Parkland students rewriting playbook

[struggle4progress]

LEONARD PITTS JR. Miami Herald

... In Montgomery, in December of 1955, the cutting edge of communications technology was rotary dial telephones and mimeograph machines.

Yet armed with those primitive devices, people there organized a mass movement. It inspired other mass movements and combined; they changed the trajectory of history. All of which renders incomprehensible our acceptance of the most onerous status quo of this era.

We, after all, have cellphones. In other words, we have an ability to reach people, to organize, to make ourselves heard, that previous generations could never have imagined ...

Protest is an expression of belief in the possibility of change. Maybe the rest of us lost that belief somewhere along the way. Now these kids are reminding us, but that's not their job. They should have been able to just be kids. That they weren't -- indeed, that they almost died -- speaks to our failures. It is good that we support them now with our prayers, presence and treasure.

But that doesn't mitigate the failure ...

http://journalstar.com/opinion/columnists/leonard-pitts-parkland-students-rewriting-playbook/article_a2cdfdce-be29-55de-a993-9f847c2a9e85.html

[Wellstone ruled]

1. Oh my goodness.

Still remember going to the Teachers Lounge and running dozens of copies of protest hand outs off the old Ditto Machine. Still remember that darn ink was nasty to wash off. Back in the day,that was also the Band Members Practice room. And Boy I needed a lot of Practice.

[tblue37]

2. K&R for visibility. nt

[DemocracyMouse]

3. We've been building up to the Parkland protest since Occupy Wall St. That sleep-in broke the ice.

I remember when it was taboo to talk about "corporations" and the class divide. It was taboo to seriously discuss gun control. Now such topics are even casually discussed on main stream news. The change has been building steadily –and intensified by the current presidency, the festering of white supremacy, and the Russia problem. This wave of progressive culture is far larger than what passes for "conservative" today and it ain't stopping... It probably will give the Democrats a solid majority for years to come – if they get serious about discussing and proposing solutions.

I expect the Republicans are crawling into their burrows right now and don't have a clue how to handle what is emerging. I am also quite charmed by the small minority of Democrats who say foot-dragging things like "that will never happen" and "we'll never return to the New Deal days." "We'll never ban assault rifles," etc. My girlfriend says such folks think pessimism makes them look smart, but it's kind of the opposite. All the sociological signs say the pendulum is swinging in a progressive direction again – and INTENSELY SO.

People, either lead, encourage from the sidelines, or get out of the way because this train is picking up steam.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

4. And not just them. High school students across the country.

I attended my march in Santa Fe, NM, and I was amazed and heartened by the eloquence and passion of the high school students who spoke there.

[struggle4progress]

6. +

[Cha]

5. Yeah, they are!