A New, True, Page

Last week, I was decompressing from my trip to Washington DC for the “Reclaim The Courts” rally.   That post made me realize that this page has drifted further from its intention.  This site was supposed to be to deal with the “rural reactionary”, the; white, rural, less-educated, lower-middle to lower-class, individuals who the Republican Party has relied on for decades.

This page has, especially since the 2016 election, been critical of the #BernieOrBust and #DemExit movements and their reluctance to take ownership of their decision in the streets and affected communities.

I think most of Bernie’s supporters know the effects of their actions, but they may not be familiar with the groups who are the “Boots on The Ground”.  A Bernie supporter in suburbia may not be familiar with Make The Road in Pennsylvania, or the National Network of Abortion Funds.  They also may be reluctant to go into communities of color or refugee communities.  This site could be a way to educate and activate.

These changes would require work on my part.  I would need to archive over three years of content and re-design the current page.  I would have to figure out what to with the twitter feed; I could at least use that as a way to resist the rural reactionary.

I will be doing a post on the upcoming Supreme Court docket.  Whether that post is an end or a beginning is to be determined.

 

Standing With Survivors

Yesterday, October 6, I joined with a few hundred activists at the United States Supreme Court for the “Reclaim The Court” event.  The event was to renew calls for Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s Impeachment.

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Standing to #reclaimthecourt

A post shared by James D'Angelo (@james.l.dangelo) on Oct 6, 2019 at 5:10pm PDT

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A Few More Pics From #reclaimthecourt

A post shared by James D'Angelo (@james.l.dangelo) on Oct 6, 2019 at 8:27pm PDT

The speakers, almost all of which were women and several of color, focused on the accusations of sexual abuse against Kavanaugh.  A few mentioned the upcoming case that will have effects on LGBTQ+ rights and the Louisiana case that would undermine Roe v Wade.

Senate Majority Mitch McConnell, and President Trump were singled out for scorn.  The right-wing dark money and judicial machine were also mentioned.  Maine Senator Susan Collins, seen as the deciding vote, was the villain of the day.  A group of activists from her home state made a call for volunteers to help defeat her in 2020.

Once the speeches ended, that actions began.  The original intent was for the protesters to occupy the steps of the Supreme Court, but the police may have remembered the protests from last year and barricaded the steps.  The activists next best action was to take the streets.

When it was clear that the police were not going to make arrests, the activists did a “Mic Check” and decided to visit to Senator McConnell’s house.   This did not lead to any arrests either and the event disbanded.

As I predicted, I didn’t see a lot of Bernie Sanders supporters.  Maybe more folks will be at the Courts tomorrow.

 

Will They Be There. . .

Tomorrow, October 6, I will be in Washington DC.  Whether I am by myself, or with a fellow activist, is to be determined.  I will there for the Reclaim the Court event, another event from the people and organizations who staged the Women’s March in January 2017. The event may be a kickoff to days of action around the opening of the Supreme Court’s Fall Term.

There are several cases that will be heard before the court.  The one that has the most attention is a case regarding LGBTQ+ rights.   There are also cases regarding vouchers and a New York City firearms law. A Louisiana law that could cripple Roe v Wade will be heard, likely in the Court’s Spring term.

My question is the same as it always is.  How many of the #BernieOrBust or #DemExit folks will be at any of the events.  The more conservative court is something they played a part in building, and the events over the next few days would be an opportunity to take ownership of their actions in a direct matter.  The answer, I expect, will be what it always seems to be–not many.  They will tweet and share their support, but be unable or unwilling to take to the streets.

So I shouldn’t expect them take the likely next step.  To get involved in the #maidez-styled movement that may be necessary if the Louisiana law is upheld for.  Would they donate money to groups helping poor women, many of color, to travel to get the services they may need.  Would they go one step further and support a modern-day underground like Chicago’s Jane?

I could see the #BernieOrBust and #DemExit folks taking the easier path of boycotting or supporting businesses based on their employment policies for LGBTQ+ workers.  That doesn’t put them too far out of their comfort zone.