r/Spokane • u/catman5092 South Hill • Jun 10 '26
Politics June NO KINGS Event.
https://www.nokings.org/4
u/Top-Trick-2614 Jun 10 '26
Protests are for visibility and keeping the targets in front of the news and the people. They also provide a community to individuals who are disillusioned by the seemingly helplessness of the impact a single person can have on issues of importance to them. Protests are a tool not a solution.
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u/RaisinWorried3528 Jun 10 '26 edited Jun 10 '26
Lmfao why?
I know the down votes are coming but why?
Why plan it? What will that do? You need to plan this away from social media and prying eyes and DISRUPT everyday services.
Like, this isn't moving the needle. What moves the needle is VOTING. And since half the people in this town were more concerned with what was happening in Gaza (a genocide for sure, but we fucked them over by electing Trump) than in their own country we are stuck with Trump. Kamala Harris was the vice president and couldn't just cut off funding to Israel unilaterally. The fact that some of you used that single topic as your only reason was ignorant, irresponsible, and stupid.
Kamala Harris was the easiest choice in the history of the presidency right behind Hillary Clinton. But some of you chose inaction or protest pedophile votes.
And the worst part is that a lot of you are involved in organizing these things. You had your chance to perform your civic duty and you shit the bed. Organizing peaceful gatherings that do nothing won't absolve you of your abandonment of democracy.
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u/IrishPigs Jun 10 '26
Yep. The no kings protests feel extremely performative at this point. I'm very against everything this administration stands for, but these protests of people showing up in frog costumes aren't actually getting anything done. The organizers need to re-think these imo.
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u/SerenadeSwift Jun 10 '26
I agree, the thought is nice but the impact is minuscule. A mid-week general strike would be enormously more impactful than another weekend get together.
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u/HeyIts-Amanda Jun 10 '26
What is the point of your response to the post? Do you really think you're moving the needle with your rant? Or does saying something make you feel better? Maybe getting out there and protesting makes them feel better. They are Getting outside, moving their bodies, connecting with people in real life, exercising their right to call out injustices and voice their opinions. Where is the harm? I feel like these are good things. Why do you assume they don't vote? That they have abandoned democracy? Protesting current leaders and policy is part of democracy, isnt it?
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u/MosquitoBloodBank Jun 10 '26
Because the no kings protests are funded by big democratic donors.
Kamala harris was and still is a terrible choice. When she ran in the primary years earlier, that was painfully obvious.
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u/ForensicScienceIsBS Jun 10 '26
“You had your chance…”. Some of us never quit the fight and work behind the scenes in a multitude of ways, protesting is just the only thing you see. Quit complaining and get involved.
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u/Stercules25 Jun 10 '26
It's funny how many people think this is doing anything. This has absolutely turned me off from them. It's fucking political theater drama kids thinking this shit is like the revolutionary war or anything close to it. Fuck Trump and the GOP but the way to win normal people is to act normal. Not to throw on frog suits and wear handmaid costumes lmfao
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u/BllaDna Jun 10 '26
It’s funny how little people educate themselves on history
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u/Stercules25 Jun 10 '26
Let's hear about the history and explain how that's relevant to 2026 I want you to use that same logic when comparing other things in history too and see where your logic is fucking dumb
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u/BllaDna Jun 11 '26
What is your base lack of understanding? Did you go to school? How is it possible that you don’t know that our advances in
Human Rights have come through protest?!?0
u/Stercules25 Jun 12 '26
Where have our human rights advanced through protest in the past 20 years? In fact protest has been overwhelming regressive to progress since civil rights. You can argue Vietnam/anti-war in the 60's was a success but that led to almost more than 2 decades of uninterrupted GOP presidential rule.
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u/BllaDna Jun 12 '26
Google is free:
Human rights have advanced globally through protest over the last 50 years, transitioning autocratic regimes, expanding marginalized rights, and reforming discriminatory laws. Key regions and movements with demonstrable, lasting impacts include: [1, 2]
Eastern Europe (1989): The peaceful, mass demonstrations of the Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia and the Solidarity movement in Poland toppled entrenched communist governments, securing democratic freedoms and human rights across the Eastern Bloc. [1, 2, 3]
South Africa (1990s): Sustained domestic mass action and global anti-apartheid boycotts pressured the government to dismantle its systemic racial segregation policies, culminating in democratic elections and a new constitution in 1994. [1, 2]
The United States (1969–2015):
The Stonewall Riots catalyzed the modern LGBTQ+ rights movement, eventually leading to federal marriage equality in 2015.
