October 6 Blog: Some Positive Signs in the Darkness

Dear Friends:

I hope everyone has been enjoying the lovely last summer weather. As grim as the news is, there are a number of things to be positive about besides the weather. 

Last week a picture of our Visibility Brigade bridge display was on PBS NewsHour as they talked about the government shutdown. Some Visibility Brigade overpass signs in California were shown during Jimmy Kimmel’s monologue.

Visibility Brigades in general have gotten praise from Heather Cox Richardson and Andrea Pitzer in their podcasts. The national Visibility Brigade group is quite active across the country as we coordinate messages, and share tips on making banners and dealing with safety issues. It’s great to see the effort get more recognition. I think participation and recognition will continue to grow. Visibility Brigades is one of the grassroots efforts that give me a lot of hope for our future.

There is also this research on democracies under authoritarian attack over the last 80 years which is quite encouraging. See this illuminating podcast by Andrea Pitzer.

I will not write about the nationally humiliating cringe-inducing display by Pete Hegseth and the President before our professional military leaders at Quantico except to note, positively, that our military behaved like the professionals that they are. I will add (neither positive nor negative, but just a statement of fact) that it is becoming increasingly clear that the President is not well either physically or mentally.  

Staying on the positive theme, last week, Ezra Klein did a podcast not about politics because his listeners had asked for something different. It was, indeed, a lovely break from politics. We all need breaks sometimes. I recommend it if you enjoy thinking about music and art and what they mean for humans. It is titled: “A Breath of Fresh Air.”

Enthusiasm is building for October 18, NO KINGS II. It is on track to be the largest mass demonstration ever in this country. Everyone needs to turn out in some way to support our democracy if they possibly can. Our I-395 team will be out on the bridge that Saturday morning from 10:00 am – 12:00 pm. You can sign up to join us on MobilizeUS or just come. A number of us plan to then go downtown for the rally there, while others will stay on the bridge. I am very hopeful this outpouring of public displeasure and resistance coupled with a resounding Democratic victory in Virginia and hopefully a victory in New Jersey, as well, will start to shake the confidence and assumptions of people and institutions supporting or caving to Trump.

If you find this blog helpful and/or interesting (and I hope you do!), please forward it to a friend.  We need to build as many small networks of resistance and good information as we can.    

Yours in peaceful resistance, 

Libby