(to the person who posted this yesterday - thank you for making me think of this.)
email this posting to a friend
I NEED TO PROTEST THE WAR (pittsburg / antioch)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Reply to: comm-xxxxxxxx@craigslist.org
Date: 2007-01-13, 9:23AM PST
Hi: It's been more than 30 years that I publicly protest and involve myself politically. But, I cannot any more. We need to let Bush know that more troops is not the solution. We need our people back home and help Iraq become their own. We must let go, be a good parent. Parents to our kids and to Iraq now that we supposedly got Iraq free of their other bad parent.
I need to find an organization and be involved, do letters, flyers, education to the people. Does anybody know of a good organization to get involved? I need an organization that does not use violence, cohersion, strong public displays such as chaining, laying on the floor, etc. Can anyone recommend? I'll bring my whole family.
Thank you.
it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests
Dear I Need,
I feel this, I really do.
I used my first Personal Holiday of 2007 to join an "Anti-Surge Demonstration" in my hometown, the first ever for this small, casualty-heavy exurb.
My husband has been telling me for months that he thinks Americans have got to grab the wheel from the Bush Administration before they drive us right into that oil tanker and over a cliff. He (and my other European friends) wonder what is wrong with the most prosperous democracy in the world, that we can't or won't be visible, make our feelings known, shout in the village square like our Spanish and British counterparts.
So, we took the step of offering to sponsor an action. Turns out this action led to the contact info for an existing event, which we never would have found otherwise. Be prepared to be a little frustrated, (see 4, below), but, also, this link is an excellent place to begin your need to protest.)
If this had been my first event, I would have been discouraged. So I'm writing this how-to in the spirit of other post-baby-boomer adult children who have had the experience of effective protest, and know what to expect.
I apologize in advance if this is isn't funny and interesting enough for such a broad target/topic. I'm at work now moving aircraft (and anyone who thinks there isn't a surge happening now has got their brains in they ass) and need to be concentrating on the job more than polishing up this post. But I want to get it out here by MLK Day. I want you to tell me how to make it better. There's several messages inherent right there, if you're still with me.
1) Do it NOW. Like freewayblogging. Like telling someone you love them. Like sending a burger to that homeless dude at the deli counter. You can make it prettier and wittier later, if you must. Action begets action. The flow of energy through an organism helps to organize the organism. Et cet. Which leads me to the next point...
2) Americans are other people, and other people are annoying. Every single goddamned one of us. Accepting this Great Secret Law is the basis of etiquette, common law and civil liberty. Deal with it. Embrace it.
I could practically hear my husband thinking, "I gave up a "P" day and waited around for eight hours for this?" when we joined up with our cohort at the meeting place. Yes, dear, you should remember from Cub Scouts, Poll working, Red Cross, not to mention all the church events our neighbors invite us heatherns to, this is exactly how volunteerism works.
Don't expect anyone to be smarter than you. Don't expect to be greeted with open arms. The attitude that has served me best when volunteering, whether at a homeless shelter or a political campaign is, "I am a temp worker- they're lucky to have me, yes, but it ain't all about me," and I don't expect a fanfare.
At best (and our event was tremendously satisfying), you will meet like-minded neighbors, make friends, bond in a common and worthy activity, and attract more numbers to your side.
At worst, you will be irritated at the experience of watching, from the sidelines, a bunch of annoying do-gooders bumbling around into each other, having the message co-opted by violent, and/or just crazie fringe groups, and making an ass of your cause.
This point leads to.... (see how this works? flow of energy, man)
3) Correct us. Please. It's a Wiki, Web2.0 world. Hurling incendiary missives from your arrogant-lone-genius blog-mountaintop is sooo 2005. I expect to be corrected, edited, quoted out of context, photoshopped, mashup'd, linked by single-brain-celled MySpacers, and...ignored. Sticks and stones, and all that. If you've got something to add, let's have it.
4) Inform yourself/Pace yourself. The two go together. Find a serious-but-skimmable accountable-yet-not-corporate news blog with diverse sources and check it regularly. Some of my daily reads are Truthout TomDispatch , Guardian Online and my personal favorite interactive (comment-enabled), blog, Steve and Jen's NewsBlog
Pace yourself. Guard your energy. It takes immense energy to ferret out the most useful sites, the right actions, to deal with the personalities involved, to manage logistics and swallow the insults or rejection of passersby, to brush off the feeling you haven't been heard or accomplished a thing. Don't deplete your momentum arguing with Freepers or conflict-addicts in anybody's comment thread. Stay far, far away from sites where more than one troll a day appears spreading their poison. While you're at it, practice civility yourownself, at least on other people's sites. It makes you feel bulletproof and saves your focus for the important battles ahead.
(editor's note - Another good reason to limit your time cyberpontificating - it gives you the false sense that you've done something when you've just talked about it.
