OPINION:
As someone with lots of experience publicly protesting, I can attest to the fact that it can be done peaceably.
My first protest was as a participant in the National Life Chain, in which, on the first Sunday of every October, members of dozens of churches held pro-life signs along the length of a major highway in Broward County, Florida. Soon I became the coordinator for my church.
Next, I began walking back and forth in front of an abortion clinic in Fort Lauderdale, holding signs. That is something I did frequently over the years, sometimes alone.
However, my biggest long-term protest was done as part of the tea party. Almost every Saturday for many years, we held a rally on a corner of a busy intersection, using homemade signs, flags and sometimes drums and other noise makers for two hours. We then went to a meeting at a local restaurant to listen to political candidates and some great speakers.
Some of us went to the Glenn Beck rally at the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on Aug. 28, 2010. The participants at that gathering left the area cleaner than it was when they got there.
Although often provoked by counter-protesters or people who said nasty things or threw drinks at us, we damaged no property, hurt nobody, looted no stores and maintained good relations with law enforcement. We waved no Mexican or Palestinian flags and we burned no flags. We didn’t wear masks and we received no payment for our efforts.
Maybe this is why our protests were peaceable — not “mostly” peaceable, but completely peaceable.
RUSS STABLEY
Hartwell, Georgia
Please read our comment policy before commenting.