The Smaller Protests Are the Bigger Story
And how I met the future on Saturday
She couldn’t have been more than 8 years old.
Her height was a dead giveaway; she looked to be about 4 feet tall. But she also had that lilting child’s voice, which I could hear clearly as she turned to face me and direct the crowd that lined the street:
“When I say no, you say kings! NO~!”
The passion that came out of such a small frame made me take a step back.
“KINGS!” The crowd dutifully responded.
She continued back and forth – leading a crowd of adults in a call-and-response chant with perfect cadence, self-assured and as if this was the most typical thing in the world.
Then she flipped around to face the streams of passing cars, waving her hand-drawn sign (“Trump is a hissi [sic] fit!” in child’s handwriting.).
“This kid’s the future,” I thought to myself.
My heart nearly burst.
Is this what hope feels like?
We were at a relatively small protest – just outside the local park, on a busy intersection in South St. Louis City. There were more than 14 protests across the state of Missouri, and some regionally were over 7k+ in size.
But this one was more organic – a pop-up of a few hundred people that came together when folks who weren’t able to or interested in attending a larger protest found one another, found a good corner, and joined hands.
In that context, in that smaller protest venue, that school girl found her voice.
Small things can be big inspiration.
Obviously, big things happened over the weekend that rightly got big headlines.
Massive crowds in the tens of thousands turned out; collectively, we were millions. Images of protesters flooding the streets of Chicago, LA, New York are breathtaking and hope-creating.
But those aren’t the photos that I linger over. Those aren’t the photos that get me in the feels.
No, I ponder over the photos of the people at small gatherings in places you might not expect – in places where there’s a high cost to protest.
Like the images of 400 hundred people protesting – in the rain – in Chardon, Ohio, population of 5,242:
And the 200 in Bellfontaine, Ohio, which has a population of 14k:
I loved the images of protests in Ephraim, Utah, with a population of 6,108:
And I tip my hat to this fellow in Emmonak, Alaska, population 787:
33 people turned out in Seldovia, Alaska, which has a population of 78.
That’s not a typo.
While 600 showed up in Hamilton, Montana, which has a population 5,268:
115 people came out to protest in Salmon, Idaho – which has a population of 3,295.
Bonners Ferry has a population of 2,697 and went to Trump 80/20; 60 people showed up to say #NoKings.
On the other side of the country there’s Millinocket, Maine – 40 protesters in a city with a population of 4,111.
And there’s Bluefield, West Virginia, where 200 turned out in a town with a population of 9,272.
Another 200 turned out in Winchester, TN – population 9,978:
And 60 turned out in Alpine, Wyoming – population 1,332. (This is a great article, by the way.)
How could you not be inspired after seeing these images from the reddest parts of the country, where there’s a social cost to publicly being a Democrat?
And – at least to me – that’s the breakthrough story of the weekend. It’s a story of grit, dedication, determination, and passion playing out on dirt roads and small towns all across the country.
It’s the story of Red State Democrats who are refusing to be quiet, even if speaking up may cost them friends or business or their career – or their peace of mind.
A few months ago an Ohio state legislative nominee sent photos of some pro-Democratic yard signs and postcards that local Dems were distributing in her super-red district, which includes the town of Athens.
She was excited because they were able to put the signs in people’s actual yards, as opposed to public property. In the last election – just a few months ago – she could only get a handful of Democrats to put her campaign sign out on their lawns.
I asked her why. “It was too dangerous,” she explained.
But on Saturday, in that same district, a few hundred people attended the #NoKings protest.
Things are … happening.
Diving into the images and stories behind the small-town protests, I kept thinking about that schoolgirl, leading a call-and-response chant at a small protest on a street corner in St. Louis.
I kept thinking about how moved I was by her passion, and about how moved I am by these small gatherings by Red State Democrats in places where they’d be forgiven for being quiet.
Friend, seemingly small things can punch way above their inspirational weight.
The Red State Democrats organizing, protesting, and running in the reddest places in the country truly inspire the hell out of me.
I’m glad so many people got to witness their work this weekend.
Now let’s help them keep it going.
Let’s get to work.
P.S. It’s been my literal dream to build communities of people like you and me that support the Democrats running in the reddest places in the country – a sort of cheerleading team of activists and fundraisers and doers. I like to think that’s what we’ve built at Every State Blue. A structure, a community, an engine that supports the people doing the toughest work in the toughest places – and supports each other in the process.
I’ll be honest that the first few years I saw a lot of smirks, plenty of side-eye and even an eye roll or two.
