DC Metro Action is a listing of local actions, entertainment, volunteer opportunities and the occasional rant on a wide range of socially just issues.
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Action of the Day Many of these action alerts are found on the listservs and websites of organizations listed in our "Act Locally" section (Left).
Monday, April 26, 2004
800,000 vs. 200
When organizers for the March for Women's Lives secured a permit for a march down the middle of Pennsylvania Avenue on April 25, the religious right sneered they had forgotten to get permits for the sidewalks. These right-wing zealots boasted that they had gotten the permit for a counter-demonstration on the sidewalks on either side of the avenue. They called for an enormous outpouring of their supporters to protest the march, to drown out the voices of the pro-choice lobby.
Associated Press
That was more than six months ago, more than enough time for the biggest names in the right-to-life movement to maximize participation. Yet despite billing itself as the "the largest pro-life activist event in over a decade (excluding the annual March for Life)," they managed to turn out only a couple of hundred protesters, compared with the 800,000 pro-choice marchers. Randall Terry, your bark is way bigger than your bite.
Here's Michael's first rule of counter-demonstrations: Never have more signs than you have people to hold them. Leaning placards against lampposts and trees doesn't count.
DC Metro Action is published by Michael Schlesinger, a 32-year veteran of electoral and issue organizing who is committed to social justice and to increasing participation in the political process.
All original content (C) 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 Michael Schlesinger
