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this post was submitted on 07 Jan 2024
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United States | News & Politics
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I have a private theory that the establishment likes to put ideas in people's heads about methods of protest that are guaranteed to turn people against the cause that's being advocated for. For some reason, it works, and protest groups adopt these methods.
Blocking highways is one of these; throwing paint on famous art is another.
If you're so caught up in "this is what I feel like doing, I don't care if it's counterproductive," to the point where you're okay with turning people against these critical missions, then you're a piece of shit.
Every big successful movement like civil rights had to consider whether the tactics they planned to use were going to be effective. There was an earlier candidate who could have been Rosa Parks, but she was a pregnant teenager, and civil rights leaders at the time didn't make her the figurehead because they didn't want the racist white men of the time to have any easy reason to dismiss her or beat up her character.
Does it make the general public at the time "pieces of shit" that they wouldn't fight for the rights of a pregnant teenager just as much as a married black woman coming home after working all day? Yeah, kind of. Is that still something you should strategize about if you want to achieve civil rights? Yes. A thousand percent yes. Which is more important; being stubborn, or winning?
(And, as a side note, I think most people who support Israel over the Palestinians don't "support genocide" in their own minds; they aren't aware of Israel's crimes in near as much detail as you and I are. I think if you asked them factually about how many Palestinians versus Israelis have died you'd get a real real wrong answer. If you try to fix that situation by making them late for work and screaming in their face about how they support genocide, get ready for the American public to keep supporting genocide for a long, long time to come.)
Blocking a highway is non-violent direct action that causes immediate economic impact and makes headlines. I can't think of many better ways to protest. You're talking like they took an elementary school class hostage.
Well fucking said.