I like that I live “one
stoplight away” from our country’s capital (that is the phrase every realtor
who lists a house in our neighborhood uses, causing us to wonder, “What route do
they drive into the district?” and also “One stoplight, perhaps, but four traffic jams…”). Close proximity to DC means we can easily
join protests, marches, and celebrations.
I love that. And, let’s be
honest, since November 8, 2016, there have been lots of protests and marches to join in on, but we’ve been light in
what I could consider reasons to celebrate…
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| Little boy with his sign at a protest against the Muslim Ban at Dulles Airport |
I have made more protest
signs and spent more arm-aching hours holding them in the air the last 19 months
than I have the other 52 years of my life combined. I like
protests and rallies. Especially in
this day and age, I find them to be a space filled with INSPIRATION, with HOPE,
and with the BELIEF that things can
and will get better. These large gatherings act like a sort of
fuel for me, a little weigh station where I can pull over and replenish my spirit.
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| Us at the Families Belong Together Rally in DC |
Of course, rallies are
filled with like-minded people for the most part, people who are on the “same
side of the argument” as me, otherwise why would we both be spending our
precious Saturday standing in the sweltering sun holding up a sign, right? So, while I love the signs, like the
speakers, and feel an esprit-de-corps with my fellow marchers as we take over a
wide DC street to exercise our freedom of speech, I dislike one part of these
gatherings: the shouting at those who
are on the other side of the issue.
I expect to see counter protesters when there are large gatherings.
We all expect that, as there are two sides (at least) to every issue,
and in this country we ALL have the right (thankfully, at least for now) to
express our opinions publicly. And, when you are marching for a specific
cause, you know who is going to be
there cheering for the other side, it is easy to figure out. (Actually, there are some groups that you
know who will always be there
cheering, regardless what everyone else is there about… For me, Westboro Baptist “Church”, those
against women’s rights to choose, and the anti-tax crowd all come to mind in
this category.)
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| Westboro Baptist "Church" at a protest at Arlington National Cemetery on Veteran's Day, November 2012 |
So, when we headed down to
the mall this past weekend for the “Families Belong Together” rally, I tried to
figure out who would be there counter protesting, who would be “rooting for the
other team”. I didn’t think anyone would
be brazen enough to hold up a “SEPERATING 2 YEAR OLDS FROM THEIR MOTHERS IS THE
RIGHT THING TO DO” sign, but I did expect some participation from the “Build
The Wall” and “Immigrants Suck” crowd.
And I figured the “You Can’t Support Immigrant Children and Believe in
Abortion at the Same Time” signs would be represented.
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| RBG at the recent Immigration Rally |
What I hadn’t counted on was
the hatred. Not hatred directed at “my team”, but by “my team”, towards an anti-abortion protester. There
was a small group of anti-abortion activists led by a man with a bullhorn
standing in the street in front of the White House (where, if you are not
familiar with the area, there are usually protesters of one belief or
another). The rally for Immigration gathering
was Layfayette Park, right next to the White House. This meant that those of us on the edge of
the park could hear the anti-abortion shouting.
Let me be clear, I am 100,
no 1000% supportive of women making decisions about their health and
reproduction. If (heaven forbid) Roe vs.
Wade is overturned, I will be on the Supreme Court steps crying (with yet another
hand lettered sign I am sure). But I also
believe that those protesters who have the opposite opinion have just as much
right to stand in the hot sun and express it as I do.
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| At the Dulles Airport protest against the Muslim Ban |
There are always a lot of
law enforcement officers around the White House – seemingly more so now than
ever. The White House and the streets
around it feel more guarded and restricted than ever. So, when we saw the police officers taking
away a protester we thought it was business as usual and that the man must have
done something over the top and deserve to be “thrown out” of the party. But when we saw the same man, with the same
bullhorn shouting the same anti-choice messages half an hour later, we realized
he was meandering through the crowd shouting (what I perceive as hatred) and
being GUARDED by law enforcement. He appeared
to need protection. Protection
from people on “my side”.
This was startling to
me. Maybe I am naïve, but to see people
who claim to be progressive and to be fighting for a better, more just country YELLING
very close to the face of a counter protester, getting in his space, and
appearing very physically threatening, well, that scares me. WHAT they were yelling was also bone chilling
to me. As they leaned in close enough
that they could have touched him, people on “my team” shouted, “SHAME!! SHAME!
SHAME!!!” over and over and over…
“Shame”.
Shame? It felt horrible. It felt like a chapter out of “Lord of the
Flies”, that if those police officers were not surrounding the man with the
bullhorn as he snaked in and out of red faced people shouting, “Shame” at him,
they might have beaten him to a bloody pulp.
And the choice of word – shame – seemed so inappropriate. Wasn’t SHAME exactly what that man and his cohorts
try to throw on women who exercise their right to choose what happens to their
bodies?
The whole scene felt scary,
like it was moving in slow motion, and was the opposite of what I was at the
rally for.
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| Little boy at a rally |
Our country is not what I want
right now. I feel as if we have taken
major steps backward since this president was elected. But we still have the protection of the first
amendment – the right to free speech and the right to protest. I consider that a necessity. And the right applies to each and every one
of us, even those whose views we disagree with.
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| Us, near Arlington National Cemetery, after the Veteran's Day protest by Westboro Baptist "Church" |
I will see you at the next
protest. I will be the one with the well
thought out but not professionally executed sign. And I will look you in the eye and smile at
you, even if I disagree with you. Because,
at the end of the day, we are all humans.
We are all exercising our rights.
And we are both, in our own way, trying to make this a better
country.
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| And, in case you had any doubt which side we fall on, here we are at the Supreme Court for the Hobby Lobby case... |
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