The Road to Freedom by William Boreham-Moon Lyrics Below
One Struggle for Human rights
There is, I believe, only one struggle for human rights. It’s been fought over many years, under many names, and by many diverse groups but it’s the same fight and it won’t be won until it’s won for all of us.
Because as long as the rights of any group are unsafe, then everyone’s rights are unsafe.
As long as the written or unwritten charter says ‘These rights apply to everyone ‘except…’ then there’s always room for another group name at the end.
So I like to look at the other versions of our struggle and learn, and gain inspiration.
The struggle for Scottish independence is one such; a group – a whole people – whose main goal was to be left alone (OK, let’s just shelve for the moment that whole Jacobite thing) has to resonate with aspects of our current consumer struggle.
And also they had a ‘kick-ass’ bard commemmorating their struggle and aspirations, writing their theme music, so to speak, Robbie Burns.
Our Own Anthem?
The ‘Consumer/Survivor/Expatient Movement’, ‘Abolitionism’ ‘Mad Activism‘ ‘Those Annoying Ratbags’ (what, am Ithe only self idenified member still? :), whatever you call it, has many of the characteristics of any liberation movement – a history of struggle which inches us towards progress, giants of the past on whose back we stand, academics, , literature, allies and opposition.
But one thing I have not seen at least, here ion the bottom of the world in Australia is our own message music, an Anthem. Oh, there are mainstream songs which resonate with some of our experiences – ‘I won’t Back Down‘, ‘End of the Line‘ are mine and the anthems of other facets of the Great Struggle – Solidarity Forever, Scots Wha Hae, We Shall Overcome also have Truths applicable to us.
But while there are doubtless some, I have never seen one specifically for us sung at the events I have attended, something we could use in our struggles and our victories
I
A beginning
So I thought I’d offer my own poor efforts inspired by Burns’ stirring anthem ‘Robert Bruce’s Address to His Troops at Bannockburn’, more commonly known as ‘Scots Wha Hae’ with hopes it would inspre some of the true wordsmiths and musicians of our movement to tackle the task of providing our Anthem – or many anthems!
Lyrics are by me, and under the licence described in the home page, vocals and arrangements by Suno.com
PLAY ‘The Road to Freedom “
LYRICS for ‘The Road to Freedom”
We've heard Despair's siren call,
Vaulted Convention's confining wall,
Though we stumble and do fall,
We then rise anew!
Yes we've been by tempests toss'd
Good friends and comrades lost,
But H_ll will wear a coat of frost
before we ask for pity.
We've Stigma and the Darkness fought
We have much wisdom, dearly bought
Even answers many have sought
In suburb and in city
Who alongside us would stand
And say it loud throughout the land
Respect is our chief demand,
We welcome heartily.
Who some power game to win
Mock us with haughty disdain
Or find our souls in DSM
To H_ll with thee!
Now's the Day and Now's the hour
Time we stormed the ivory tower,
Time we took back the power
Time we were free.
Nows the Day and Now's the hour
Time we stormed the ivory tower,
Time we took back the power
Time we were free.
Copyright according to the terms on the Home Page – and if you do use it, let me know because it’d be cool to learn that it was found useful in our Struggle.
In moments of self indulgent fantasy I imagine it or its successors being sung by our people, proud and happy. Maybe when the last psychiatric hospital has been replaced by people centred Open Dialogue hubs, consumer staffed Soteria recovery houses, consumer crisis teams, and the rest.
Or in public, as a different form of psychoeducation to promote real understandingof what it means to be us in our brothers and sisters who’ve not had the opportunity to get through their crisis yet – you know, the sadly normal folk 🙂
