So I had high hopes for the turnout and the overall effectiveness of our South Bay No Kings event. I try to remain a realist and not allow my hopes to set me up for disappointment, but even in my wildest dreams, I couldn't have possibly anticipated the entire gestalt of the day, both at my local event and as a whole.
Why No Kings?
The proverbial straw that broke the camel's back was the confirmation that Trump was going to hold a military parade on the streets of Washington, D.C., ostensibly for the anniversary of the U.S. Army, which was founded in 1775. It's the kind of thing we expect from military despots, historical dictators, and third-world juntas... tanks rolling down the street, soldiers marching in lockstep, and so on.
A quick point: why did Trump choose only the Army to celebrate? We have an entire military, with all branches being of essential value. The Coast Guard's birthday is August 4. The Navy's is October 13. The Air Force's birthday is September 18. The Marine Corps has one on November 10th. But of course, those dates don't coincide with Trump's birthday.
What is LA's South Bay?
My local No Kings event — like the last couple of protests I took part in, organized by many of the same groups — was situated in front of city hall in Torrance, CA, a spot just a five-minute drive from my home in Redondo Beach. It was meant to represent the whole of the South Bay... coastal and coast-adjacent cities southwest of DTLA that includes the Beach Cities (El Segundo, Hermosa Beach, Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach), Torrance, the Palos Verdes Peninsula, other local cities like Carson, Gardena, Lawndale, Lomita, and nearby LA neighborhoods like Harbor City and San Pedro.
This area — where I've spent most of my life since 1975 — spans a wide range of income groups, racial makeups, national backgrounds, political outlooks, and more. It also accounts for nearly a half million people. It's not an insignificant populace, and a good portion of people here lead active lifestyles and are hard workers. And we care about the world around us. At least most of us seem to. I love it here, and always have.
Getting Going
The event was scheduled to start at 11am, but we had a feeling that this was going to be pretty big, and decided to leave about 40 minutes early, even though it's just a short drive away. I certainly didn't expect to see anyone out in the streets a full half hour before the event started, other than maybe some of the organizers getting set up.
Um. Wow. As I drove past Prairie on Torrance Boulevard, it was almost shocking to see hundreds of people already lining the street. It was only 10:30. The start time was still a half hour away. And the parking lot behind city hall — big enough to host a major city sporting event — was filling up rapidly. Dozens more people were already sauntering toward the protest area, signs in hand. Oh shit! Let's go!
New People and First Timers
Like I said, I've done enough of these local protests over the years to start sort of recognizing familiar faces. But I suddenly found myself in a sea of people that was twice as big as the previous largest activism event I'd attended, which was Hands Off in April. We were shortly joined by a related group, some folks doing a local "Slay the Oligarchy" march. The crowd swelled past 10,000 by 11:30. By noon, it was packed on both sides of the street, taking up every inch between Maple and Prairie along Torrance Boulevard, often 3-4 people deep. Reports afterward indicate that we hit 20,000 people coming out to make their feelings clear in the streets of Torrance.
As I tend to do in these situations, I made it a point to chat with folks around me, and was incredibly happy to find out that for a lot of them, it was their first-ever in-person activism event. One person nearby was expressing how being at a protest for the first time in her life felt so great. "Welcome to the Resistance," I said to her with a smile.
I also noted a much higher percentage of young people... everyone from pre-teens to high schoolers to people in their 20s. Frankly, the average age range of the typical local protest in the South Bay is middle-age and up; it was great to see so many younger folks and families, all energized and excited to be making a difference.
My event really represented a wide cross-section of America. Rich people, poor people, and the shrinking middle-class. People of every racial makeup. Quiet, introverted people. Boisterously loud people — and not just me. The mood was positive yet determined. No one there was afraid to raise their voice, be it in support or in anger. No one could have walked away from our No Kings event without being energized and focused. It was, in a word, perfect.
A Celeb Sighting
I certainly don't do protest events to "see and be seen." I do like documenting them and helping to spread the word so more people can see what happens there and may choose to be involved in subsequent efforts. That being said, I had — in retrospect — a pretty funny moment on Saturday when I noted a guy wearing a red cap. You always want to keep your eyes open for agitators and counterprotestors at these events. They're rare in the South Bay, but they do happen.
As the guy got closer to me, I giggled, because his hat did not read "MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN." Instead, in the familiar font, it said "I AM A FUCKING IDIOT." So that was a relief. I'll note here that not once, the entire day, did I see any conflict or negativity, much less violence. People were there with dogs, pushing baby strollers, being with families. In any case, the Red Hat guy just seemed to be another person with a sense of humor, like most of us there.
It wasn't until I got home in the later afternoon and started looking at social nets that I realized the red hat guy was none other than TV host Jimmy Kimmel. He'd come down this way to protest alongside his parents. Jimmy had posted...
"A huge, inspiring and yes - peaceful - turnout in the South Bay. I met many people who love this country and still believe it to be a force for good. I am grateful to see so many Americans take action to stand up for our friends and neighbors, most of all, my parents. I know how fortunate I am to have been born into a family that taught me to care about others and that the most important words ever spoken are “Love one another.” It really is as simple as that. #NoKings"
The 3.5% Rule
I had really positive feelings after spending a couple of hours at the South Bay No Kings protest. It wasn't just the positivity and peacefulness and unity and sense of community; straight-up, the crowd size boggled my mind. I can tell you, while the South Bay a does predominantly vote blue in elections, we're not the most liberal area of LA by a long shot. So just the pure numbers alone were impressive and heartwarming to me.
But then, as soon as I got home, I started poring over No Kings info coming in from across the country. We started hearing the numbers coming in. Three million. Five million. 7.2 million. It kept rising as the day went on and more and more of the 2,000+ events checked in. According to some sources, No Kings Day was the largest protest against a president in US history. I can’t think of any example of a protest that would be larger.
Based on the trustworthy reports I saw today, Saturday's No Kings events cumulatively had over 12 million people participating in US states and territories. If that's the case, we passed a very important threshold. The "3.5% rule" is a sociological formula that refers to the finding that if nonviolent resistance movements engage at least 3.5% of the population in sustained protest, they are highly likely to achieve their goals.
The research indicates that no government has been able to withstand a challenge from a movement that has mobilized 3.5% or more of its population in sustained protest. It may not seem like a significant portion of the population, but movements that achieve this level of participation often have a much larger base of support (sympathizers and potential future participants).
What's Next?
It's always the question, and it's an important one. The first step is knowing what's coming. If you don't already engage with groups and platforms that support this kind of activism, I highly recommend that you do so. Sign up for their newsletters and get notified of upcoming opportunities to be active.
- Indivisible
- 50501
- MoveOn
- Mobilize
- Our Revolution
- And many more... feel free to ask me in the comments!
And here's a short video we shot and threw together after the No Kings protest. Hopefully it imparts a little vibe of the overwhelming positivity of the day. Onward and upward!
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