At 5 pm on the dot, excited anti Donald Trump activists of all walks of New Orleans life gather quickly at St Charles and Octavia outside the modern architecture Loyola University Performing Arts Building. Within a matter of minutes, three arrivals turn into 20 and counting!
The first protesters to arrive gather, first in verification that they are in the right place. During this time, detailed and informed objections to the President are exchanged. The rainy weather has certainly put no damper in this event! A man arrives with an ample supply of clever, astutely designed signs to hand out among those who have not come with their own.
Among the reasons exchanged between those in attendance for their showing up, one woman strongly expresses her frustration with Congress paying little to no mind to any malfeasance committed by Donald Trump as well as his megalomaniac like way of abusing Executive Decision (The president’s right to (ideally with good reason) overturn or veto a congressional ruling). Many others are eager for any opportunity to object to Donald Trump and long to expedite his impeachment . A number of very avid objectors delve deeper into perceived problems including an unfair advantage being virtually handed to foreign operatives.
Mark Marley, no stranger to a good protest, having rallied against the Vietnam War in his college days on Tulane’s campus, a stone’s throw away proffered a direct quote:” It is betrayal of American Democracy and abuse of the law for Trump to be / have been acquitted for anything.”
Soon the crowd move to their choice of spots along the streetcar line, ready to protest . Marley take a beacon like place between the two streetcar lines holding his sign and facing oncoming from downstream (the Riverbend and beyond). Many have made this a family affair! The kids are going as strong as their elders. A couple of men sported signs written in colors resembling feces reading “Dump Trump!” These are much appreciated.
Across the street, not at all appreciating the ongoing rally, are an increasingly large number of the proverbial “ One Percent”. These individuals have apparently caught wind of the, by their perception, adversarial affair and gather on the expansive front porch of The Round Table Club and sit in the starchy porch chairs, glowering down at the far more present protesters on the street in front of them. They are the embodiment of Bob Dylan’s “ disrobed faceless forms of no position” and many other artfully described and villainous archetypes and institutions which resound in much of the singer/ song writer’s music. Well the car horn of St Charles are certainly honking for the protesters.
The event carries on well after dark and all seem to have attained their desired outcomes!
