Dokdo Rocks!

I just saw these guys playing drums in Smith Park in downtown Jackson. Here's a story on what they are up to when they were at Berkeley.

Apparently, Korea and Japan have a border dispute over two, tiny, rocky islands, which the Koreans name Dokdo. If the goal of these five drummers on matching motorcycles is increased awareness for their cause, they succeeded by one Mississippian today. For their efforts, for keeping Jackson in good company with the City of Saint Francis, for their smiling perfomance and phat beats, they have my vote.



(Blogger is acting funnily on the links: www.dokdorider.com)

Patriots

It's a beautiful day for a demonstration. I just walked to the New Capitol in Jackson and witnessed a thousand people demonstrating for a smart, compassionate, just immigration policy. They were cheering, praying and waving American flags, wanting nothing more than to be treated humanely and fairly in the land of the Free. God bless them, and may God lead us all.

If we are interested in becoming a moral nation, a holy people, with national policy driven by the Word and the Gospel, let us never forget Jesus' prime call to welcome and love the poor and homeless. Human migration is a reality as people seek nourishment for their families. We are rich and are responsible for welcoming those who knock on the door for a fair shake.

We have so far to go, but I'm reminded today of one of the most remarkable experiences of my adult life in Mississippi. Two years ago, on another lovely spring day, my wife and I sat in a presentation on the rights and plights of undocumented, Hispanic, migrant workers, delivered by a Black woman from Detroit, in the parlor of an antebellum mansion built by slaves in Natchez. She confronted rude questions and disrespect from the elderly son of one of our most notorious, racist political leaders from the past. I questioned him, too, right before he stormed out onto the plantation grounds for respite from the truth. I was proud to stand for a moment beside a brave woman serving widows and orphans, even as she has to struggle against her own oppression.

I'm blessed today to have heard Spanish prayers from the steps of Mississippi's Capitol. Keep this Day of Action in your prayers.