Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) told an audience last week that mass mobilization protests will likely be needed to combat the Trump administration.
“I will admit that this is a conversation happening inside the Democratic Party right now, as to whether you engage in sort of normal tactics or whether you have to engage in exceptional ways. So I think the threat to our democracy is real. It is acute. I think it is very likely you are going to need hundreds of thousands of people engaged in mass-scale mobilization… I’m going to argue that we should… engage in exceptional tactics because to me that is the only way that you ultimately create that connective tissue between the leaders of the party and the grassroots – when that moment comes that we need everybody out on the street,” Murphy explained.
Why It Matters: This weekend’s “Hands Off!” protest in D.C., along with potentially 1,000+ smaller protests around the country, will be another good barometer for the left’s ability to mobilize.
Organizers are hoping for a million protestors to attend the D.C. demonstration, but I doubt they’ll reach it. Protests so far have been underwhelming, and the 700-1000+ smaller protests nationwide will sap D.C. mobilization potential.
Still, mass mobilization is both a tactic of progressive political action and a primary component of a popular revolution, so we’ll continue to see organizing efforts ahead of what Senator Murphy is describing — when Democrats “need everybody out on the street.” - M.S.
