on this beautiful living earth!