“I would rather be a rebel than a slave.”

Suffragette is a movie about women. About the strength of women bonded together for a common cause — the right to vote. About what women in history were willing to go through, to sacrifice, for the right to be treated equally. About how, after 50 years of fighting for this right, it took the death of one of these amazingly courageous women to begin to see a change.

This suffragette, Emily Wilding Davison, committed suicide and became a martyr, just for the right to vote. (“All she had, she gave to others” was the sign on her casket.)

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2013/may/26/emily-davison-suffragette-death-derby-1913

“It is hugely significant as a moment in history, a moment that absolutely sums up the desperation of women in this country who wanted the vote.”

From the movie:

“Emily Wilding Davison’s death was reported across the world. It drew global attention to the fight for women’s rights. It was a fight that led to the imprisonment of more than 1,000 British women.”

Considering the very low percentage of women who vote in this country, it almost seems like these sacrifices were made in vain.

Is there a cause worth dying for in this day and age? Today, it appears that only the extremists in our society are willing to go to such lengths, regardless of the insanity of their causes.

I look into what the future holds for chronic pain patients and I wonder if there is anyone, male or female, willing to make this kind of sacrifice. I can recall only one story that I’ve read about a pain patient — a veteran — who tried to make a statement about the opioid war through suicide. But it’s not like anyone paid attention to that story:

https://painkills2.wordpress.com/2015/06/01/thinking-of-you-thomas-murphy/

“I think he’s a martyr for what he did,” veteran Brandon Coleman said of Thomas Murphy, who tragically took his life while sitting in the parking lot of the VA administrative offices in downtown Phoenix.”

How desperate do pain patients have to become before we start fighting back? How long will it take for us to win this war and regain our rights? How can anyone fight powerful forces like the DEA and CDC?

Watch this movie. These women fought forces much more powerful than the DEA. They were beaten and bloodied by the police, imprisoned, and force fed — all because they were fighting for the right to vote. For 50 years, women fought the respectable fight. But as they found out, it takes a lot more to make a difference.

One line in the movie says it all:

“I would rather be a rebel than a slave.”