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June 14 was No Kings Day and, according to Reuters, over 11 million Americans in nearly 2,000 cities and towns gathered together peacefully to protest the Trump presidency. I joined with nearly 600 like-minded fellow citizens as we stood on Ga. 278 near Hiram. Near us stood 10 fellow citizens who were supporters of MAGA.

First and foremost, the demonstration was entirely peaceful from start to finish. We were gathered along the highway but stood 15 feet back from the shoulder on the grass, both for our own safety and for the safety of the thousands of motorists that drove by during our two-hour vigil — and also because during a previous similar demonstration on April 5, at that very same location, a full spit-cup was thrown from a passing car at the citizens gathered there. That sad incident prompted the Hiram police chief to make some calculations which led to the conclusion that, even under the best of conditions, a full spit-cup could only travel 12 feet or so through the air, so he moved us back to be safe. Additionally, he had a patrol car posted about a mile down the road so that if any shenanigans of this nature did occur, the miscreant could be apprehended.

I want to commend the Hiram Police ÐÔÊӽ紫ý. There were about eight officers in attendance including the chief of police. They were professional and courteous and respectful of all of the citizens in their care. These officers were constantly moving through the crowd, reminding protestors to beware of traffic, to hydrate and to seek out the nearest policeman if trouble seemed to be in the making.

One of the positive aspects of protesting on a major thoroughfare is that the message you are promoting gets out in front of a lot of people. Thousands of vehicles of all descriptions drove past our demonstration during the two hours we were there, and the reactions from those vehicles fell into three distinct categories.

The first category, and the largest, was No Response. These cars and trucks simply drove by on their way to whatever was next on their Saturday afternoon schedules, and it was their absolute right to do so. The next largest category was Positive Response, and my estimate based on a couple of quick 10-minute counts — both because I was curious and because you have to do something while you are standing in the hot sun for two hours, holding up a sign while wondering if the numbness in your right leg is a serious condition or just another iteration of oldmanitis — is that somewhere around 30% to 40% of the passersby approved of our efforts, and it was their absolute right to do so. The final category was Negative Response, which — again according to my informal assessment — fell in the 10% to 20% range. It was these motorists’ absolute right to disagree, as well, and for the record, no spit-cups were thrown this time around.

I want to talk about the propaganda that you have no doubt heard from many sources concerning both the No Kings event and the Hands-Off protest that came before it. In both cases, the spin seemed to be that a bunch of wild-eyed, America-hating, baby-killing Socialists were out in force with the intent of burning this great country of ours all the way down to the ground. Nothing could have been further from the truth, but it seems that truth is not held in great esteem these days, if indeed it ever was. There was no trouble at the Hiram protest. Nor was there any issue at the Hands-Off protest in Rome, GA — my hometown — on April 5, but there were incidents of violence in other cities and towns. When I think about those isolated incidents, I am reminded of the words of Wendell Berry: “Violence breeds violence. Acts of violence committed in the name of justice or in affirmation of rights do not end violence. They prepare and justify its continuation.�

I have a friend who is a MAGA supporter, and he asked me why I would even bother to go to Hiram and stand in the hot sun on a Saturday afternoon. Aside from the fact that there is a Cheeseburger BobbyÐÔÊӽ紫ý just down the road from the protest site, I went because every American has the right to assembly and freedom of speech. Whether or not we agree on an issue, we all have the right and the duty to make our views known. Peacefully.

My Uncle Joe, who would probably be a MAGA supporter if he were alive today, used to say that if you don’t use it, you lose it. I liked Uncle Joe. He was wrong about as many times as he was right, but in this case I think he nailed it.