Friday, January 27, 2017

"ARE YOU GOING TO BELIEVE ME, OR YOUR OWN EYES?" - Chico Marx

President Trump continues to challenge the most obvious conclusion that photographic proof has revealed time and time again - that the Obama Inaugural, attended by an estimated 1.2 million people in January, 2009 by far exceeded the Trump Inaugural in January, 2017.  Photos of the National Mall taken at the same time and on the same day 8 years apart reveal the truth - that the Trump Inaugural was lightly attended (estimated at 300-600,000) compared to the Obama first term ceremony (1.1 to 1.8 million).  Further, President Trump has not dared to challenge the truth that the WOMEN'S MARCH - just 24 hours later - attracted THREE TIMES the participants marching against his agenda and for equal rights and justice for women and for all people.  Trump's election and ascendancy to the Oval Office has served as a wake-up call to progressives across the country, encouraging them to get busy.  And, there is no denying the numbers engaged on the day of the Women's March.  The question remains, however, will this movement become sustainable and effective or will it peter out and fade as happened in the past to the "Occupy" movement and several others in the past.  Only time will tell.  What I can say is what others observed - that this event - THE WOMEN'S MARCH - both in DC and throughout the USA became the LARGEST SOCIAL PROTEST MOVEMENT SINCE THE 1960s and 1970s.  Is it a flash in the pan?  Time will tell.  

Readers of this blog already know that I was heavily engaged in support of the WOMEN'S MARCH ON WASHINGTON that took place on January 21, 2017 - 24 hours after the 45th President of the United states, Donald J. Trump, was inaugurated into office. More than 1,000,000 + women and their supporters gathered in DC to voice their concerns and to advocate for Women's Rights and Equal Justice for all people against the Trump campaign of hatred, racial division, ethnic divisions, gender inequality, and environmental abandonment.  In addition, another 3 million women and their supporters marched in cities and towns across the nation - NYC - 500,000; LA - 750,000; Chicago - 400,000; Boston - 250,000 and in hundreds of other locations - in support of the DC Marchers.  And around the world, in major cities and small communities, women and their supporters also marched in solidarity with their sisters in DC and around the globe, for equal rights.  This article shares the signs carried and the sentiments expressed by the participants who chose to stand up and be counted.





















Signs read:
WOMENS RIGHT ARE HUMAN RIGHTS/ RESIST!/ LOVE TRUMPS HATE/
CHOOSE HOPE-NOT FEAR/ TWEET WOMEN AS EQUALS/ THE FUTURE IS FEMALE/
YOU CAN'T COMB-OVER HATE/ GRAB HIM BY THE FIRST AMENDMENT/
HANDS OFF MY BODY/ MAKE AMERICA THINK AGAIN/ WOMEN ARE PEOPLE/
THOU SHALT NOT IGNORE OUR HEALTH CARE - Fallopians 20:17/ DONALD - YOU
IGNORANT SLUT!/ PRO-CHOICE USA/ REJECT, RESIST, RECLAIM/ ALT. RIGHT =
ALL WRONG/ MEDICARE FOR ALL/ LOVE ONE ANOTHER/ BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY/ LOVE ONE ANOTHER/  UNPRECEDENTED MORON/  WE ARE CREATED
EQUAL/  OUR VOICE MATTERS/ GIRLS JUST WANT TO HAVE FUN - DAMENTAL RIGHTS!

In spite of the 1 million and more folks out in the streets of DC on January 21st, not one arrest was made that day, nor one incident reported.  Across the US, with 5 million on the move demonstrating FOR a set of policies, not one incident occurred and not one arrest took place. The "right of the people peaceably to assemble and to petition the government for the redress of grievances" was on vivid display that day and, no doubt, will be again and again in the days ahead.  Join in, speak out, march on.  Our future and the future of our nation is at stake.

Stay tuned......

