Many people have been asking myself and others why I’m going to a protest for the second night in a row. There are a lot of reasons, but I thought it would be a good idea to jot off 10. Here we go:
1. To show my disapproval with the statements he made over the past 18 months (and, by extension, his lifetime) and to show the vulnerable he hurt that we are not with him.
2. To show my disapproval with his track record and the example he has shown for us around the world, and in doing so improve relations between the United States and other nations joining on (in some cases, protesting as well).
3. To bother Trump, who keeps saying that he wants unity, and demonstrate that unity requires that he follow few, if any, of his campaign promises, and whose first post-election tweets showed that he was paying attention to and personally affected by the protests.
4. To mobilize and sign up people for grassroots organizations that we will need to protest many of the things on the Republican platform and in Trump’s speeches.
5. To embolden our Senators and Representatives on the Democratic side to do whatever it takes to stop the most dangerous of Trump’s policies.
6. To prepare for future protests against future policies Trump may try to enact.
7. To prepare for 2018, which will be a long, hard, strenuous fight, including runs for governors and Congressmen, as well as state representatives and mayors.
8. To show where the buck stops and encourage government defiance if necessary, should he enact some of his more disturbing policies.
9. To keep the Democratic party left and uncompromising to the most disturbing parts of the Trump agenda, knowing they have our backs.
10. To show Trump supporters that we’re going to fight back against many of their cruel attitudes and be a countercultural force against much of the hate (as exhibited by the 200+ incidences of hateful harassment since his election) that they think will exist in America post-Trump.
I could keep going, but that’s ten, it’s about 6:30pm, and I have a protest to go to at 7.
Do you have any you want to add? I’d like to hear them — please put them in the comments below.
Thanks for reading.
PS: I have a Patreon, in case you want to help me keep doing what I’m doing.