The next stage: Will anti-Trump marches become a movement?

[webfact]

The next stage: Will anti-Trump marches become a movement?

By JESSICA GRESKO

 

WASHINGTON (AP) — Demonstrators upset over the election of Donald Trump have marched in cities around the country over the past week, and some are making plans to be in Washington for his inauguration Jan. 20. But whether marches will become a movement is an open question.

 

At this early stage, the protesters who have taken to the streets to brand Trump a bigot and a sexist and chant "Not my president!" appear to be mostly venting their frustrations and do not seem to have coalesced behind overall leaders or a common set of demands.

 

Columbia University professor Todd Gitlin, who as an early leader of Students for a Democratic Society helped organize an anti-Vietnam War demonstration that brought thousands to Washington in 1965, said the anti-Trump protests by themselves "are not the makings of a movement."

 

"A movement requires that clusters of people take responsibility for creating vehicles that can carry through, focus energy, develop priorities, strategize, recruit, figure out how to govern themselves," Gitlin said.

 

For that to happen, a critical mass of protesters has to "transform their mindset from protest into successful politics, which is much less exciting," he said. Gitlin said that means "dirtying our hands in winning local and state battles which are instrumental to changing the national balance."

 

On Monday, hundreds of students decrying Trump's election walked out of schools in Denver, Los Angeles and Silver Spring, Maryland, after a weekend in which thousands of people demonstrated around the country and scores were arrested. Protesters threw rocks at police in Indianapolis and hurled bottles and other objects in Portland, Oregon. Marchers have also converged on Trump Tower in New York, the president-elect's transition headquarters.

 

Among other things, the demonstrators have condemned Trump's behavior toward women and his stand on immigration and civil liberties.

 

Ralph Young, a history professor at Temple University in Philadelphia who teaches a course on dissent in America and has written two books on the topic, said it is too early to predict what the marches might become.

 

Once Trump becomes president and starts making policy decisions, that could crystalize opposition and focus people's attention on certain issues, he said. If the anti-Trump demonstrations are going to become a movement, they also need leaders who can articulate their grievances, he said.

 

That's one thing the Occupy Wall Street movement against economic inequality never really achieved — a proper organization, Young said.

 

Jamie Henn of the group 350, which organizes protests to fight climate change, said liberal activist groups are still scrambling to figure out how they will push back against a Trump presidency.

 

"There is definitely stuff coming together and being planned that looks like the messy process of everyone and their mother throwing up something on their Facebook page," Henn said.

 

Henn said liberals haven't seen the need for this level of mobilization since the run-up to the Iraq War. But activists remember glumly how little a dent their big marches against the invasion made then, and may use different tactics this time.

 

Some groups are already trying to come together, though there are differences of opinion, said Greg McKelvey, a protest organizer in Portland, Oregon. McKelvey said demonstrators are trying to organize with counterparts in New York; Washington; Austin, Texas; Oakland, California; Boston; and a few other cities.

 

Some activists want to prevent Trump somehow from becoming president, while others feel that's inevitable and instead want to insulate their communities from his policies, McKelvey said. He said his group, Portland's Resistance, aims to make sure city and state governments are working on issues such as limiting climate change, pushing for better health care and dealing with racial disparities in policing.

 

Trump's election has made activists out of people who haven't been part of any organized demonstrations before.

 

Olivia Antezana, a 19-year-old sophomore at the University of Maryland at College Park, had never been to a demonstration before creating and promoting a "Not My President" event on Facebook. By Monday afternoon, 18,000 people had indicated on Facebook that they would be going to the event in Washington on Inauguration Day.

 

"I will say I certainly underestimated it," Antezana said.

 

Still, Antezana said she is not sure what she will do after the demonstration she is planning is over. She doesn't plan to join a political campaign, she said, though she would like to keep up with activism. Right now, she said, she has another priority: school.

___

Associated Press writers Sarah Brumfield in Washington; Nicholas Riccardi in Denver; and Andrew Selsky in Portland, Oregon, contributed to this report.

 

-- © Associated Press 2016-11-15

[Ulysses G.]

My guess is that they will follow in the tradition of Occupy Wall street. They seem to be a similar constituency.

 

http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2012/05/occupy-violence-its-different-somehow.php

 

[NeverSure]

They are just kids, many skipping school and some too young to even vote. When I see footage of them on TV they are often acting like it's a party, smiling, running around and laughing.    They are technically rioting and police have said so when they start fires, damage cars, block traffic, break windows etc.