5)(Warning - political incorrectness alert) - Everything is a costume or a uniform. Don't take it personally if people are underwhelmed by your appearance - dress the part of a citizen activist. To use personal experience, at the Anti-Surge Action husband and I attended, there were a hardcore group of the same ten or twelve Peace and Justice regulars that I saw at the anti-Pombo rally, and one or two CODEpink ladies. The median age was about 55. There wasn't a bright color or telegenic face among us.It sounds shallow, but it's just human nature. People notice looks. Thank god me and the other 'pinker were flying our colors - she with a brave orchid shuddering in the rush hour winds, and me with the scarf and hat my god daughter gave me for Christmas, that reminds me of our responsibility to her generation. The way we looked would have, and has, turned off many people, namely the Young Adventurists and Radical Sheep starlet-wannabes that so plagued my youth in the Peace movement. But we can't afford to be dismissed by our looks, by anyone. Why why why oh why do you have to look like a redneck's dream of a vegan weekend-naturist on a homeschool outing to show support for peace in Iraq? Where is it written you have to wear drab and faded flannel or a stupid ratty Uncle Sam hat, or show a stubborn disregard for clean, modern, appropriate clothing? And another thing - a little Raisin Burt's Bees makes people focus on your lips while you're saying "Bring them home now".
6) Conversely, if war abroad begets war in our hearts, protest most certainly begins at home.
Want to take to the streets? Start with your own. Seriously. Husband was discouraged at the size of our little action. Not me. I mean, look at the first paragraph of this message. As this war goes on, the number of protests is growing, and getting closer to home. We are everywhere. Do it. The more often the better, the closer to home, the better. Look positive. Be approachable. Don't waste energy in arguing or in despair. And don't forget to pester your representatives (this should really be under #1, but here it is - Contact your representative. Learn their names. Put their numbers on speedial. Report the details of your contacts in your blog (see #3).
7) Fuck an 'image.' You are more than what some stranger thinks you look like you are. I was told by a cogent and inscisive commenter at Buzznet that opposing the surge makes you an 'emofag'. I responded by sending her the name of a recruiter who would be delighted to hear that the surge will be supplied by dumbass faux- bisexual attention whores who are more afraid of being thought an 'emofag' than of a meaningless death. FOXNews and Karl Rove have so warped the environment of free speech that the only crime is to be unlikeable, or open to easy ridicule. Ever since the photo of Kerry waterskiing or Dean's Scream shell-gamed the Dems, we have all needed to be foolslapped. Don't feed this. Do you really want me to tell my son that he needs to die because Senator Boxer hurt Condi's feelings yesterday, or that preventing gays from marrying each other is worth the 3K dead for a lie? Okay, I'm getting mad. I know I just contradicted myself by admitting that I fed a troll,and that stupid people judge you by your looks, but I hope it strengthens my earlier point, and anyway, try to think of it as part of my charm.
The point is, diviseness made this mess possible. We need to get beyond it. And we need to get off our butts and away from the keyboards. This country is swirling down the drain, and I don't say that lightly. (In fact, it may already be too late for peaceful protest, but I'm not about to advocate assasination on this blog.) It is going to take sacrifice. Be willing to be disturbed by real news. Be willing to suffer heat or cold. Be busy. Be ridiculed. Be discouraged. Over and over and over and over until there is a crowd in every 'town square'.
The adventurists and starlets are bored and flirting behind their internet- profile -created egos again. The Democrats are issuing nonbinding resolutions in a time that requires impeachment. The Republican leadership is remembering Nixon and getting scared for their own asses. The military families are hesitant to demoralize their people in Iraq. The firebrand radical bloggers are back to macro-sloganing "Fuck Bush" at each other and feeling like they did something. And the average American is only dimly aware that it isn't as safe or as fun to be an American in an increasingly hostile and dangerous world, and they want more iCrap and reality programming to distract them.
That leaves you and me.
The way I look at it, saving this country is up to us.
If I were going to sum up a meme for the New Spirit of '76, it would be, Join Us.
In fact, the sign I held at our rush hour demonstration said just that. Now, to wrap up , I'll italicize the basics while saying what was going to be an ordinary blog post-
that night, with a combination of dressing like a self-respecting but unremarkable citizen,, being armed with an argument to refute 'you hate the troops' attacks, being rested and well fed and dressed enough to be pleasant and positive to passersby, and having an easily downloadable and clearly stated message,we attracted the attention of hundreds of rush hour drivers. Now, I've been at that same corner before, and got cursed or ignored. This time we got cheers. Honks. Fists. It was good.
One interesting footnote - the concept of 'social capital', ie, overcoming your own isolation in order to make connections that are win-win, paid off in a way that gave me goosebumps that night.
My hands were too numb with cold to keep holding my sign, so I walked over onto the sidewalk to approach the foot traffic. I noticed a young man looking at us, so I went over and game him a (bright red) flyer with our online petition information. Within a few seconds, we both said at the same time, "I know you!", but neither of us could remember from where. By this time, he and his friend had attracted the attention of one of the P&J Center leaders, and were drawn into a discussion. By the time I remembered where I knew him from, so did the rest of our group - he was a returned Iraq veteran who had been radicalized against the war by his experiences with Halliburton. We had met at the last downtown protest, another time he had been walking by, when I approached him for an interview for my blog.
This time, as then, when the media appeared, Lt. Moctezuma was the one they spoke to.
There is great power in the words, Join Us.
So, you need to protest?
Me too.
Join us.
appendix - tell your Senator, the Democrats need to quit shitting their pants over being called against the troops - Play up the 'support the troops, bring them home' meme.
Essential reading for anyone who doesn't personally know anyone in the military
Poster ideas