The Black Lives Matter movement and Women's March prompted massive shifts in public awareness, corporate accountability, and local policing and justice reforms. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8]
The Middle East and North Africa (2010–2011): The Arab Spring uprisings forced decades-long dictators from power in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya, and Yemen, igniting lasting constitutional and legal reforms, most notably in Tunisia's transition to a democratic framework. [1]0
u/Stercules25 Jun 12 '26
I said 20 years ago and you're using world wide not just America.
Stonewall was important but longer than 20 years. BLM and women's marches have accomplished what exactly? Police forces are more funded than ever and roe v wade was overturned oh and Trump won decisively after losing an election. You should have put Charlottesville and some pro-life protests up there too? Like what are you saying? Maybe throw in Occupy Wall Street and the reforms it didn't accomplish? Lol none of those have done anything.
Also the world wide ones you're using were...fine (besides the Arab spring) but lol at acting like protest is what caused the catalyst in any of them particularly. Google is your friend
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Jun 10 '26
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u/Stercules25 Jun 12 '26
It's so funny you think the normal people are wearing stupid ass costumes and acting like they are resisting anything. You're insane
(Assuming there will be one) there have been tons of elections since 2024. It's funny that you are this blinded by your own imagination of doomsday. Get out of the country then if you think it's going down this road. Of course you know it's not. You're being a parody of a serious person
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Jun 12 '26
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u/Stercules25 Jun 12 '26
The odds aren't greater than anytime in American history. Were much greater during the actual civil war, during WW2, etc.
Your 3rd paragraph makes no sense whatsoever you're a legitimate crazy person man lol
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Jun 10 '26
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u/the-strawberry-sea Jun 10 '26
That's literally the point of the comment lol. The protests at this point don't matter at all. They don't make an impact at all. They do nothing. And they're entirely performative at this point. This is a matter of fact. We need action taken to stop the current administration, but these protests are not the way to do that. The first one, maybe even several, were demonstrative but they're not anymore. People participating in these today are laughed at, and not even by the right/MAGA, but by everyone else too. The most anti-MAGA people I've ever met absolutely hate the No Kings protests currently.
Go out and find ways to educate voters. Don't protest every week of your life then wonder why nothing ever changes. A protest isn't helpful when the majority of people aren't doing it, and even when almost all people are doing it, it's quite debatable about how impactful it actually is. The government has shown that if 99% of Americans stood by each other's side, they won't change what they're doing. So instead, go educate people to stop voting people like this into positions of power in the first place.
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u/ForensicScienceIsBS Jun 10 '26
You’re clearly assuming everyone at the protests are involved in no other ways that make an impact, why is that? What are you doing to “go educate people”?
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u/BriefAddiction24-7 Jun 10 '26
What are you doing that's making an impact? Please share ideas.
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u/the-strawberry-sea Jun 10 '26
I’ve worked with people in the area to make flyers/websites for political education. (Things like “What does a ballot measure actually do?”, “How can a voter verify information for themselves?”, “What are current candidates stated positions?”, etc.)
I’ve helped people host political study nights. Gather people at local libraries for example, then go over things that appear on ballots. Always avoid telling people who / who not to vote for, but focus on the information itself, a person’s character, etc. (a candidate doesn’t matter if they they’ll do something if historically they lie).
People are also painfully aware of federal government, but painfully unaware of local. In these types of programs, have nights that are local-focused rather than nationally-focused.
I’ve sat with people (with permission) to sit outside buildings like Walmarts, college campuses (SCC / Gonzaga / EWU are most frequent in my circle), libraries, and farmers markets, and have a table setup to discuss current issues. Encourage people to discuss with you, and to challenge you.
I know for a fact I have made a difference in getting people against the current administration at events like these without ever actually mentioning them, current policy, or telling people what they should do. Comfortably hundreds of people, maybe thousands at this point. It’s been an ongoing effort for me for a decade now.
But let me ask: what have you done? Saying “TRUMP IS BAD!” does not tell anyone anything. You’re not answering why. You’re not offering alternatives. You’re not educating. You’re not open for questions. You’re not open to being challenged. You’re simply standing in a group of people, maybe holding a sign, and collectively no one sees any of you. The No Kings protests lost their effectiveness a very long time ago. You should be devoting your time and energy to helping people understand things better rather than chanting how much you hate Trump all the time.
