A baby's head torn off and held in the air by a pair of tongs.
This was on a poster held up by an anti-abortionist outside of the Kohl Center during the high school state basketball tournament. One man, with his loudspeaker and persuasive poster, disrupted the peace with his constant bickering. I am not taking a stand for or against abortion, rather against irrational protesters who assume they can change the world with a unique display and a crowd of people who do not care to listen to a single word they say. For this anti-abortionist and protesters alike, there most certainly are more effective methods to persuade others.
Protesters, is it really worth the fight? I cannot imagine an individual can find it time-efficient to go out in the middle of the street and wave a banner; there are too many superfluous consequences. If you talk to the populace, they'll express disapproval a majority of the time you ask them what their response is to a side-street protester. Even more, when you try to ask a protester a question or to refute a statement, they don't care or know how to respond. It's almost as if they have a book they memorize, and any question or comment deviating from that script is like a foreign language.
However, some may argue that side-street protesters can attract more people, which in turn will help expand the protesting crowd. But there certainly are better methods of expressing a point of view and acquiring new supporters. As a matter of fact, real changes aren't made anywhere near the streets; they are made in the court of law. And if it's a person's beliefs that need to be altered, then think back to Charles Darwin's \Origin of Species,"" Thomas Paine's ""Common Sense"" or Michael Jackson's ""Black or White""'it's the music, books, newspapers and movies that truly get to people's minds.
Throughout history, our country has experienced large- and small-scale protests. The large-scale protests may work because their size grabs the attention of the law and decision makers. Neo-liberalism, the World Trade Organization, arms control and, more recently, the World Bank and women's rights are just a few examples of historic protests. After all, the civil rights protests were some of the most powerful ones in history. However, small-scale civil rights issues, a local school issue and anti-abortion protests done by a few on the street corner make it seem some cannot find a more constructive method to influence others' beliefs. There is nothing wrong with trying to get your opinion across, but if you target a random group of people, you won't get the results you desire. Some protests can help make a difference by expressing opposition; however, so many of them end up in violent riots, or just the opposite'total ignorance on part of the ""victims"" observing the protests.
One striking example many in Madison can relate to was the group that began chanting during the Sept. 11 memorial at Library Mall. Though the protesters did choose a relevant crowd, instead of participating in the heartbroken loss we all felt, the group of individuals chose to shout out a few addresses of their own: ""Those who died deserved it."" Not only was that incident disturbing, it was insulting. Perhaps more important, their protest resulted in an angry crowd retaliating with obscenities and disappointment, followed by the police driving them away from the memorial. In no way did their actions change the mind of anyone there, let alone result as they planned; it helped only increase animosity towards irrational protesters. We all still feel for those who died in September and nothing most could say (especially something illogical) would change that.
So if you think that irrational protesting is going to help change a person's mind, think again. It may let an observer know that the protester disapproves of something, but I'm sure they'd be influenced much more by watching ""American History X."" If you need to relay a message, sure a large-scale display may work, but another medium or format that will actually obtain an influential and meaningful reaction seems much more reliable. After all, I am trying to persuade you, but I'm not standing out on the sidewalk.
