#WhatIf politicians stopped taking money from the NRA? pic.twitter.com/cIK41dd3nW
— March For Our Lives (@AMarch4OurLives) March 16, 2018
I was never much of a marcher; age and bad joints haven’t exactly increased my inclination to communal protest. But I know some of you are making plans to join the marches in your area, if anybody wants to leave a comment below and maybe attempt to get together…
Also, in case it’s helpful, reason #2,387,451 I’m glad I decided against having kids:
“Fellow parents of smallish kids: Are you planning to take your families to the March for our Lives?” wrote an acquaintance on Facebook earlier this week. Her children are in fifth and second grade. “Anyone else have concerns about the event raising fears in our kids’ minds? My kids know about Parkland, but have not (yet) asked, ‘Could that happen here?’ “
And that is a good question. For many parents, it is the question right now.
How young is too young to join in a protest or a march?
There is a lot to consider for those thinking of taking younger kids to the March for Our Lives on March 24 in Washington. The logistics alone can be a major issue: thousands of people, scattered bathrooms, hours of standing.
But more than that, this march is about kids being shot to death in schools. So the images and messages at the event will certainly be concerning for children who may be too young to process (aren’t we all?) the horror.
Will a march or protest send their anxieties into a freefall? Or can it empower them and make them feel as if they have some control or ability to change things?…
And this makes me feel more hopeful about the event —
I’m going to be at the “March for our Lives” next Saturday in DC and one of the coolest things about it is that they are not letting any politicians or people over 21 speak. There’s something happening here.
— Brian Schatz (@brianschatz) March 15, 2018
— because, naming no names, the last thing we need right now are a bunch of aging politicos &general attention-hunters trying to score another fifteen seconds of ‘virality’ at the expense of these kids. Let ’em make their own experience, just like we did, back in the day.
Friday Morning Open Thread: Who’s Going to #MarchforOurLives?Post + Comments (137)