THOM THE WORLD POET: The Daily Poem

  

Rob Ayling, yer Gonzo Grande Fromage, writes:

"Thom the World poet is an old mate of mine from way back in my history. Even pre-dating Voiceprint, when I was running "Otter Songs" and Thom's poetry tapes and guest appearances with Daevid Allen, Gilli Smyth and Mother Gong are well known and highly regarded. It just felt right to include a daily poem from Thom on our Gonzo blog and when I approached him to do so, he replied within seconds!!! Thom is a great talent and just wants to spread poetry, light and positive energy across the globe. If we at Gonzo can help him do that - why not?"

WHO WE ARE/WHERE WE ARE (THE NAMING)

MANY CITIES IN AMERICA

have a Martin Luther King Jnr Street

Some still have BLACK LIVES MATTER sprayed on roads (Check  Eastside 11th street)

Murals depict personalities,heroes,struggles resolved and un-

The power of naming is profound and ongoing-

it is to honor and promote those whose values reflect the best of our community.

Remember -Austin was once "Waterloo",and Menchaca once "Manchaca".

Efforts to rename,remove,recontextualize Confederate monuments

are a continuing process.Same with white supremacist symbols.

Nature abhors a vacuum. Celebrating Austin poets,authors,activists

might assist our community history.Susan Bright Pool at Barton Springs.Raul Salinas Youth Center.

Dr.Marvin Kimbrough Library.Bill Oliver Wilderness Center.The list of Austin luminaries is endless-

time for updating and renaming both "Austin",and its central jewel-"Barton Springs"

After all-Ayers Rock is now Uluru.Why not J Mason Brewer Library,too?

In June 2018, Austin’s Chief Equity Officer released a report calling for the renaming of certain place names, or toponyms, in Austin, especially those that commemorate the Confederacy. The report quickly gained national attention, in part because it noted the tainted legacy of the city’s namesake, Stephen F. Austin, particularly his involvement in promoting racial slavery, and therefore left open the possibility of renaming the city. The events of 2020, and the wave of protests that emerged in the wake of the police murders of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, and more locally Mike Ramos and Javier Ambler, reinforce the idea that racial injustice continues to plague the United States and Austin and that honoring racist practices must be questioned. While renaming Austin should be considered, we believe this is also a time when Austin must come to terms with other complex and shameful legacies of black slavery and Jim Crow. To that end, we want to propose an effort to rename and recontextualize the meanings of existing urban landscapes in order to bring them into accord with our current values. We recommend a renaming and recontextualization effort directed at one particular place mentioned in the Equity Officer’s report, Barton Springs, and the park that houses it, Zilker Park.