 

Some of them appear to need to finish their education.  

 

 

[chubby]

well his has pissed off everyone except  old white men and woman. 

 

hopefully the hate monger cum   rigged  "president"  gets impeached or indeighted within the year ;  

[daveAustin]

Quote

Olivia Antezana, a 19-year-old sophomore at the University of Maryland at College Park, had never been to a demonstration before 

 

... nor done a day's work before. They want to be careful not to rile him too much lest he draft a new law criminalising public protestations by brainwashed deadbeat kids. 

[ThaiWest]

Only a JOKE! And on them sleeves...

[chubby]

http://www.truthdig.com/report/page2/its_worse_than_you_think_20161111

 

 

in the big scheme of things  we  have something in common, in the sinking ship  that is the World and the US

 

we weren't offered any real candidates ; and "the least worst"  may have been elected  in many people's minds, not in mine, perhaps the British Exit, the Phillipines death squad president,  are symptoms of the same disease

[nottocus]

Send in the troops.

[pgrahmm]

[pgrahmm]

More power play than movement folks.....

 

The gullible will be used/exploited & highly visible.....

 

And - they are serving "their" purpose.....

[williamgeorgeallen]

wonder how many of these cry babies did not bother voting. seems they had their chance. part of what i consider being a civilized country is running free and fair elections and accepting the outcome. what do they hope to achieve?

on a side note why are people more interested in the way trump treats woman than they ever were in the way bill treated woman?

[Stargeezr]

I am so happy that Trump got into having the chance to be president of the United States.

   Hillary, Bill and all of you Big City supporters ,  get back to work al ready!

  Quit the Boo Hooing, as it just  shows  your  immaturity.

Geezer

[pgrahmm]

Just got real serious....

[lannarebirth]

7 minutes ago, pgrahmm said:

Just got real serious....

 

If true, that story is very sad on so many levels. Feral youth, homeless vet, no protection from authorities. Major failure of society. 

[Grubster]

54 minutes ago, pgrahmm said:

More power play than movement folks.....

 

The gullible will be used/exploited & highly visible.....

 

And - they are serving "their" purpose.....

I cannot trust anything on the net as anybody can put it there. I am a Trump supporter just saying.

[Baerboxer]

4 hours ago, chubby said:

well his has pissed off everyone except  old white men and woman. 

 

hopefully the hate monger cum   rigged  "president"  gets impeached or indeighted within the year ;  

 

Students for Democracy - providing you vote for who we say and like and accept our views. 

 

Sounds like you'll fit right in.

 

Guess he pissed off 50% of the electorate so much that they never even bothered to vote. Or was that crooked Hilary too?

[Baerboxer]

2 hours ago, chubby said:

http://www.truthdig.com/report/page2/its_worse_than_you_think_20161111

 

 

in the big scheme of things  we  have something in common, in the sinking ship  that is the World and the US

 

we weren't offered any real candidates ; and "the least worst"  may have been elected  in many people's minds, not in mine, perhaps the British Exit, the Phillipines death squad president,  are symptoms of the same disease

 

Indeed. Interesting times. Everyone who claims to be democratic and puts that name in the title then acts opposite and only accepts democracy when it has the result they want and like. 

Now the US democrats spew bile towards the duly elected next POTUS, including rioting, refusing to accept the democratic process they claim they want to lead. They use "fascist" as a fashionable insult to any they don't consider a PC pseudo liberal or who fits their way of thinking.

So we have a "fascist" POTUS elect being supported by former communist Russia to be POTUS having won against a very dubious candidate who seems to have unending skeletons in the cupboard.

But it seems a that crooks can be forgiven anything as long as they pretend to be PC pseudo liberals who love the poor and embrace multi diversity. If if their actions in reality are a tad more self serving.

 

Interesting times indeed.

[bark]

2 hours ago, nottocus said:

Send in the troops.

The current president needs to speak out against this now. He is president for the next few months.

[Jingthing]

5 minutes ago, bark said:

The current president needs to speak out against this now. He is president for the next few months.

Speak out against what?

People exercising their constitutional right to protest?

Dude, Obama is a lame duck now.

The trumpist fascist movement is about to completely erase his entire legacy.

This is on trump now. The voters asked for it. They got it. 

[bark]

5 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Speak out against what?

People exercising their constitutional right to protest?

Dude, Obama is a lame duck now.

