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A memory from childhood centers around The Wizard of Oz. Back in the '60s, every kid waited excitedly (and sometimes with apprehension) for the special night when we would see Dorothy, Toto, the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, and the Cowardly Lion all journey to the wonderful Land of Oz. The monkeys were scary. The Wicked Witch of the West terrifies us as she confronts Glinda and Dorothy, “I'll get you my pretty and your little dog too," — she is wicked. Or was she?
The new version of The Wizard of Oz is called “Wicked: The Untold Story of the Witches of Oz,” or simply Wicked, and is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Schwartz and a book by Winnie Holzman. I fell in love with the book and saw the play twice. Elphaba discovers that the man everyone knew as the affable, all-knowing Oz is really the villain. I mean, who sends a young girl to kill your enemy? She pulls the curtain back for all of us to see who is really behind the curtain.
The Oz of today is Trump/Musk/MAGA. They ask us to pretend we exist in the glittery land of Oz and to obey the Emperor’s whims and words. But it is all a fake out. Everyday, our job is to pull back the curtain on the Trump Regime — to expose the bloat, the lies, the cruelty. We must mockingly reveal that he not only has no clothes on, but we must pivot to tell our story. We must BE LOUD and MAKE A FUSS because YOUR VOICE MATTERS. Out of this cacophony, new leaders will be created and will rise to articulate a new form of government to meet this crucial moment.
Elphaba’s story is important:
Something has changed within me
Something is not the same
I'm through with playing by the rules of someone else's game
Too late for second-guessing
Too late to go back to sleep
It's time to trust my instincts, close my eyes and leapIt's time to try defying gravity
I think I'll try defying gravity
And you can't pull me down —Lyrics from Wicked
Something has changed within us all, and our country is being transformed into a dictatorship. Finale and I are following the yellow brick road for clues as to how we find our way back from the abyss.
I ask: “Define Gravity Finale”:
“With the defying gravity, it is where we are right now. People think that it's impossible to win, so we do have to defy gravity right now. We have to; there is this big old whatever Land of Oz, which is Donald Trump and all the MAGAs, and they're just taking all the air out of the room. And as Rachel Bitecofer said, here we have the grassroots literally on their elbows trying to get stuff done. And for this to work, we are going to have to defy gravity. We are going to have to defy gravity to come out of where we are. People will look at it (the muzzle velocity coming at us) and just throw up their hands and say, it's impossible, which sometimes I feel like it's impossible.”
“But we must defy gravity.”
Like Elphaba, we must defy gravity. Elphaba's journey of self-discovery and empowerment. It is a turning point in the musical where Elphaba embraces her individuality and defies societal norms. I love it when she and Glinda discover their power is working as a team and that nothing will bring them down. It is in this unity where courage is found - and a giant leap of faith to FLY. We are the greatest team that ever lived (that is YOU, the patriots who believe in and uphold our Constitution).
Right now, we must take that leap as well. Find our power, find our community, and not play by their rules — trust your instincts, close your eyes, and LEAP.
The Friday Power Lunch on March 14 titled “Brawlers for Women’s Rights & Freedom” from Changemakers to Court Cases” opens to our mini musical of the musical's first act, in which Elphaba realizes the truth about the Wizard of Oz and vows to fight him, beginning her evolution into the "Wicked Witch of the West".
In our version, Rep. Crockett is Elphaba, and Oz is Trump/Musk/MAGA. You don’t want to miss the opening.
🎬 Below is a reminder of who is on the show.
Title: “Brawlers for Women’s Rights & Freedom” from Changemakers to Court Cases
Season 5 | Episode 11
(Show is 203)
During Women's History Month, we will highlight women making change and courageously rising up for justice, freedom, and democracy.
Guests:
Shasti Conrad - Party chair of the Washington State Democratic Party
Reproductive Rights with: Jamie Lockhart - Executive Director PLANNED PARENTHOOD Advocates of VA
Vicki Ringer, Director of Public Affairs at Planned Parenthood South Atlantic from Planned Parenthood South Atlantic. to speak out about the U.S. Supreme Court case related to Planned Parenthood being argued on Wednesday, April 2nd.
Newly elected Chair former VA House Delegate Hala Ayala
of the Virginia Democratic Party Women’s Caucus - Building Bridges Tour
BONUS: Grassroots Report by Luisa Boyarski of the Virginia Grassroots Coalition.
🇺🇸 Right now, we are asking, “Where are the leaders? Where are our fighters?” Historians Heather Cox Richardson and Joanne Freedom spoke yesterday about why continuing to loudly complain, protest, and contact Congress is making a difference. Heather said during the podcast: “The American government rests on the will of the people,” and collectively, throughout history, the American people detest billionaires (Trump’s Golden Age), robber barons (Gilded Age), and enslavers (Victorian Era) controlling and constricting their lives. Trump’s Golden Age is our nightmare in one lunatic’s mind, similar to Emerald City, it is a farce to rip people off. American people are waking up. Our job is to keep pulling back the curtain.
Too late to go back to sleep
It's time to trust my instincts, close my eyes and leapIt's time to try defying gravity
I think I'll try defying gravity
And you can't pull me down
See you there, and don’t forget your broom and your bra — we are bra-wlers for women’s rights and freedom.
BIG MIC - Katherine White
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