David LaMotte shared this poem Saturday evening at the Interfaith Peace & Justice Coffeehouse. A recording of David perfoming the piece can be found at www.davidlamotte.com. It’s a brilliant piece of work. Hope you enjoy.
White Flour
by David LaMotte
(a true story about events that occurred on May 26, 2007. © 2007 Lower Dryad Music)
The day was bright and sunny as most May days tend to be
In the hills of Appalachia down in Knoxville, Tennessee
The men put on their uniforms and quickly took their places
In white robes and those tall and pointed hoods that hid their faces
Their feet all fell in rhythm as they started their parade
They raised their fists into the air, they bellowed and they brayed
They loved to stir the people up, they loved when they were taunted
They didn’t mind the anger, that’s precisely what they wanted
As they came around the corner, sure enough, the people roared
They couldn’t quite believe their ears, it seemed to be – support?
Had Knoxville finally seen the light, were people coming ‘round?
The men thought for a moment that they’d found their kind of town
But then they turned their eyes to where the cheering had its source
As one their faces soured as they saw the mighty force
The crowd had painted faces, and some had tacky clothes
Their hair and hats outrageous, each had a red foam nose
The clowns had come in numbers to enjoy the grand parade
They danced and laughed that other clowns had come to town that day
And then the marchers shouted, and the clowns all strained to hear
Each one tuned in intently with a gloved hand to an ear
“White power!” screamed the marchers, and they raised their fisted hands
The clowns leaned in and listened like they couldn’t understand
Then one held up his finger and helped all the others see
The point of all this yelling, and they joined right in with glee
“White flour!” they all shouted and they felt inside their clothes
They pulled out bags and tore them and huge clouds of powder rose
They poured it on each other and they threw it in the air
It got all over baggy clothes and multi-colored hair
All but just a few of them were joining in the jokes
You could almost see the marchers turning red beneath white cloaks
They wanted to look scary, they wanted to look tough
One rushed right at the clowns in rage, and was hauled away in cuffs
But the others chanted louder marching on around the bend
The clowns all marched along with them supporting their new friends
“White power!” came the marchers’ cry — they were not amused
The clowns grew still and thoughtful; perhaps they’d been confused?
They huddled and consulted, this bright and silly crowd
They listened quite intently, then one said “I’ve got it now!”
“White flowers!” screamed the happy clown and all the rest joined in
The air was filled with flowers, and they laughed and danced again
“Everyone loves flowers! And white’s a pretty sort!
I can’t think of a better cause for marchers to support!”
Green flower stems went flying like small arrows from bad archers
White petals covered everything, including the mad marchers
And then a very tall clown called the others to attention
He choked down all his chuckles, and said “Friends I have to mention
That what with all the mirth and fun it’s sort of hard to hear
But now I know the cause that these strange marchers hold so dear
“Tight showers!” the clown blurted out, and hit his head in wonder
He held up a camp shower and the others all got under
Or at least they tried to get beneath, they strained but couldn’t quite
There wasn’t room for all of them, they pushed, but it was tight
“White Power!” came their marchers’ cry, quite carefully pronounced
The clowns consulted once again, then a woman clown announced
“I’ve got it! I’m embarrassed that it took so long to see
But what these marchers march for is a cause quite dear to me!”
“Wife power!” she exclaimed and all the other clowns joined in
They shook their heads and laughed at how mistaken they had been
The women clowns were hoisted up on shoulders of the others
Some pulled on wedding dresses, “Here’s to wives and mothers!”
The men in robes were angry and they knew they’d been defeated
They yelled a few more times and then they finally retreated
And when they’d gone a black policeman turned to all the clowns
And offered them an escort to the center of the town
The day was bright and sunny as most May days tend to be
In the hills of Appalachia down in Knoxville, Tennessee
People joined the new parade, the crowd stretched out for miles
The clowns passed out more flowers and made everybody smile
And what would be the lesson of that shiny southern day?
