Protesting the War. Why bother?
Local protests have been in the news lately - Randy Kuhl is locking his doors and considering packing. Protesters have been arrested. Are protests effective? I was at the Peace Vigil at the Brighton 12 corners. I met some great people and asked them some questions.
Why are you here? How politically active are you?
Let’s start with these two sisters. I’m leaving the names off because - well I said I would use their name or picture - not both.
So I asked does protesting make a difference? Absolutely the young women on the right says without pause. You need to use your rights or they are lost. She furthers adds - it helps people to see others are not afraid to speak up. I was struck by that sentence. In this young women’s mind she is protesting for herself as well as others. Speaking for those who are not ready to speak.
She tells me she has been politically aware for 4 years and what is driving her is the sense of urgency that something needs to be done - now. How did you get involved I ask - Well - She credits her parents who raised her to be socially conscious.
OK but what does her sister have to say?
Well - she is very active organizing clubs at her school and sees her role as educating those around her. Why bother? Well she says she can’t imagine not getting involved. There is a sense of urgency and not getting involved not acceptable.
So - speaking for others who are unable to speak- Social awareness a result of their parents. A sense of responsibility.
But are protests effective? Well like all things in life - it depends. Will this peace vigil change Randy Kuhl’s mind on the war. Probably not. The counter point is does engagement of Randy Kuhl work? Well - in a word no. His mind is already made up. He will support the President.
But like the young women said - she is speaking for those who are unable to speak. Both feel they are making a difference by being involved. In essence they are helping fuel the public sentiment now and support those who follow them in the future.
I think that is what protesting is about. Applying the past to the present in order to enable to future.
More interviews later.
Silence is complicity. Great post.
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[...] We travel in different circles but our paths cross periodically. Well, they crossed again at the Brighton 12 Corners war protest. We started chatting and he said that he does this thing where he sets up a table and hands out [...]
[...] are my final stories from the war protest. You can read the first two posts here and here. Met Barbara - This was my first discussion and didn’t think to take a picture [...]