Oh, joy of joys! The Decider in Chief will honor our state with his presence Saturday when he gives the commencement address at Oklahoma State University. Apparently Oklahoma is
one of the few places where he can still feel assured of a warm welcome.
Well, not so fast, sir. You just might be surprised...
...for there will be a protest! Yes, an honest-to-goodness protest. We shall exercise our right of peaceful assembly and free speech. And we'll probably be vilified roundly in the process (but that's a diary for another day).
Several local groups are organizing a protest to take place outside the football stadium where the festivities will be located. Unfortunately, word of the demonstration has spread slowly, if at all. I only found out about it a couple days ago.
So for anyone who's interested, here are the groups that are organizing the protest:
Oklahomans for Democracy (best source of info on the protest)
Central Oklahoma Stonewall Democrats
The Peace House OK
Antiwarfair Coalition (transportation info here)
OK Veterans for Peace
Tulsa Peace Fellowship
Progressive Interfaith Coalition
Stillwater Peace Vigil
The demonstration will begin at 8:00 a.m. at the corner of Hester and Athletic, just southwest of Boone Pickens Stadium. A map with the designated "Free Speech Zone" can be seen here.
The Tulsa Peace Fellowship has arranged for bus transportation from Tulsa to Stillwater. If there is sufficient demand, they'll have a second bus, so they're asking for folks to RSVP here.
If you are in Oklahoma, I encourage you to come out for the demonstration so that we can send a clear message to Bush that, even in redstateland, we've had enough! Maybe we'll even get some press coverage. If so, look for me; I'll be the one holding the anti-Bush sign.