I made this video for my friend and Backbone Campaign comrade Phil Ateto in January 2024. Back then, while on vacation with family, I had gotten word that Phil may pass shortly.  Despite fighting multiple myeloma for 13 years, he had been living and thriving as an artful activist and organizer. His DC friends were organizing a celebration. Luckily, I got to DC just in time to see Phil graciously mingling at his own going away party.

That was 2.5 years ago and Phil had been going strong, until recently. On July 2nd in DC, Phil and I did our final light projection together. On July 6, I met up with Phil at his home in Annapolis where we sat in his yard discussing the journey we've shared. We admired his garden, the trees he'd planted, and the birds he was feeding. Phil spoke about his vision for local organizing in the Annapolis community he so deeply loved. In our parting embrace he noted that we never know which goodbye will be the last. I think he knew that one was likely it.

Last week, I learned that Phil was in the hospital with pneumonia and it was very serious. After 15 years of fighting, the cancer was just too much. After being taken off life support - which must be very uncomfortable - he was able to breathe on his own. He was transferred from hospital to hospice.

Everything I say in this video remains true. It feels important to share with others who love and admire this uniquely beautiful human. And it is important to me that others know about him, how he lived with integrity, compassion, and the courage to stand up for the dignity of all. The world needs us all to be a bit more like Phil Ateto: invested in our communities, unafraid of standing up to coercive powers, and leaning into action to generate hope and manifest change.

Having lost many friends on this journey, I’m again reminded how sacred, short, and precious this life is. It is a blessing to have our friends, comrades, and loved ones to share it with. Though we might not feel the urgency that was forced upon Phil, the clock is ticking for all of us. The quality of our lives and what we leave behind for others to carry forward is determined by how well we show up with love, courage, and gratitude. I am grateful to have known, loved, and learned from Phil Ateto. I pray his final journey was filled with profound peace. My heart is with his wife, parents, and his community of friends who are already grieving.

Forward Together!
Bill Moyer

• If you're able to, please consider a contribution on this GoFundMe that will help support Jess, Phil's wife, during this very difficult time. 

• In 2019 Backbone Campaign presented Phil with the Backbone Award for his courage, generosity and solidarity. "Ever inviting and inclusive, Phil is a mentor and friend dedicated to preserving human rights and fighting injustice."  Several comrades and friends had sent tributes to our "Free Speech Champion." Watch HERE. 

• Phil was projecting at the Pennsylvania Senate Candidates debate and boldly interrupted the CNN news feed background.  The camera-man working the event saw the impact of light projection and decided to do a short documentary on First Amendment Free Speech projection with light, called Projecting Protest.  You can see Phil and Bill in action doing a projection in this Emmy award-winning short documentary, including strategies for holding off the police, something Phil excelled at!

• Some of the remarkable actions Phil has done with Backbone can be viewed in this Flickr album.