LOVE TRUMPS HATE - THE WOMEN'S MARCH ON WASHINGTON JANUARY 21, 2017

In my last posting, I mentioned that I would be absent for a time due to my growing involvement with the Women's March on Washington.  Guess I am a sucker for an old-fashioned "march" and "demonstration."  I am a child of the 60's and grew up in the activist word of the anti-war movement.  SDS, Viet Nam Vets Against the War, Eugene McCarthy, George McGovern, Kent State, draft resistors, "Days of Rage", and days of peace - at Woodstock, all shaped the social scene for young folks back in the day.  Well, I am all grown up now.  And, after a career in public service and education, I continue to feel the pull of progressive activism, causes that matter, and cooperative action to foment positive change. My feet may hurt, and my hairline thinned, but the "force" is strong with me yet.  If the face of the ugly campaign waged by Donald Trump and his shocking victory in November, I was stunned.  That malaise was replaced by resolve when I came across a fledgling effort to organize some women to do a march in DC the day after the Trump Inauguration on January 20th.  Like most "revolutions", I am sure that this effort began over some drinks in a DC pub or over a lunch with a few friends that decried the election of this century's best known, unabashed misogynist. Add a few weeks of internet traffic back and forth, and - BINGO - the ball was rolling.  And, like the old Beatles hit, "Like a rolling stone..." no one quite knew where the effort would go or how large it would become.  All across the nation, and, unbeknownst to the 4 initial organizers, in 30+ countries across the globe, women and their allies everywhere were organizing and working to find a way to express their outrage, their discomfort with "the  Donald", and their concern about what direction the United States might take under his direction as president.

I became engaged in December by simply surfing around and then signing up for the Women's March in what was labelled "Hudson Valley", the region of my current residence.  I wrote to the Upstate NY Coordinator, Maryanne Asta of Woodstock, that I was retired and could help make some signs or pitch in if she needed anything.  Five days later, I was the Site Supervisor for 2 buses departing from one of 20 sites across the Hudson Valley involving more than 54 buses and carrying over 2500 folks to DC just from our little corner of NY State. The DC organizers requested a permit for an event with 200,000 persons.  At the time that they made that request, they had their fingers crossed that somewhere near that number might actually show up on the day of the march....  Well, on January 21st, 2017, 1.2 million women and their supporters clogged the streets of DC!  This number, 6 times what the permit was issued for, by far exceeded the number estimated that attended the inaugural of Donald Trump 24 hours earlier.  I and my "riders" were in the midst of that enormous crowd and I can tell you - IT WAS IMPRESSIVE and certainly made a statement regarding women's rights and equality for all.  In addition, in cities across America - NYC, LA, Chicago, San Francisco, Milwaukee, Albany, and hundreds of cities and towns across America, people assembled in "sister marches" to join with those in DC to both advocate issues and to oppose those who would attack women and their issues in health care, Planned Parenthood Funding, environmental protection, LGBTQ protection, same-sex marriage, and equal rights for all Americans.  The message was loud and clear a cross America as an estimated 3-4 million others assembled and marched in support.  And, beyond our borders in some 33 other nations around the globe, women and their allies also marched.  They may not speak the same language but they stood and marched in solidarity with those assembled in Washington, DC, carrying the same message - gender equality and equal rights for all people.



To those who accompanied me on our journey to DC, I say congratulations to all of those who took a long ride on bus and rail.... and then a long walk... into history.... on January 21st in DC. Congratulations to those who rode with us from Saugerties and others who joined from across the Hudson Valley, throughout the region, across the nation, and around the world. It was quite the amazing journey. From the wee hours of the morning in Saugerties, we stowed our signs and our gear, boarded the buses -in a fog, though our purpose was crystal clear, signed in, took our seats, and began our journey. We watched our homes recede in the rear-view mirror, and settled in for the long ride to DC. I was - and continue to be - proud to have been a participant in support of the Women’s March and the policy agenda that we rode, walked, and rallied for - gender equality, equal treatment for all people, and justice for all. I want to thank the volunteer Bus Captains – Virginia Luppino of Saugerties and Beth Gnozzio of Hunter - for all of their pre-trip preparation and encouragement, and for their organizational assistance during the trip. You two were stars in the Saugerties show! But, you were not the only ones.....

