Well, another day in the life of the "health insurance reform" debacle. That's my first comment. I LOVE how the powers that be are now calling it health insurance reform instead of the health care reform that it should be. At least there's one thing Congress isn't currently lying about.I'm 42 years old and I have to say, I never thought I'd be arrested - let alone arrested for fighting for universal health care for the country I was born in. A friend commented recently that it was ironic that it was taking an American Australian to fight this fight. Well, actually, there is nothing ironic about that at all. You see, I've seen the promised land. I am priviledged enough to have lived in/be a citizen of a country that truly believes that health care is a right for everyone. It's hard to describe how easy it can be and should be to never have to worry about getting sick or losing your job and losing your healthcare or paying premiums that will eat up most of your income, or being denied coverage for a "pre-existing condition", etc., etc.
So, on Wednesday, Oct. 28th, 8 fellow protesters and I risked arrest at the corporate headquarters of Wellpoint, one of the largest insurance companies in the U.S., where CEO Angela Braly makes $9.8 million while instructing her employees to routinely deny people coverage. In another delightful piece of information, it's important to point out that former Wellpoint lobbyist Elizabeth Fowler now acts as staff for Senator Max Baucus from Montana and essentially wrote the insurance reform legislation announced by Congress yesterday. So what is there to do?
Jail is hell. There is no doubt about it. First NYPD took us to the 1st precinct, where it took 20 or so policeman 6 hours to fingerprint and photograph 9 people. ("How many people does it take to screw in a lightbulb?) At the precinct, the 5 females were put in a cell by ourselves but there was not room for all of us to sit down so we took turns. Little did we know that the precinct would be a veritable playground compared to central booking, or "The Tombs" as it is very aptly called. We were transferred to central booking in a chain. Yes, that's right - in metal chain handcuffs. After an hour or so, we were brought to the basement, put under bright lights (the blinding kind) and photographed again. By the time we made it to the cell which we would share with 18 or so women from the "general population", we were starving and so, didn't complain too much about the rock hard bread with pre-mixed peanut butter and jelly on it that we got for dinner. After a few hours, for no apparent reason, they moved us to a smaller cell, with fewer mats and fewer places to sit that was even filthier, if possible. And then they moved us back to the bigger cell and then they moved us back to the small cell. It definitely wasn't cleaning they were doing. If they were trying to exhaust us, it worked. But where do you sleep? On the floor, with no choice but to press up against several people you've never met. When you're tired or degraded enough, sitting up is not an option. Everyone is relieved to be woken up at 5:30 in the morning because the end could be in sight but it doesn't really feel that way because then, they transfer you to a very small, freezing cold cell, where you wait for 4 more hours before meeting the lawyer and then another hour of waiting before you meet the judge.
So, this is what it's come to. But it doesn't have to be this hard. If only Americans would step up for what should not be a privilege and for what is most definitely right.
To Do Something, see:
Michael Moore's Web site and/or
the Mobilization for Health Care for All site
Or send me an email and ask me anything you like. I'd be thrilled if someone did.
