Are Political Protests an American Right?

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There is a resurgence of protests in the nation these days, similar to what I saw as a young man in the 1960s and early 70s.  Then, as now, the protesters were condemned by their opponents, just as the protesters themselves condemned the establishment.  In the 60s, we had the civil rights movement seeking equality for blacks in the nation, led by Dr. King’s group protesting in the South.  They were supported by young liberals traveling from the north to show support.  Opposing them were the various state, county and local governments as well as the white supremacist groups like the Ku Klux Klan that continued to thrive through the political acquiescence of sympathetic whites in power.

Then, of course, we had the anti-Vietnam war movement, led by student political groups in the major urban campuses claiming a variety of righteous reasons to oppose the war.  They claimed to be protesting Americas involvement in an internal Vietnamese struggle, or rallying against the oppression of American Imperialism.  Perhaps I am being cynical, but I think the biggest reason the student elites protested was the potential they could be drafted and forced to fight. In the course of those protests; the young men and women who answered their nation’s call were cast aside, and their lives forever affected.  Some through exposure to herbicide known as Agent Orange, others through the exposure to the stress of combat, and others through the rejection or apathy of the American public.

Each of these movements had both moderate and extreme participants, for that is the way we humans are.  Take for example, the Black Panthers in comparison to the NAACP or the Southern Christian Leadership Conference led by Dr. King Jr.  The 1968 Olympics is remembered for the “Black Power” salute offered by Tommie Smith and John Carlos during their medal presentation.  For the anti-war movement, we saw actions range from marches the major cities to bombings. For example, the Sterling Hall bombing at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, or the weather underground bombings of NYC police buildings and the Pentagon.  Bill Ayers, as a member of the weather underground, still defends the bombings as a legitimate form of protest. 

We come now to the present.  We see a resurgence of racial protest either in the streets or now the sporting events.  At the same time, we see a counter protest movement from a significant number of sports fans, and politicians.  Including now, the President.

When Colin Kaepernick first took a knee, a friend thought the Commissioner of Football would quickly put a stop to the whole affair.  I was not so sure, for his business model has about 85% of the organization made up of African-American athletes.  If he had – perhaps the protests would have stopped, but he didn’t and we can speculate all day over what might have been.  With the President’s engagement through that wonderful medium of “Twitter®” we can now expect a greatly expanded group of protests.  Whether they have a legitimate beef or not is irrelevant at this point.  They will be supported by the political opposition to the President, including both politicians and media personalities.

What I find almost amusing is how those who are upset with these actions seem to be equally upset when the protesters shut down the speech of people like Milo Yiannopoulos, Ben Shapiro, or some other conservative speaker.
ADDED:  I find the left's position equally non-nonsensical (or hypocritical if you prefer), all on-board with protesting the symbols of our country,  while deeply offended by those who view freedom differently than they  do.

If we think political speech is to be protected, like the Constitution requires – then it should be an all or nothing approach.  If you don’t like the speech, don’t watch or listen to it, but just let it flow without comment.  Unfortunately, with “Twitter®” and student indoctrination, that seems an impossibility.

Everyone has their own opinion on what is acceptable for free speech, but if you think only one form of protest is acceptable, and not another, then why is any protest acceptable?  If universal healthcare is now a right, why isn’t free speech?

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One last point, free speech is not the same thing as speech without consequences.  There are always consequences to our choices.  That is an entirely different conversation.

So you decide, should we allow political protest or not?