"Kodachrome
You give us those nice bright colors
You give us the greens of summers
Makes you think all the world's a sunny day, oh yeah!"Paul Simon, "Kodachrome," 1973
Thousands of people lined the sidewalks along McAndrews Road in Medford. People carried signs and waved at cars. Nothing bad happened.
I suppose, at age 75, I was older than the average person there on the sidewalk on Saturday. There was a woman who pointed out her teen-age children. There was a woman with a baby stroller. There were a few people in the 50s and 60s, and they seemed young to me.
But I cannot avoid observing the obvious: The Flag Day protest was primarily populated by people more or less my age. Not Gen Z. Not Millennials. Not even Gen X. There weren't any boisterous teenagers or rowdy young men looking for fun, adventure, or trouble. I didn't see young families.
I didn't see people who looked like I would have looked back when I attended Vietnam War protests. I was having too much fun on Saturday to notice the lack of young people, but I notice it now as I look at the photos and it worries me.
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There were more younger people there than at the April event. More importantly, the overall turnout was easily double, maybe even triple. The split screen of the grotesque North Korean/Russia style military parade, with reportedly a low turnout, and millions in the streets in opposition can't be ignored.
ReplyDeleteThere is a growing awareness of the lies, corruption and incompetence of Trump and his crowd. This will lead to defections and more resistance, and hopefully some elected representatives will grow spines.
Amen
DeleteHow many Americans protesting against him, his administration and his policies on his birthday? The perfect birthday 🎁
Delete