No matter where I am, I can't forget this man isolated in the Ecuadorian Embassy. A man risking so much with such little gratitude.
Thinking of Julian makes me wonder, what is the sexiest quality in a man? Surely the sexiest qualities in a man are bravery and courage. Sexiness in a man is showing strength. Having convictions and having the courage to stand by them.
Think of a man putting everything aside to stand up to bullies, to say enough is enough, to take a stand for justice and truth.
Standing up for the oppressed, for the weak, for the forgotten. An unstoppable force, standing up to an immoveable object. Even when it is impossible, even when it puts him in danger. Even when he has nothing but his beliefs and his intelligence and his courage.
Many people have courage and strength in their convictions. But how many people have stood up to the ultimate bully, a superpower, with 1200 military bases all around the world? When the courage of their convictions would bring them into conflict with the United States government, how many people would have stuck to their principles and refused to stand down?
Seven years ago, Julian's quest for justice led him into a confrontation with the strongest power in the world. Julian was and still is crusading for justice and truth. He was trying to show the world the murders that had been committed in Iraq. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5rXPrfnU3G0)
He was trying to show the world hidden crimes that would change our minds and eventually stop the war in Iraq. To question war. To question authority. To shine a light on the powerful. He stood up to the United States government, to the Pentagon, to the CIA, to the FBI, to the White House. He didn't flinch. He still doesn't. He stayed the course. He knew what he was doing. When others attacked him, he stood firm. He persevered.
And he won. WikiLeaks never retracted a single thing. Nothing was censored. Revolutions happened across the world. The Pentagon stood down. Secretary of State Hillary of Clinton is no more. The Obama administration is gone.
Julian won, and we all benefited from this. He took on the Leviathan and won. That is sexy.
Julian has been trapped in a small room for five years now, and for two years before that he was under house arrest. He has won his case against Sweden. All of the excuses are gone. There is no reason he should not be freed.
But Theresa May - who kept him imprisoned in the embassy for 5 years - refuses to allow him to leave. Theresa May, who is on her last legs. Theresa May of the Pyhrric victory. Theresa May, who won't shake the hand of the victims of the Grenfell fire. Who doesn't care about poor people. Who doesn't care about justice or peace. Who doesn't care about Julian. The worst Prime Minister in living memory.
This is an emergency! I am reaching out, with honest diplomacy, to leaders who can make a difference to Julian's plight. At this time, there is such potential for big, galvanizing actions that would inspire the world to activism!
I am reaching out to Emmanuel Macron, and to his wife Brigitte Trogneux. As a resident of France, my adopted home, I would like to meet with you and discuss Julian's situation. I am opening a new vegan restaurant in France in July, and I would like to extend my invitation to the new President and his First Lady. Join me on the day I open the doors, and we will sit and eat good food and discuss what can be done for Julian. France could display its strength, and so could you, if you give Julian asylum.
I am reaching out to Jeremy Corbyn, who could and should be the next Prime Minister. Jeremy, you and I share a compassion for animals. You and Julian both know how vicious the UK media can be, and how unjust the present government is. Julian should be given safe passage, and compensation. I have watched the recent UK election with great interest. I have cheered the turn in your party's fortunes! You are clearly a decent and fair man. When you come to power, you must rehabilitate the UK's reputation in Latin America! You must condemn the threat of the Cameron government to violate the Vienna Conventions, recognize the UN ruling that Julian is arbitrarily detained. Free Julian. It would be celebrated across the world, and show everyone that the UK intends to change its foreign policy.
In the United States, things are pretty dire. The director of the CIA is on the warpath against Julian and WikiLeaks. President Trump, who benefited from WikiLeaks' publications, has not stood up for Julian's freedom to publish. I appeal to President Trump, to Ivanka, to the right and the anti-Clinton left, please, let's come together and organise for Julian's release. WikiLeaks is an attempt to bring the First Amendment to the rest of the world. Let's not kill it at home.
I am reaching out to China too. There is too much at stake in the world to allow for all of the geopolitical antler-clashing that is going on now. We must reach out and work together for a better world. I will write a love letter to China. I will travel there, and discover China for myself, and represent its strengths to the world. I am sure China can be a symbol of peace and strength in the world, and do the right thing. I will advocate for Julian to China's leaders too. China could help Julian.
We must turn the world around. Stop escalating cyberwars. Stop geopolitical sabre-rattling. Stop interfering in elections. Stop torturing animals and eating them. Stop writing speeches on goatskin. Letting Julian go free would change everything. For a better world!
(For Julian)
Invictus
Out of the night which covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeoning of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find me, unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul.
I love you,
Pamela
