FROM BOSTON TO D.C.
          by Dan from Salem, Mass.

              Boston, Jan. 21  -  My wife, her sister and I went to DC for the counter-inaugural protests.
              While it was cold and wet, we had a great time. We left Boston after a bus
              mixup that delayed our departure until after 11:00 p.m., and got into DC at
              about 9:30 a.m. We took the Metro to Dupont circle, where thousands had
              already gathered and speeches and chants were going on. The signs and
              individual comments were fantastic--I wish I could remember more of them.
              There were flags with $ signs in the canton, lots and lots of "the people
              have spoken--all FIVE of them!"

              What may have seemed discouraging to some was that people kept wandering off
              to different sites. We were unsure what to do, trying to meet up with friends
              and not too familiar with the city, so we walked around a bit and returned to
              Dupont circle. At 1:00, the march began to the elipse, with a truly ludicrous
              and circuitous route to our eventual destination. It was a somewhat
              confusing, exhilirating, wet and exhausting day, and while some people
              started to get discouraged, I think we need to keep our eyes on what the
              situation was. There were, indeed, tens of thousands of us in DC; but we were
              spread out at many different sites. We weren't the main event, unlike rallies
              across the country, but a counter-protest to a 40 million dollar installation
              ceremony that was already well-planned. Nonetheless, the press could not
              manage to ignore us, and the A.P. article posted earlier is a great
              mainstream press victory.

              No matter where you went in DC, there were protestors everywhere. It was
              uplifting to see so many people so fired up about the theft of this election.
              The chants were moving: BUSH, CHENEY, GOP, THIS IS NOT DEMOCRACY!! and the
              more mundane WE'RE WET--WE'RE COLD--DEMOCRACY'S BEEN SOLD!!! While the
              national press seemed to want to insure that Bush be granted "his day," the
              most important group of people to convince is still the 52% of the population
              who did not vote for this traitorous coup. It was invigorating to hear news
              filter in from spots around the city, and later, from around the country.

              After a 14 hour harrowing bus trip back home through an overnight blizzard, I
              came home to open e-mail with messages of congratulations and solidarity from
              other protests in Boston, Hartford, New Haven, Talahasse, Dallas, Houston,
              Sacramento, Santa Cruz, Los Angeles, Eugene, Portland, FAIRBANKS!!!,
              Austin...and more still coming in! One thing that is really incredible is
              that these small grass-roots demonstrations sprung up wherever people were.
              Why, for example, should there be a rally in New Haven when there's already
              one in Hartford? Just because people are so pissed off on so many levels that
              they can't wait for a forum to express it in. I got an excited e-mail from a
              friend in L.A. talking about a state Senator he hopes will run for higher
              office when her term ends.

              This is how it grows, folks. Whether the press covers it to our satisfaction
              or not; whether the press focuses on the angle we want them to or not. The
              press has always lagged large, meaningful change. We were there--we were
              EVERYWHERE--and no matter what happens, we can't forget or forgive the way
              the GOP stole this election from the people.

              I was fortunate to meet--by chance--FOUR people who had heard of our bumper
              sticker campaign and thanked me for getting out a nationwide, simple message:
              REMEMBER FLORIDA: VOTE DEMOCRAT IN 2002. [we have distributed now over 3,000
              stickers in all 50 states, and passed out a couple hundred more at events
              yesterday in DC--email me for more info.] I am as critical of the Democrats
              as the next guy, but by one means or another, we will see these republican
              bastards thrown out of power at the next available opportunity.

              Yesterday was a great day, not a sad one--a wake up call for the spineless
              Dems in the Senate, a warning to the Right, and a shot in the arm for those
              of us on the left who care about a progressive agenda. Take heart, keep in
              touch, and FIGHT THE RIGHT!

              Dan in Salem