Those of us born in the 1950s have seen great improvements in the quality of life across the board, not the least of which are the improvements in the lives of those who have traditionally been marginalized. Women, people of color, the LGBTQIA+ community, and non-Christians all saw their status improve through the 60s and into at least the early 80s. It became easy to believe such improvements were the natural order of things.
Now we’re faced with the rollback of all that and then some.
Authoritarians – the politically correct term for fascists, which has itself
become the PC term for Nazis – would have you believe this is the natural order.
White men should rule a semi-feudal world in which everyone else either falls
into line or disappears. Voluntarily, if they choose, but someone will come for
you if you’re slow to get the message.
The good news is, they’re wrong. The trend of human history
has consistently been toward more independence and cooperation. It has not
progressed in a straight line – history never does, no matter how inevitable
things seem in retrospect – but the trend is clear. Taking a step or two back for every two or
three forward is frustrating for those who have to live through it, especially
if one believes the passages in the Declaration of Independence and the
Constitution that refer to “all people” or “no person may be denied.” I am
convinced the pendulum will again swing in our direction.
The bad news? Well there are a couple of items on that list:
1.
My generation may not live to see it.
2.
It’s not going to happen at all unless more
people get off their asses.
We’re in this predicament, in large part, because over a
third of registered voters didn’t bother to do so last November. Now that we have
concrete evidence of 47’s intent, we’re hamstrung by the LibDem belief that how
you say something is more important than what you say and dear God we don’t
want to piss anyone off.
I follow several groups that showed promise of being
Resistance leaders in the early days of 47’s administration; too much of their
efforts focus on requesting signatures on online petitions, donations, or small
local gatherings. One in particular has damn near sprained its collective
shoulder patting itself on the back for delivering a petition to Congress with
75,000 signatures.
Why am I so dismissive of this? It only shows that 0.16% of
registered Democrats were outraged enough to make two mouse clicks. This is not
going to move the needle. Would it not be far more effective for their senators
and representatives to have received 75,000 e-mails or phone calls or letters? Even
better, for 75,000 people to show up at the Capitol, preferably with pitchforks
and torches?
“But most people don’t live close enough to Washington to
get there.” True, but. There are 6.3 million people in the DC metro area, which
is largely blue. Seventy-five thousand is only 1.19% of that.
The Beloved Spouse™ and I took part in the Women’s March in
January 2017 to protest what was then 45’s inauguration. Crowd estimates ranged
from 500,000 to 1.2 million. That crowd gathered to protest the mere threat of
what 45 might do.
Now we’re faced with the reality of what 47 is doing. I went
to the Women’s March in January, and other rallies and protests in March,
April, May, and July 4. In my admittedly crude estimation, the 2017 event drew
more bodies than everything I’ve seen this year combined. (It is only fair that
I point out I was unable to attend the “No Kings” rally on June 14.)
The Vietnam War protests worked because they generated
sufficient outrage within the general population to convince elected officials
to get us out. Not by blowing up buildings; that only pissed people off. I’m
talking about the large-scale protests that attracted media attention and
showed the nation at large how people who were practicing non-violent civil
disobedience were being beaten and gassed. When the powers that be saw people
were serious enough to risk arrest or worse, things changed.
Today we face a far more existential crisis. Where is
everyone? Why hasn’t there been a mass rally in Washington DC since June 14? Is
it harder to get permits? Fuck the permits. The 47 administration has no reason
to grant such permits, because those are the kinds of events that will generate
media attention, much as the Vietnam War and Civil Rights rallies that clogged
the Mall in the 60s and 70s did.
Or the “rally” at the Capitol January 6, 2021.
Where is the outrage? You post memes on Facebook? Stop
jacking off to make yourself feel better and take action that might accomplish something.
There are several things wrong with the Resistance right
now, but among the most troubling is the absence of a leader to coalesce around.
Someone who’s not afraid to call for mass civil disobedience. That’s what it
took for civil rights, and to end the Vietnam War. That’s what it’s going to
take here. Many more people with their hearts in the right place need to put
their asses there, too.
If someone comes to me with information about a gathering
where civil disobedience will take place and I can get there, I’ll go. That’s
why I’m so worked up. I am unaware of any such activities.
I’ll keep looking, though
(This was drafted a couple of weeks ago. Since then several
officials, mostly governors, notably Gavin Newsome, have begun to step up. I
applaud their efforts and hope they inspire others who seek our votes and spend
our money to do the same.)
(PS
You might well wonder what I’m doing aside from blogging and
posting to social media. It’s a fair question.
So far I’ve attended half a dozen marches and rallies in Washington,
donated several hundred dollars to organizations such as those I’m now
disenchanted with, along with the ACLU, which will get the lion’s share of any
future giving. I sent e-mail to two or more elected official three times a
week, and have written letters to administration officials and the Supreme
Court to oppose some of the more egregious transgressions. I’m going into DC August
21 to walk the Mall and ask any uniformed National Guards I see if acting as an
army of occupation is what they signed up for.)
