What I Saw at the VoterMarch

There's no "W" in "Legitimate President
sign at the January 20 VoterMarch

The webmistress' account of That Awful Day

The weather was miserable, but it didn't deter the protestors. It inspired several people to carry signs proclaiming, "The heavens weep for democracy."

The mood was upbeat but the people were angry. In increasing order of intensity, the targets for their outrage were:

The Bushes stealing the election through vote fraud and shameless tactics.
The reactionary, racist, sexist, hawkish Cabinet choices.
The Democrats' apparent full surrender to Bush's reactionary agenda.
The role of the Supreme Court in deciding the Presidency.

The last two have people most upset because we've trusted the Democratic party and the Supreme Court to support our rights against the reactionaries, and they seem to be doing us the most damage instead.

My bus arrived late, so I missed many of the VoterMarch speakers. I did hear Catherine Danielson of Nashville, TN, describing what happened to Black voters in that city. It's sickening: People lined up for TWO MILES outside polling places because the precincts in Black neighborhoods didn't have anywhere near enough voting machines for the projected turnout. Many people who registered through "Motor Voter" whose names weren't on the rolls. People who were illegally required to produce two forms of ID, and not permitted to vote when they couldn't. Polling places that were moved without notice. Students who were denied the right to vote where they went to school, even though they'd been able to in a previous election. People told, "Take that NAACP sticker off your car or you won't be allowed into the polls. People told, "Get behind the white voters in line. You know what it's like to sit in the back of the bus." Catherine gathered much of this evidence herself when she realized the local government wasn't going to investigate the reports. She's shared her finding with the NAACP, which will be holding hearings.

Many of the entertainers revived or updated songs that were popular with the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s. It's the same fight all over again -- or still -- after all. The demonstrators seemed well aware of this. It's not just the Bushes determined to win by whatever means necessary. It's a nationwide concerted effort to make sure the "wrong people" don't vote so the "right people" don't lose power.

A couple of contingents from the VoterMarch went to the parade route and got good positions where they could express their objections. The Bush supporters of course were offended. This was a great source of gratification to the protestors. Several people commented that they'd never seen so many women in fur coats before. It's going to be a long four years for the rest of us (if he lasts that long).

A small group from my bus was lucky enough to be right at the end of the parade route and, unlike most of the people along the route, able to see which limo carried George W. Bush. They could see his reaction when they shouted "SHAME!" and "THIEF!" at him. We really think he wasn't prepared for people not to agree that he got what he wanted and we all have to let him enjoy it.

Other groups weren't so lucky. Trying to get to the parade from Dupont Circle, they were blocked by barricades on streets that hadn't been scheduled to be barricaded -- and when they came to a stop, the police.

One woman got a glimpse of a police monitor that was focused on Bush in his reviewing stand. She said he looked, and I quote, "forlorn."

Another group joined the demonstration at the Supreme Court -- with difficulty, because many streets were closed off with not detours marked. The police officers they asked for directions refused to give them.

(From these and other reports, we guessed that the "order of the day" was, not to keep things calm on both sides, but to obstruct the protestors. [Gosh. What a surprise.])

The news reports described an "hour-long" protest at the Court. The people who were there said it went on all day long. The building was protected by a three-deep line of police. Did they think the demonstrators were going to try to break in, or knock chunks off the pillars? In spite of the cordon, the demonstrators were able to completely circle the building.

A number of different organizations held separate rallies, as opposed to all the protestors gathering under one umbrella organization. The permits seemed assigned so as to keep the groups separate --and the crowds smaller, either to prevent rowdiness, or more likely to prevent a full awareness of just how many people were there to disagree with Bush's anointing. The strategy of scattering the protestors backfired to an extent. Everyone said that wherever they went, even into "strongholds" of Bush supporters and celebrants, they saw protest signs. They also said that all the people who identified themselves as DC residents also said they were grateful to the protestors.

[Note: One of President Clinton's last gestures was to order the new DC license plates for the presidential limo: "No Taxation Without Representation." Bush has already said he'll have the new plates replaced. That man has a sense of entitlement where his sense of humor should be.]

The parade began nearly an hour late. Several people said they asked police officers when the parade was going to begin, and were told that Bush was waiting for the demonstrators to go away. (We didn't.)

The most popular signs:

SELECTED NOT ELECTED

RE-ELECT GORE IN 2004

IMPEACH THE SUPREME COURT

I DISSENT

SUPREME COUP D'ETAT

EQUAL PROTECTION MY ASS

HAIL TO THE THIEF
(Also Jail to the Thief and HEIL to the Thief)

BUSH/CHEATS
(a parody of the Bush/Cheney bumper sticker)

THE PEOPLE HAVE SPOKEN -- ALL FIVE OF THEM

Our "political leaders" had better pay attention to these demonstrations. People are ANGRY at their betrayal by the people they elected and the institutions that are supposed to protect our rights. The anger wasn't dissipated by the opportunity to express it -- it was strengthened. Politicians and media people keep repeating that it's "time to move on" and "time to let the healing begin." They're saying it so much that they seem to be trying to convince us -- and to be worried that it's not working. To quote an illegitimate president, "Well, guess what?" They have reason be worried. The Inaugural protests were a message for all the politicians, not just for Bush: "You ain't seen nothing yet!"