History isn’t something that happened long ago. It’s living all around us, in us, and through us.
Hello fellow writer activists!
This being the week of May Day Strong, culminating in Friday’s nationwide “No School. No Work. No Shopping” strike against the regime, I thought I’d do something a little different and reintroduce you to my extraordinary friend and neighbor Victor Sazer.
Many of you met Victor last year after he spent his 99th Birthday protesting at the first No Kings Day. I shared a brief video of his birthday remarks, in which he toasted the late John Lewis and exhorted everyone at his party to get into “good trouble.” Thousands of Substackers responded by sending him love.
Vic is a lifelong union activist, WWII Navy veteran, teacher, and symphony cellist who was blacklisted in the 1940s because of his labor organizing. Unable to continue working in symphony orchestras because the FBI and House on UnAmerican Activities Committee had branded him a “red sympathizer,” Vic was forced to become a machinist to provide for his family. His story is almost as extraordinary as his humility and quiet passion for music, humanity, and perseverance.
I offer this new interview with Victor as a tribute to him and as a plea for you to collect the stories of the heroes in your family and neighborhood. History isn’t something that happened long ago. It’s living all around us, in us, and through us.
The lives of people like Victor Sazer are more than inspiring; they’re guiding lights that remind us, character is both what we stand for and what we do to prove what we stand for.
After you watch this video, I hope you’ll feel a fresh and emboldened sense of your own character. Every day represents a new opportunity to make your world a little better, kinder, and saner.
Or, as Vic reminds us here:
You’ve got to be involved. You know, especially now, there’s a lot to talk about. We’ve got a would-be dictator. I witnessed a lot of history. I lived some of it, and I remember in the 40s, over in Germany, they were banning books, and they wanted a master race, Aryans, and now we want a white Christian nation. If you’re old or young, you’ve got to be involved in life.
Calling all Cellists!
If you would like Victor’s expert advice on
playing the cello with more pleasure and less pain,
please check out his book:
