L&T Staff Member Elly Grimm
The No Kings 2.0 protests from Oct. 18 brought out more than 7 million citizens throughout the U.S., and more turned out in other countries throughout the world. I was one of nearly a dozen people who joined the protest here in town that weekend, and a frequent comment I saw, which I consider rather unfounded, is “None of these people even know what they’re protesting.”
I’m here to say, right now, I know exactly why I joined the protest here in town and why I was one of those more than 7 million attendees.
Here’s why:
I protested because my currently active-duty brother and his fellow soldiers should have better leadership than a commander-in-chief who has been obsessed with invading countries such as Canada and Greenland (for ... reasons) and declaring U.S. cities as war zones (even though the people who actually live and work in those cities have said the opposite is true) and a functionally alcoholic secretary of defense who can’t be trusted to not leak war plans on a group chat. Our military personnel deserve to be treated like actual human beings and not like props to be trotted out in the name of “patriotism” and then thrown away when they’re no longer useful.
I protested because teachers like my mom, and some of my friends, should have someone running the country’s education department who has (A) actually taught in a classroom, (B) isn’t currently a defendant in a civil suit for covering up sexual abuse of minors, and (C) doesn’t lie about what her degree is in.
I protested because women like me, my two sisters, and millions of others, deserve the autonomy to make our own decisions and be listened to in regards to medical care and overall life. Women are not livestock to be controlled, we are human beings with our own hearts and minds and deserve to be treated as such.
I protested because the U.S. should have someone in charge of our nation’s health who has (A) worked in the medical field in some capacity and actually knows how medicine works, (B) doesn’t continue spreading long-debunked conspiracy theories about vaccines (C) hasn’t demonized people on the autism spectrum on multiple occasions, and (D) knows literally anything about pregnancy and fetal development. If you look up some recent comments, our current health secretary, for some reason, thinks fetuses develop in the placenta (which he should know is absolutely, completely untrue). I’m sure as time goes on, he’ll come up with even more reasons for me to dislike him.
I protested because journalists like me should be able to write stories and share critical opinion columns about what’s going on in the government and in our communities without potentially incurring wrath simply for reporting what’s going on. In case you haven’t read, earlier this month, dozens of reporters turned in access badges and exited the Pentagon rather than agree to government-imposed restrictions on their work, and that is absolutely not how a country with a free press works, per the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
Finally, I protested because the U.S. should have someone in the White House who’s actually interested in being a leader and upholding the ideals and heritage of this country, not someone who mocks disabled reporters, destroys an entire wing of the White House for an unnecessary vanity project, makes statements like “Educated people don’t like me” and shares AI slop of himself dumping fecal matter on fellow U.S. citizens or dressed in papal garb. How the current occupant of the White House is conducting himself is absolutely NOT how a country’s leader should act. I could honestly go on and on with this, but I know I have limited space, so I’ll just leave it at those actions that have most irritated me.
So in short, the next time anyone thinks “These people don’t know what they’re even protesting,” believe me when I say we absolutely do know why we’re against this current administration.
