Boston Immigration Protest

I've never been to a protest before today. While I didn't actively participate, I thought it was important to go and check out this small piece of history. I stated my views on the matter yesterday and was happy to hear that a federal judge blocked the ban of people coming into the country so those detained at airports were free to go about their normal business. Here are a few things I noticed while walking around Copley Square:

-Everyone was pretty happy and calm. I expected there to be angry citizens cursing the president and his administration, but people were level headed and on the same page. Violence definitely would not have been the answer today.

A sign often seen

-There were a fair share of idiots there who obviously had no business chanting and protesting, but were doing so just to protest something. It usually was white guys in their late teens and early twenties that brought signs that were humorous and had nothing to do with the actual protest. There were also people there who probably thought they were doing a good deed by holding their sign up high, but writing "TRUMP/PENCE = HITLER/HIMMLER" is helping no one.

Furthering a divide

-There were a TON of kids there today, which I found to be super strange. I mentioned to my roommate Tony, who I was there with, that I thought it was really odd to bring your kids to a rally that they had no opinion on...because they are children. I get having a political opinion as an adult and wanting your children to grow up to be good people, but bringing a 3 year old to a protest, in my opinion, is way out of line. Let them be kids for the small amount time that they can be.

-There was a common chant that went something like "This is what democracy looks like!" I couldn't agree more! There were tens of thousands of people packed into a small area right near the site of the Boston Marathon Bombings. As a general statement, no matter what political opinion you have, I think that this protest proves that people of our nation are resilient and will fight to stand up for what they believe in. To say that I wasn't nervous standing in the middle of all those people would be a lie. I'm sure I was not the only one thinking this way. But, what makes America special is the fact that you can go out into the streets, the same ones that were terrorized, and demonstrate what you believe in. It really is a special thing. I hope people from around the globe who are running from places that don't offer these same opportunities get the chance to see it too.