Where Are the Protests?

Why Aren't People Pusing Back on the Trump Agenda with Signs and Banners?

Photo by Alex Radelich on Unsplash

Donald Trump and his merry band of spectrum-y nerds are rewriting the federal code, reorganizing international relations, and shifting the boundaries of constitutions. The stock market is tanking. Eggs cost their weight in gold. The president’s hatred of Joe Biden is mafia-level intense; Joe should be on the watch for a horse head in his bed.

Democratic leaders are too enfeabled and disorganized to put up a good fight. The grassroots level isn’t mobilizing either. Wouldn’t you think with all these major changes, folks would be taking to the streets with signs? Organizations should be forming. Folks should be walking around in pink pussy hats or something equally silly.

Perhaps we’re not seeing massive protests yet, because folks are in shock. There’s always a delayed reaction to a massive change in the status.

So, like, the government can throw out green card recipients from the country for saying crappy things? What?

And the president can get around Congressional approval to get rid of a cabinet level department by firing all the staff and leaving the wrestling lady sitting by herself at a desk in an empty building? Hello?

He’s putting the richest man in the world in charge of rewriting government? Um.. give me a minute to process that news.

Folks are ready to march and protest over expected problems. If a local cop roughs up a black man over a minor traffic violation, folks would be ready to go. If an elected official grabs a 20-year old staffer’s butt, then the women’s groups would send out a flurry of emails.

Expected problems have established groups ready to mobilize their people if an issue should occur. Trump is unexpected. Nobody ever envisioned the DOGE attack on the government bureaucracy. Nobdy could have envisioned a long list of words that can no longer be used in government grants. Nobody could have envisioned such a bold attack on the American university system.

In addition, people are waiting to see how Trump’s policies impact them. Sorry, but politics is always personal. Politics is never about purity and light. People will hit the streets when they see how Trump’s policies decreases their quality of life or bank account.

Outside of Washington DC, folks haven’t seen a big impact yet. I mean there are little hints of problems to come. Local school boards are developing two budgets — a normal one and a worst case scenario budget. I’m having trouble getting disability agencies to return my phone calls. Our community college lost a grant that helps students with intellectual disabilities.

I expect to see a big impact on the disability community. There could be a big shift in IDEA oversight, probably cuts, too. Medicaid fuels almost all problems for disabled adults; if the Medicaid cuts happen, the suffering will be unthinkable.

I’ve signed an online petition by the ARC (a disability rights group) to stop Medicaid cuts, but an online petition is a very low effort protest. Some disability groups went to Trenton but that protest was poorly organized and misguided. The Medicaid cuts will come out of Congress, not the state government, so it’s not clear why they went to our state capital.

Lastly, folks might not be protesting because they are worried that they’ll be arrested or lose their jobs, if someone photographs them with a protest sign. Democracy has been stifled.

Trump needs more pushback. That’s the way our democracy works. Even if you liked Trump and voted for him, he should not have a blank check to do whatever he likes. He has to be slowed down by our leaders and by folks at the grassroots level.

Things that you can do: Join a march or a protest organized by a like-minded group. Send a letter to your representative. Call your Congressional representative and tell the staffer about the issue that most worries you. Or start a substack and talk about how these changes are hurting you or people that you love.

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Where am I?

Sorry all for the low writing output this week. Writing this newsletter is a labor of love, which comes second to other work, which is equally loved, but more remunerative. I’m in the process of making a switch from small business owner to nonprofit director. It’s very exciting, but distracting, too. I’ll be back to normal next week.