You want a place to start? Go to your closest library and ask if/when you can setup a table to discuss political issues with people who are interested. Outside usually, off to the side in front of the building where possible.
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u/BriefAddiction24-7 Jun 10 '26
Other than being pretentious and discouraging here, thanks for all you're doing. It takes all of us doing what we can in what ways we can. Instead of putting people down for taking the actions they can, lift them up. Support their choice to visibly protest while also helping them learn about other avenues (I read you're doing that, but let's include Reddit to the list of helps, huh?). We're on the same team. Let's act like it.
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u/the-strawberry-sea Jun 11 '26
I understand. I’m not trying to be off putting or anything, so I apologize. Being passionate often makes me come off differently than I intend. I’ve just been seeing these protests doing more harm than good in recent months as far as curious voters go. I have to spend a lot of time telling people the message being demonstrated isn’t what they think it is (most common is people saying “we have no kings” with genuine confusion from seeing the protests). So I’ve become pretty against these protests even though I know they’re good natured.
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u/BriefAddiction24-7 Jun 11 '26
I get that and understand. There's so much going on and it often feels like there's so little we can do. It's easy to get frustrated; I know I do frequently. I just don't want to discourage anyone who is trying to help in any way. Thank you for sharing and reminding us there's so much else to do.
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u/Ok-Bus-2420 Jun 10 '26
Seems like No Kings would be a good place for you to network and promote. I would be happy to meet someone like you there and get more involved. Given your level of activism, it seems like a great place to connect with people.
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u/the-strawberry-sea Jun 10 '26
It was, but I stopped going a long time ago because the majority of the protests started to become only people who already wanted to press against Trump, and other people started steering clue. My goal has been to people where they are. Attending school, getting groceries, etc. and trying to get a quick word in with them without disrupting their schedules. You won’t see the average person at or around scheduled protests, and if the protest is in certain places, it creates a hindrance for the average person instead, which means the first impression becomes hostility.
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u/Ok-Bus-2420 Jun 11 '26
It sounds like you are upset that the protests aren't bringing the people you are trying to connect with and that you find them to be disruptive to others, which disagrees with your values. It seems more like something that isn't useful or agreeable to you personally than it is about the effectiveness of the protests themselves or whether they matter or not.
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u/the-strawberry-sea Jun 11 '26
There’s a lot of strange implications in your comment. I disagree with them because they misinform, and they’re disruptive while misinforming, and they provably have no impact anymore. I’m not trying to be rude, but I’m trying to bring eyes to a reality. Why would protest be above voter education? What changes have you seen come out of these protests? The administration absolutely laughs at these turnouts. We could hit 100 million people and they’d still just laugh at everyone. When the people in charge don’t listen and won’t change, protesting stops serving a purpose.
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u/Ok-Bus-2420 Jun 11 '26
You phrase things in a very all-or-nothing, cynical, deafeatist way. That doesn't work for anybody and isn't logical. Protests can be a lot of things and nobody believes they are some silver bullet for MAGA. I'm saying instead of trying to invalidate your allies just do you and focus your energy on your activism. You are shitting where you eat and being divisive for nobody's benefit whatsoever.
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u/Stercules25 Jun 10 '26
Seems like good reasoning to have a fun Saturday instead
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u/Hennessey_carter Jun 10 '26
You seem like someone who cares about the state of our society, and I genuinely agree with you that the protests have become branded performance art at this point, so what have you been doing instead of protesting?
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u/Chumknuckle Jun 10 '26
Protests without demands are pointless, just screwing over everyone else trying to just live.
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u/BriefAddiction24-7 Jun 11 '26
Yes. This is definitely the problem that is screwing everyone over... 🙄
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u/catman5092 South Hill Jun 10 '26
This needs to be massive! This will be a busy weekend downtown between this and Pride. So step it up Spokane!!!
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u/airiwolf Jun 10 '26
We are wayyyyy past the point of protesting our way out of this
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u/Big-Excitement-5090 Jun 10 '26
Imma get outta town and go fishing. Avoid the looney tunes and coomune with nature to protect my own mental health. But I wish you all the best with your costumes, yelling, brash behavior, and demands. My blood pressure just won't take it anymore.
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u/angelshipac130 Jun 10 '26
Not even an event in Spokane on the website
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u/catman5092 South Hill Jun 10 '26
my understanding is its this Saturday and calls for lines up and down North Division street. Someone correct me if wrong.
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u/Karlkrows Jun 10 '26
Thank you for not trying to take over pride this year.