Can we understand the message that the clowns sought to convey?
Seems that when you’re fighting hatred, hatred’s not the thing to use
So here’s to those who march on in their massive, silly shoes
Over the past few weeks I’ve been helping Kirk Johnston of Presbyterian Peace Fellowship and Clay Thomas, afriend from Columbia Seminary & organizer of The Christian Peace Witness for Iraq in D.C., March 8-10, put together the Faith-Based Peace & Justice Coffeehouse. It’s going to be a great show with music of David LaMotte, Native Deen and The Cobalt Season. Check out the press release (which David Lamotte, who has been a great resource of wisdom for the event, had a hand in editing) Help us spread the word and if you can come out to hear voices coming together to proclaim peace and justice in the world.
WASHINGTON D.C. MARCH 8, 2008- A once-in-a-lifetime musical event is coming to the nation’s capitol on Saturday March 8, from 7:30-10 p.m. in the upper hall of New York Avenue Presbyterian Church, for an Inter-Faith-Based Peace and Justice Coffeehouse featuring folk band The Cobalt Season; the hip-hop and R&B trio Native Deen; and the singer-songwriter David LaMotte.
The free event is sponsored by Christian Peace Witness for Iraq, an ecumenical group of various partner peace organizations who are committed to raising a Christian voice for peace, and bringing people from various backgrounds together to enable the work of peace and justice (www.christianpeacewitness.org). Christian Peace Witness invites you, your family, your congregation and your neighbors to come to the nation’s capitol from Thursday, March 6, 2008 through Monday, March 10 to pray and act for peace in Iraq.
Christian Peace Witness hopes to empower participants to advocate for peace in their communities, countries and the world. “We will carry our public witness to the halls of government power, calling our leaders to embody values fundamental to the Christian tradition-and shared in other traditions-that truly make for communities of prosperity, security, and justice.”
David LaMotte (http://www.davidlamotte.com/)
David LaMotte is a veteran of 2,000 concerts in 47 states and on four continents. The Boston Globe says he “pushes the envelope with challenging lyrics and unusual tunings, but he also pays homage to folk tradition,” and folk music magazine Dirty Linen calls him “a folk poet of elegant simplicity.”
Currently, he is on a “farewell tour” which will take him all over the U.S., as well as to Europe and Australia, before he puts his music career on hold to pursue his vocation as a peacemaker. He has been named a 2008 Rotary World Peace Fellow, and will move to Australia in 2009 to pursue a Masters Degree in Peacemaking at the University of Queensland.
Native Deen (www.nativedeen.com)
D.C. based Native Deen (Joshua Salaam, Abdul-Malik Ahmad and Naeem Muhammad) is a fusion of Hip-hop and R&B flavors. Deen is an Arabic word for religion or way of life. Using their unique talents and passion for spreading the message of Islam, the trio has embarked upon a professional career in the music industry to highlight issues confronting Muslims living in America, emerging as one of the leading Islamic Nasheed groups.
Native Deen uses only percussion instruments. This has not hindered the group’s musical creativity but has resulted in evocative audio efforts that have resulted in sounds that are a fusion of street rap, Hip-hop & R&B. Their music and positive message have been embraced by people of all ages and backgrounds, from Islamic clerics to non-Muslims. The group has toured extensively throughout North America as well as Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.
The Cobalt Season (http://thecobaltseason.com/site/)
The San-Francisco based-band describes themselves as “a few idealistic hopefuls who daily face personal limitations and worldwide inconsistencies…we also play instruments and sing in an acoustic trio. We wonder aloud: How are we to live faithfully as people of hope, of love, of mercy and justice? How can we cry out for fairer practices in the world AND work to live more fairly in our own lives? How can we transcend our current categories for something more generous and loving?”
 | Deborah Warner on White Flour |
 | Holmes on Hello Katie |
 | Sarah on Mayberry Girl |
 | Natalie on Hello Katie |
 | Rebekah on There’s No Show Like… |
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