Sunday, May 30, 2010

Si Se Puede (Yes, We Can)


Today's protest of Arizona's anti-immigrant law, SB 1070, drew anywhere between 20,000 and 75,000 people, depending on who you listen to. The 5 mile march between Indian School Park and the Capitol was peaceful, multicultural and did not result in a single arrest, though you certainly wouldn't assume that considering the police presence:


I was heartened by all the groups in attendance.  You'd assume that it would only be Latinos, but there were a lot of Native Americans and African Americans, both as marchers and speakers.  They (and we) rightly see this as a basic issue of human rights. 


This might be an over-used (and over-revised) quote, but it still fits:

"THEY CAME FIRST for the Communists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Communist.

THEN THEY CAME for the Jews,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a Jew.

THEN THEY CAME for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak up because I wasn't a trade unionist.

THEN THEY CAME for me
and by that time no one was left to speak up."

The spirit, creativity, and humor of all in attendance was evident:
 


I'm glad we went.  I think it was important to show our son the positive influence of a peaceful protest.  As they say, the family that protests together, stays together.  Maybe they don't say that ... but they should.



3 comments:

vjack said...

Man, I love the "at least our signs are spelled correctly" one!

dbackdad said...

I liked that sign too. Tea party sign makers are not known for their grasp of the English language. Ironic.

wstachour said...

Excellent.

I think we must all step beyond immediate self-interest if we are to embrace the essential freedoms that are supposed to characterize our nation. (This is exactly my gripe with those who are happy to toss out the Establishment Clause: so long as they're in the majority they don't care about the broader freedom. This is extremely short sighted.)

(Ha! WV: "bagger")