(no subject)

[petermarcus]

From this story about the Seattle Coffee Tax:

Calling the protest their version of the Boston Tea Party, demonstrators marched to Green Lake, where they dumped burlap bags into the water.

They looked like coffee bags, but were filled with balloons to keep them from sinking so they could be retrieved after the protest, said Susan Majerus, who helped organize the demonstration.

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The founding fathers (not to mention a few dead civil rights leaders) are rolling in their graves. Could you imagine if Samuel Adams and the Sons of Liberty had thrown boxes of inflated sheep bladders with "TEA" written on the sides into Boston Harbor, then retrieved them after the protest? "Take that, King George! You have become a victim of a protest act symbolizing the depth of how out of touch you are with the true feelings of your subjects."

If you're going to protest, then protest.

Comments

[petermarcus.livejournal.com]

Peaceful protest is infinitely preferable to violent protest. But, protesting any serious issue always carries the risk of violence, from Samuel Adams to Abbie Hoffman to Rosa Parks. The violence may come from the protesters (which, IMHO, makes the protesters look like thugs, e.g. the WTO riots) or the ones protested against (vice-versa, e.g. Kent State).

In my more optimistic moments, I think the shortage of protests in which the threat of violence is a real possibility shows growth as a society.

[nilodlien.livejournal.com]

More years ago than I care to count, I taught 4th grade in a portable trailer out in the Mojave Desert. Year-round school, of course. It got a bit ... balmy there in August. My air conditioning went out. Kids were getting sick and fainting. I submitted work orders for days. Finally, on day 5, I took my students, with their Social Studies books, into the office. We sat on the floor of the (air conditioned) front office, talking about Martin Luther King for about 75 minutes - by the end of which time, my air conditioning was back online.

I'm not a big one for violent protest (did not think Seattle showed herself well during the WTO riots a few winters back), but peaceful ones will always have a place in our country - in my opinion.