We are all beginning to shift our thinking from that of an acute crisis to one of a long campaign. Today, the teachers went back to work. I saw a number of signs at the Capitol proclaiming, "I'm here for XXXXXX because he/she's back at work teaching!" I saw small business owners proclaiming their belief in labor. I saw Corrections Officers by the dozen (thanks to you all!). The Teamsters brought two huge semis. There was another Teahadist protest. I only glanced as we walked around the square, but I'd be stunned if there were more than 200 people. Again, the forces for moderation, debate, and human rights far outweighed those of right-wing extremism.
The main story of the day, though, was how I got TO the Capitol.
Today, a large group of UW-Madison faculty staged their own walkout. A large group of them canceled their classes to join us. They started (with a large contingent of students) at the statue of Abraham Lincoln (now there's a Republican I can deal with!) on Bascom Hill. They marched down to Library Mall, where the crowd grew (and where I joined it). We talked, we chanted, and then we marched.
We marched the length of State Street. We smiled. We chanted. We waved at the traffic we brought to a halt. People in the cars we stopped honked their horns in solidarity. Businesses the length of State Street have posted signs in our favor. One middle-aged woman came bustling out of a Nepali restaurant to cheer us on.
When we go to the Capitol, the group turned right. We took over the street around the Capitol (it's been often closed since this whole thing started). We continued chanting, waving, and cheering. Some people sang. On each corner we passed another group. The first corner was full of corrections officers. The next was the Tea Party - as we approached, a large group of facilities workers in bright orange rushed up to cheer us on. The next corner was the Teamsters. As we finished our circuit, the rally on the steps had begun. Again, thousands or people stood the length and breadth of the hill leading up to the Capitol. More great energy.
After the noon rally, some of my fellow theatre students went for a quick lunch. We had somewhere to be. One of our professors hit upon an idea yesterday, and we were going to make it happen. Out of his own pocket, this professor had rented a theatre space and secured the rights for a performance of Clifford Odets's classic labor play, "Waiting for Lefty." We quickly talked through who would read what, and hashed out a few quick performance ideas. No time for rehearsal - this was straight guerrilla theatre.
An audience of about 150 came in, and we read the play for them. The play is a classic in part because it ends with a character calling for a strike. In its original New York production, the Group Theatre (working with Odets) enlisted the audience to join their chant of "Strike! Strike!" They led the audience outside to take their message to the street.
Today, our chant began with "Strike! Strike!" and soon changed to, "Kill the Bill! Kill the Bill!" The actors threw on our coats, grabbed our bags, and moved the audience with us. It was an already sympathetic audience, so I doubt we changed any minds, but we were able to make the last moment of the performance a group of people chanting their way out of the theatre (situated half a block from the Capitol).
I was struck by how little our fight has changed since 1935; how it is still vital for us to shake people loose from the belief that they can't change anything. We must convince people not to accept their lots in life, or what is given them from those who would hold power over them. People are beginning to believe the bill will pass, and that we will lose this fight. Heartbreaking as that is (and I hope we don't give up yet), they are also beginning to talk about what comes next.