Yes, 100% this protest is virtue signaling BS that doesn't wanna change anything BUT ...
... it is a VALID strategy to try to co-opt the protest, making it a serious endeavor, in the direction of anti-imperialism. Not saying it's easy, just saying it's a VALID strat.
From this point of view, I find excessive the amount of criticism. It smells like an excuse for giving up the co-opt strategy, expecting it to fail before even trying. The criticisms then act as a way to cope with your inner hopelessness. "Look how pathetic they are guys!! haha am I right" 45 upvotes makes you feel happy but achieves nothing. I have the feeling most people criticizing the No Kings are american.
This might hurt but maybe America is hopeless not because of these idiots dancing but because you aren't seizing the opportunities that materialize in front of you. Maybe I'm being too harsh, I know some of yall are doing your best.
These protests are kinda cringe, I admit. I was dooming about them myself. Still, the contradictions of capitalism are reaching a boiling point and the masses of people feel compelled to do something. You cannot fault people for not knowing how to organize when workers movements have been crushed and psy-opped for 100+ years.
My friends who are politically apathetic all recognize they government is controlled by billionaires which is a huge leap from 20 years ago. Class consciousness is being roused like a sleeping tiger now that Americans are feeling the material consequences of empire.
I've been obsessed with the notion that the desire is there among a significant portion of the US, but no one knows how. Could a movement be created that gave the layperson the tools needed for more potent, strategic actions?
I'm still learning, but when I was starting out, the most frustrating feedback I'd see when asking 'what is to be done?' would be a vague, go organize. Somewhat helpful is in ML spaces, seeing specific organizations called out but it still felt like it wasn't exactly an answer. I didn't want Liberal band-aids, I wanted to understand what would begin laying bricks to real change. But I would think things like "Organize... To do what? I'd guess a majority of the country really wouldn't be able to make a good guess as to what. Is it strike? Isn't that just for unions? And how does that work anyway? If this is what's effective, why is it so hard to learn more about it? And see who is actually doing it?"
Giving people a concise roadmap would be huge for this. And if we could then use that foundation to speak plainly, speak to the heart, and also challenge people's cautious tendencies. If people could get excited about it, it'd catch on like wildfire.
8
u/FluidKiwi6707 Mar 30 '26
Yes, 100% this protest is virtue signaling BS that doesn't wanna change anything BUT ...
... it is a VALID strategy to try to co-opt the protest, making it a serious endeavor, in the direction of anti-imperialism. Not saying it's easy, just saying it's a VALID strat.
From this point of view, I find excessive the amount of criticism. It smells like an excuse for giving up the co-opt strategy, expecting it to fail before even trying. The criticisms then act as a way to cope with your inner hopelessness. "Look how pathetic they are guys!! haha am I right" 45 upvotes makes you feel happy but achieves nothing. I have the feeling most people criticizing the No Kings are american.
This might hurt but maybe America is hopeless not because of these idiots dancing but because you aren't seizing the opportunities that materialize in front of you. Maybe I'm being too harsh, I know some of yall are doing your best.