The trumpist fascist movement is about to completely erase his entire legacy.

This is on trump now. The voters asked for it. They got it. 

Trump is not President. He cannot call out the national guard, or police.

If the Trump supporters start to march against the Clinton people. And people get shot; it is on Obama.

And only 50 % voted for it. Same as in most elections.

And Lame duck ; does not mean play another 50 rounds of golf !

Obama, needs to step up; the same as if Russia attacked one of the NATO countries.

[elgordo38]

7 hours ago, webfact said:

"Not my president!" appear to be mostly venting their frustrations and do not seem to have coalesced behind overall leaders or a common set of demands.

Yes finding a plausible honest caring firebrand leader is a tough go. There might not be a full fledged forest fires but brush fires in the future for sure. This whole fiasco should give Trump religion to the point where each night he drops to his knees bows his head and says "I made it through another day without being assassinated" Yes Donald they will be Russian roulette days for sure. 

Edited November 15, 2016 by elgordo38

[Jingthing]

As far as the anti-trumpist movement which has to happen and will happen, that's clearly a work in progress. There are of course anti-trumpist forces that hold office but they don't have majority power to do anything at all, or even block much. That's why this is a case where outside Washington RESISTANCE is obviously in order. How this develops is totally unknown now just as where the U.S. goes in the wake of a know nothing, anti-science fascist movement taking over the federal government is unknown territory. But there is nothing NORMAL about what happened and the aftermath won't be NORMAL either.  

Edited November 15, 2016 by Jingthing

[Ahab]

No.  The marches will end when the money financing the protesters runs out.

[Jingthing]

3 minutes ago, Pimay1 said:

My friend all you need to do to see toxic hate is to look into the mirror. Hate is only detrimental to the person doing the hating.

I plead guilty.

 

I hate fascists / white supremacists / Nazis / KKK / homophobes / misogynists / Islamophobes / antisemites / racists  

 

Not all trump supporters are those things, but plenty are, and trump with his alt right Breitbart good buddy exploited all of those hates to take the white house.

[SaintLouisBlues]

My non-American friends can't believe their luck. They thought at best they'd have a few days' entertainment while Trump sulked because he'd lost. But now, they've got four more years of wall-to-wall entertainment

Edited November 15, 2016 by SaintLouisBlues

[lannarebirth]

27 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

I plead guilty.

 

I hate fascists / white supremacists / Nazis / KKK / homophobes / misogynists / Islamophobes / antisemites / racists  

 

Not all trump supporters are those things, but plenty are, and trump with his alt right Breitbart good buddy exploited all of those hates to take the white house.

 

I'm going to go out on a limb here and suggest that it is possible that you have had so little interaction with non urban dwelling people that you have created a caricature in your mind of what they must be like. You know there are very very few Nazi and KKK in America and the majority of those that are, are in prison.

 

I've lived urban, suburban and rural and for neighbors of good character and decency I'd take the rural folks every time.

Edited November 15, 2016 by lannarebirth

[Ahab]

17 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

I plead guilty.

 

I hate fascists / white supremacists / Nazis / KKK / homophobes / misogynists / Islamophobes / antisemites / racists  

 

Not all trump supporters are those things, but plenty are, and trump with his alt right Breitbart good buddy exploited all of those hates to take the white house.

I am none of the things you label, but I have lately been called a racist because I believe that the majority of police in the USA are racist and start their shift thinking "I sure hope I get to kill an innocent black or minority today".

[Luckysilk]

After Thanksgiving they will fizzle away, too cold for these precious socialists.

 

Have to say since the 8th I've been in a great mood and watching the leftie lunatics meltdown is the icing on the cake & the louder they scream the less anyone cares. 

[nottocus]

On ‎11‎/‎15‎/‎2016 at 2:51 PM, kevkev1888 said:

 

I don't see Trump, or the majority of his supporters, as any of those things.

You are really spouting some ugly assed vile shit.

Don't worry mate. It's called deflection. Libs trying to find excuses for their own inadequacies and pathetic view of what they see as an idealistic world. Don't forget, in their eyes, the straight white guy is the lowest of the low. Now that's racist and sexist.

[Usernames]

6 hours ago, chubby said:

well his has pissed off everyone except  old white men and woman. 

 

hopefully the hate monger cum   rigged  "president"  gets impeached or indeighted within the year ;  

 

 

Hmmm. Were you the author of the sign "Deport Fashisom" that Neversure posted?