Rollercoaster feelings all around began with the storming weather that day. While it kept many away, for those gathered in the National Cathedral it seemed to enhance the energy of the evening. It was my first time to attend such a large protest. The call for prayerful dissent solidified my commitment. We were there united by the cross, bearing witness to a brokenness in our world. We were instructed to "march as if perfect love casts out fear," remembering "not that we failed in Iraq, but that the war from the start was immoral."
What touched me most was the invitation to march as a Lenten observance—that our demonstration was about our own brokenness as well. I felt moved beyond "us and them." Embedded in the courage and vision of the organizers was a humility that could help create a new politics that connected, not divided us. It would lay open both the vulnerability and glory of the human condition. I overheard one officer claim that he "didn't have a heart." Perhaps, like me, he might have been transformed had he marched with us.
Helen LaKelly Hunt is a feminist activist and author.
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