By Marc Eliot Stein

From World Beyond War | Original Article

“That’s when I saw this whole thing as a charade. I knew it was wrong.”

I’ve been wanting to interview Miles Megaciph for the World BEYOND War podcast since hearing him perform at our #NoToNATO event in Washington DC in April 2019. His set was straight-ahead conscious rap with a gritty beat, and I knew we’d have a lot to talk about. I became even more sure about this when I learned that Miles had served with the US Marines at a base near Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and then in Okinawa before he became an activist, a hiphop performer and a poet.

Episode 15 of the World BEYOND War podcast is a conversation about beginnings and transformations: what inspires an 18-year-old to join the Marines, and what is the life that follows? Most importantly, what do we do when we are given orders we know are wrong? How do we react when we find ourselves stuck in situations that must change, even when we don’t know how to bring this change about?

I’m grateful to Miles Megaciph for allowing me to ask questions and for digging deep for truthful answers in this 45-minute conversation. Today, many people who serve in the US military, US guard forces or US police are facing difficult questions for the first time. What do we do once we figure out that our orders are immoral? How do we withdraw, and how do we resist?

For Miles Megaciph, happily, the answer to this question came in a music career, a worldwide peace community and a wonderful supportive family that keeps him going. Sometimes it takes a winding road to get there. I hope this episode of the World BEYOND War podcast brings inspiration to all of us as we find our own paths. We also talk about Black Lives Matter, hiphop influences and many other things.