We seem to have lost sight in this country that the right of free assemblage to protest the government is a Constitutional right, and done peacefully and non-violently, can be effective. The '60s were not just about drugs and communes: Martin Luther King's Civil Rights Movement protests brought major legislative changes against segregation; anti-war protests led to our leaving Vietnam, the end of mandatory ROTC, the military draft, and reduction of the age of voting from 21 to 18.
The danger in mass protests always is the opportunity for opponents to infiltrate, create violence, and blame it on the bulk of the protesters. As Hitler so effectively did, including setting fire to the Bundestag and blaming it on the Communists. King learned from Gandhi, that you have to have an infrastructure for non-violent protests, including training and monitors, to make sure the only violence that occurs comes from uniformed authorities, and you out anyone who infiltrates your peaceful protests and engages in vi0olent acts.
We are beginning to see more of that organization and philosophy coming into play. The organizers of the protest at the Coast Guard Station in Alameda, California, where federalized National Guard from other states was being marshalled were quick to step forward and disown the U-Haul Driver who attempted to break the base security checkpoint. The massive Bay Area turnout protests for No Kings Day had had extensive non-violent training and monitors set up to quickly curtail any signs of violence or infiltrators.
The success of non-violent protests is still as Gandhi and King preached: make sure any violence is done by the uniformed agents of those in power. That said, I don't see the value of the torches and pitchforks, nor -- as one who lived in Delano -- why you would be looking for Tom Emmer there when he is from Minnesota.