All of you - all 107 riders from Saugerties and the thousands of riders from throughout Upstate and the Hudson Valley - from the youngest still in grade school to the oldest retirees (saw a sign, "You just pissed off Granny!), every single person was good humored, enthusiastic, energized and committed to the goals of the Women's March and to one another. It was quite impressive to experience. Once immersed in the massive crowd assembled near the Capitol, we were all separated as expected, but you took care of one another and showed remarkable responsibility to the group by standing up with pride and purpose for women everywhere, and re-joining the group in the Metro crush - easily in time for departure. Although the Metro - especially on the return to the Greenbelt Station - was a madhouse and a crazy challenge, you persisted and we got on our way on time as planned. In hindsight, it was a breeze.

And, what can I say about the Women's March itself? By now you have seen the reports, either on the weekend or today. The Women's March dominated the news cycle and was reported as the largest and broadest demonstration in history! From DC, to NYC, Chicago, LA, Albany, Milwaukee, other cities and states across the country, and nations around the globe, more than 5 million women and their supporters marched in solidarity with one another in different places and often speaking different languages. They marched with pride and in support of each other. That outpouring was MASSIVE - and IMPRESSIVE. In DC, expecting 200,000, more than 500,000 (some estimates run to more than 1 million) stood shoulder to shoulder (often feeling much closer than that too!), and called out for justice and equality in one voice and in solidarity.

As we arrived back home last night, I shared an observation with the riders on Saugerties Bus #2. I'll share it here as well. Just a few years back, after the national public outrage over the gun carnage at Sandy Hook, the Republicans in Congress failed to act on a broadly supported bill to expand background checks and other common sense gun control measures. More than 85% of Americans and 2/3rds of gun owners supported these measures.  But, the Republicans in Congress ignored everyone and refused to enact any reforms at all. Their inaction was a disgrace. Nevertheless, they were re-elected in the election that followed. So, what did they learn? That their failure to act DID NOT MATTER. On January 21st, 2017, you took a long ride, a train ride, a long walk, and stood on a street corner or out on the asphalt with 1 MILLION others in the nation's Capital. You took a stand, stood on a set of principles, and made your voice heard. On January 21st, 2017, YOU MADE A DIFFERENCE. Out on the street in the nation’s Capital, YOU MATTERED!  In cities and towns across the United states, you MATTERED and you impressed the nation with your activism and your commitment. And, in localities around the globe, the sister marches that took place made a real statement of solidarity with their counterparts in the US in the face of outrageous misogyny and insensitivity in Trumpworld.  We were all moved by your action and your support. 

But, the Women's March on 1/21 was not the end of this effort... it was not the last step. The 1/21 Women's March is just the beginning - the first step in a journey that you and I and many others will share in the days ahead. Yes, the road will have many potholes and bumps, it will be a journey fraught with challenge, some disappointment and setback, and a fair amount of frustration. Still, it is well worth the time, the energy, and the effort. It is a fight for the future - our future and our children's future. It is a fight for our country - to determine what sort of nation we all want to call "home." And, it is a fight for the principles of fairness, for dignity, and for justice for all people both here and abroad. Yesterday was day 1. Today is day 2 or 3 or 7 or 10. More days, and weeks, and months will follow. I will be by your side along that road. And, I will be proud to be traveling it with you. I trust that your commitment to the cause, and to each other will stand the test of time and, in the end, will make for a better world for us all.

So, I ask you...... ready to go for a ride??????? Sign up, pitch in, get involved, be aware, and take action.  Resist, resist, and resist.  It is time to stand up and be counted among those who will make history..... and, will make a real difference. 

Stay tuned......

Thank you again. For who you are, how you care, and for your involvement with the Women's March 1/21/2017.