After 5 days on the road, the People’s Freedom Caravan made its way into Detroit for the opening march and ceremony of the U.S. Social Forum. And the caravanistas did not arrive empty handed. The 5 days on the bus stopping from community to community, meeting our brothers and sisters in the struggle had left its mark. As we winded our way up from one U.S. border to the other, we had gained a sense of freedom – freedom from silence, freedom from hopelessness, and freedom from isolation. We heard the stories of the indigenous Ponca people, who stressed that our ancestors had made the way for our current path and purpose, and the stories from the Kentucky Alliance Against Racist and Political Oppression who carry the torch for a long line of freedom fighters, and stories of ongoing struggles in St. Louis, Chicago, Toledo, and the communities we could not reach but word had gotten out. Once we finally reached Detroit, a city that was once one of largest stopping points on the Underground Railroad, we felt invigorated with a sense of purpose and history. We hope to keep reinvesting this energy into Detroit, now known as the most segregated city of the U.S. metro areas. We also hope to reinvest this energy on the journey home to each and every one of our own communities and beyond, reinforcing the fabric of shared community and shared hope for the possibility of better world and better United States.
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USSF 2010 Caravan Photos
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