This morning I woke up thinking of the Disney animated movie The Incredibles. Set in an alternate version of the 1960s, the film follows the Parrs, a family of superheroes who hide their powers in accordance with a government mandate, and attempt to live a quiet suburban life. Mr. Incredible’s desire to help people draws the entire family into a confrontation with a vengeful fan-turned-foe and his killer robot.
It was an interesting dream to have and I didn’t realise that the movie was set in the 1960s, when the counterculture of the time gained momentum as the Civil Rights Movement continued to grow, and, with the expansion of the US government’s extensive military intervention in Vietnam, was often seen as a time of revolution. [1]
Astrologers have a name for what happened in the 1960s, it is called the “Uranus Pluto Conjunction”. During this time Uranus, planet of revolution and radicalism, conjoined Pluto, planet of transformation through destruction and regeneration, in the conservative sign of Virgo. In 1961 Saturn and Jupiter were conjoined in Capricorn, which meant that it was a time when people were pushing governments for social reforms which saw the rise of the ‘middle class’ and the relaxation of many previous social taboos.
In 2020, the main triggering point for the upheaval has been the conjunction between Pluto, Saturn and Jupiter in Capricorn. Pluto, the planet of deep transformation, has been transiting Capricorn since 2008 when we experienced the global financial crisis. Pluto, Saturn and Jupiter conjunct in Capricorn is revealing the shadow side (what is hidden) of big business, large institutions (the Church, WHO) and government so that the unjust actions of these global institutions can no longer be hidden, ignored or bypassed.
This weekend police arrested more than 4,000 people, as protests swept across cities in Australia, in a moment that reflects the civil unrest of the 1960s. We are currently experiencing another type of revolution, but this time around the revolution has been sparked by the Coronavirus pandemic, which has left some 40 million people unemployed, leaving an even bigger wealth gap than we had in the 60s. And it’s not just about race but also about economic inequity, between the wealthy elites, and those who are suffering and immiserated, what we sometimes call an underclass. [2]
Just as The Incredibles were drawn to help those less powerful than themselves we are beginning to witness the same support coming from individuals who know that they are in a position of power and wish to use this to make a difference to racial and economic injustice. Beyond race, people everywhere are coming together to ‘join forces’ to squarely confront history to ensure that we move in a new and progressive direction.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. King called rioting the language of the unheard. And he was assassinated on April 4, 1968, trying to bring people together towards a poor people’s campaign that was going to guarantee black citizenship and black dignity, not just for the African American community, but for all communities, including a guaranteed income.
People are questioning whether the recent death of African American George Floyd symbolises the end of the American Dream? But I would ask whose dream was it anyway? There is no such thing as a quiet suburban life when people of different racial backgrounds, particularly our First Nations People, are not treated with equal respect and dignity.
The Incredibles also teaches us that people are different. We all have different “powers” and the playing field isn’t always fair. But if we can help each other to be seen and heard, to overcome our circumstances, whatever they may be, to enrich our lives and achieve our own dreams, then maybe just maybe we can inspire others to do the same.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Counterculture_of_the_1960s
[2] https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2020/06/01/protests-black-americans-civil-unrest