This Land is Y/Our Land
A performance during the County Council meeting at the Allegheny County Courthouse
Performed by myself in solidarity with the grassroots campaign Protect Our Parks
September 24, 2013 at the Allegheny County Courthouse in Pittsburgh, PA
About the work: This Land is Y/Our Land is a public protest, created in solidarity with the Protect Our Parks campaign. During the public comment period at the Allegheny County Council meetings that meet every other week, when citizens are allowed three minutes to speak to the fifteen members on council, I decided instead to sing 'This Land is Your Land'. I did this in solidarity with the Protect Our Parks campaign, the mission of which is to keep our county parks free from fracking. Part of my involvement with the campaign was to attend every meeting from August 2013 - May 2014 to speak out against the harmful and disastrous consequences of using public land for private profit. After having attended so many meetings and saying the same thing each time, I tried to sing instead as a way to reach, perhaps, the hearts and minds of the council members and to channel the very great spirit of Pete Seeger, whose health was failing and died just a few months later. Unfortunately, the council members chose to allow fracking in our county parks - but this fight is not over. Please help this campaign in any way you can.