Violence: Becoming the Way Society Copes

Rallies and protest marches in the United States seem to be occurring more frequently and becoming commonplace in 2017. It seems as if every other week there is a new protest or rally and people fill the streets chanting phrases in protest or support of one thing or another. Some of these have been small, some large, some peaceful and some violent. Today I’m talking about the Pro-Trump rallies happening around the country.

As Americans we all want our constitutional freedom respected and we have a right in this county to speak out and fight for our freedom of speech, religion, and everything else under the sun. Yet, there are those who react with violence when the opposition speaks out on what they believe.

Now I’m not pointing the finger at everyone, the vast majority want peace and truly do believe in our first amendment right of freedom of speech. However, a week ago today on March 4, 2017 there were hundreds that threw the notion of freedom of speech out the window. March 4 was a day set aside for “March 4 Trump” rallies which were, “planned in about 50 cities nationwide, including New York, Nashville, Tennessee, Austin, Texas, and Denver, Colorado,” as stated by Azadeh Ansari of CNN. Unfortunately as Ansari continued to say, “Most rallies were peaceful, but in some cities, counter-protesters attended the events, leading to confrontations.”

I am completely baffled by the fact that anti-Trump rallies went on relatively uninterrupted. Yet, when pro-Trump rallies took place they were met with a significantly higher level of anti-trump opposition and violence. Yes, both sides were arrested and found with weapons as reported by CNN but that’s not the point. We as a nation need to respect everyone’s freedom of speech and that means not attacking others for their beliefs just because they are not in line with your own. One reporter even went so far as to call them, “Pathetic Pro-Trump Rallies”.

In my opinion this opens the door to a behavior that is frightening, that violence is an acceptable means of exercising our freedom of speech. It isn’t, and the perpetrators should be arrested. These pro-Trump rallies were meant to be an opening for the other side to voice why they think Trump is a good choice and can lead our country. Their voice is just as important as the voice of those who don’t support Trump.

Open Discussion Cut Short

My generation…yes the Millennial Generation desperately wants to make sure our First Amendment right is not taken away from us. However, with the recent activity on college campuses what exactly does freedom of speech mean? Students at Yale University wrote a letter to a faculty member that Time’s Justin Worland provided in his article that states. “ ‘We are not asking to be coddled… [We] simply ask that our existences not be invalidated on campus. This is us asking for basic respect of our cultures and our livelihoods.’.” So are they asking the faculty to teach to their beliefs and only their beliefs? This statement was in response to a faculty member sending an email to her students asking them, “to think about the controversy through an intellectual lens that few if any had considered,” as TheAtlantic.com’s Conor Friedersdorf reported this past November.

Again, not too sure what these students at Yale are thinking. When a teacher poses a question and asks you to think critically why is that teacher automatically ridiculed. Isn’t that what are college education is all about, critical thinking? They want respect for their cultures but what about the cultures and beliefs of everyone around them? As American’s we’re taught to think differently and be open to new possibilities but this makes me feel like I might soon be forced to either A) believe what others think or B) stop voicing my opinion, STOP using MY 1^st AMENDMENT RIGHT.

What happened to freedom of speech?

Back in March 2016 when Trump cancelled his rally in Chicago during the election CNN’s Marc Randazza reported, “Even after it was canceled, there were reports of several outbreaks of violence in the streets after the speech and protesters celebrating by chanting, ‘We stopped Trump!’ And now, while everyone is trying to play the blame game, Trump ironically asks, ‘What happened to freedom of speech?’”

My generation of millennials along with others, have taken their First Amendment right of freedom of speech to a new level, however there are certainly some who believe only their voices should be heard and do not extend this right to all. Madonna took this basic freedom so far as to say she had thought, “an awful lot about blowing up the White House,” as Fox News stated in an article after the women’s rally earlier this year.

CNN also reported on the US Berkeley protests of Milo Yiannopoulos who attempted to speak on campus last Wednesday, which erupted in violence because the protesters did not want anyone to hear his speech. CNN’s Madison Park described the event has having caused, “$100,000 worth of damage to the campus,” which ended in, “Administrators decided to cancel the Wednesday event about two hours before the Breitbart editor’s speech.”

Our country talks a lot about our right to the First Amendment and our right to free speech however people are using violent means to make sure that doesn’t happen. If you don’t like what’s being said don’t go, but don’t disrupt another person’s right to talk just because you disagree with their ideas and values. As Randazza stated in his article, “If you are ready to point at Trump and blame him for cultivating violence, you should also condemn those who actually perpetrated violence at Cal State or in Anaheim. If you did not, then you’re not against political violence, you’re just choosing sides and applying different rules to those you agree with.”

(Photo courtesy of CreativeCommon.com with open copyright)

Tolerance or Intolerance

The Democratic Party, generally recognized as the Liberal Left, want equality for all and everyone’s voice to be heard. BalancedPolitics.org compiled a list of political ideologies for each side and included in the list under the Democrats: pro-choice, open to immigration, a strong standing behind the LGBT community, etc. The Republican Party on the other hand, generally known as the Conservative Right, upholds more traditional values. Consequently, the views of the Liberal Left can be interpreted as being the more tolerant, tolerant meaning accepting, patient, law-abiding, etc. Unfortunately, I was unable to open Democratic Convention website, making it difficult to compare their official platform with the GOP’s. This makes me question why the Democratic website is down during such a controversial time. CNN’s Gregory Krieg reported on the protests following the election and although many were peaceful the violent actions of others can hardly be viewed as tolerant or peaceful.