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Excellent summary on last week's No Kings national protest
This has been getting shared on FB
An estimated 7 million people just participated in the single biggest protest in US history. Even the more conservative estimates, which anyone with eyes knows are low, put it at over 2 million. That alone would make it one of the most successful demonstrations this country has ever seen. A massive and heartfelt thank you to the over 250,000 volunteers who made it possible. Your service to this cause is invaluable.
Predictably, every time we mobilize like this, the cynics come out of the woodwork to declare that protests don't matter. From a narrow, immediate policy standpoint, they aren't always wrong. A protest on Saturday doesn't magically pass a bill on Monday. But that's not the point, and it completely misses why showing up in person is so critical.
Protests serve two fundamental purposes. First, they are our most powerful tool for networking and community building. In a world designed to make us feel isolated and powerless, a protest is a potent antidote. It's where you find organizations that need your support, meet the neighbors who share your beliefs, and see with your own eyes that you are not alone. It’s a comforting, powerful reminder that the whole world hasn't lost its mind.
Second, a protest is a demonstration of potential energy—a show of force that proves why you don't want things to escalate. When a government claims a "mandate," a massive protest is a physical, undeniable rebuttal that the opposition is not a small fringe. It is a public declaration, made in person, that we are not afraid of them. In an administration that puts so much effort into intimidation, that act of collective courage is anything but nothing.
So, don't let this be the end of it. Don't let the energy dissipate. Take the connections you made and build on them. Nurture the new ideas you encountered. Move forward with the confidence that millions of others have your back. The hard, grinding work of creating strategy and changing policy must happen next, but that work is fueled by the hope and solidarity we build together in the streets. Never let anyone invalidate the importance of that.
See you at the next one.
Predictably, every time we mobilize like this, the cynics come out of the woodwork to declare that protests don't matter. From a narrow, immediate policy standpoint, they aren't always wrong. A protest on Saturday doesn't magically pass a bill on Monday. But that's not the point, and it completely misses why showing up in person is so critical.
Protests serve two fundamental purposes. First, they are our most powerful tool for networking and community building. In a world designed to make us feel isolated and powerless, a protest is a potent antidote. It's where you find organizations that need your support, meet the neighbors who share your beliefs, and see with your own eyes that you are not alone. It’s a comforting, powerful reminder that the whole world hasn't lost its mind.
Second, a protest is a demonstration of potential energy—a show of force that proves why you don't want things to escalate. When a government claims a "mandate," a massive protest is a physical, undeniable rebuttal that the opposition is not a small fringe. It is a public declaration, made in person, that we are not afraid of them. In an administration that puts so much effort into intimidation, that act of collective courage is anything but nothing.
So, don't let this be the end of it. Don't let the energy dissipate. Take the connections you made and build on them. Nurture the new ideas you encountered. Move forward with the confidence that millions of others have your back. The hard, grinding work of creating strategy and changing policy must happen next, but that work is fueled by the hope and solidarity we build together in the streets. Never let anyone invalidate the importance of that.
See you at the next one.
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