But now it’s different. Now I feel like there’s a tide turning – a focus shift. It’s as if suddenly everyone can see the sea of Democratic voters that have been hiding in plain sight all along, just waiting for someone to turn in their direction, give them some encouragement, show them some support.
If that’s your jam, too, I hope you’ll check out Every State Blue and either support us (which you can do here) or join one of our projects: Blue Missouri (with Jess Piper!), Blue Ohio (with David Pepper!), and Blue Tennessee.
Actions for the Week of June 17, 2025
Friend, things may be heavy – but you can lighten that load by doing something small – a “small deed” – to bring about the world that you want to see. In doing so we tell the world, the universe, our leaders – and most importantly, ourselves – that we will not go quietly into that good night.
I call it Action Therapy.
That’s why in each Tuesday post I share a few “small things” – usually a Small Thing to Read, a Small Event to Attend, and a Small Call to Make or Action to Take. My intention here is to give you actions you can tuck into your week with ease – and know that you’re doing something today to make tomorrow better.
Join me in doing so. It matters.
Small Actions to Take: No War With Iran, Plus NoKings – What’s Next?
The developing situation in Iran is more than concerning. It’s an unconstitutional power play by a deeply disturbed wanna be dictator. Reminder that war powers are reserved for Congress – so it’s important for Congress to step in here.
Yes, you’re right that the power to tariff and the power to appropriate funds are ALSO congressional powers and we’ve seen what Congress has been willing to stomach in Trump’s unconstitutional power grab. But we can remind them that they have more power here, and we can demand they exert it. (Reminder, too, that sometimes they need the excuse of constituent pressure – so let’s give that to them, shall we?)
After seeing the paltry response at Trump’s Silly Sad Parade and the hearty vibrant response at No Kings (alongside the general desire to avoid WWIII) we may get more sign-on for this measure.
There are a number of resolutions and measures that have already been introduced in both chambers. (See https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-war-powers-act-congress-iran-israel/)
So call your Senators and your Representative. If you don’t have their number in your phone, no worries – just call 202-224-3121, which is the DC Switchboard. They’ll connect you with the correct office based upon your address.
Script: Hi, my name is (name) and I’m a constituent at (zip). I’m calling because I’m very concerned about what’s happening with Iran – and that the president is acting as if he has the power to declare strikes on his own. The constitution reserves war powers for Congress. I’m asking the Senator/Congress(wo)man to sign onto the measures the president to seek congressional approval before going to war with Iran.
Second, if you’ve been wondering what to do now that No Kings is over, then I’ve got a great resource. NoKings.org has put together a great website with phone banks, action ideas, and resources from their coalition partners. You should check it out:
https://www.nokings.org/next/?SQF_SOURCE=rogan%27slist&utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email
Small Event(s) to Attend Wednesday:
At 11am central: Political Revolution and 50501 present a crash course on Civil Resistance!
During this course they will go over the core tenets of Civil Resistance, and why non-violent principles are the focus of sustained resistance worldwide. They will look at examples in history as to how these kinds of principles have worked at overthrowing oppressive regimes.
Register here.
At 7pm eastern: Inside Project 2025 with The Atlantic’s David Graham moderated by Andra Watkins; June 18 @ 7:00 pm - 8:00 pm EDT
On Wednesday BigTentUSA will host an urgent and insightful conversation with David Graham, staff writer at The Atlantic and author of the new book The Project: How Project 2025 Is Reshaping America and Andra Watkins, founder of bestselling Substack newsletter For Such Time as This (formerly How Project 2025 Will Ruin YOUR Life).
Graham and Watkins will provide crucial insights into the ideological and political machinery driving one of the most consequential shifts in modern U.S. history. They will also delve into the roles of key figures such as Russ Vought, Stephen Miller, and other Trump-era officials who helped craft and now execute this agenda.
Register here.
Small Thing to Read: 50 Ways to Take Action + New Navigator Polling
You already knew that physical protests aren’t the only way to take action, but it’s easy to get stuck in a bit of an activism rut. And if you’re an organizer, it’s easy to forget that some folks can’t protest in person (for a whole host of reasons) – and that putting together some alternatives for them can be fun and creative and engaging.
This piece by Amnesty lists some creative, wonderful ways you can get in the way. Check it out – I promise it will give you some ideas!
https://www.amnestyusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/50-Ways-to-Take-Action.pdf
New Navigator polling has come out this morning, and it’s a bruising report for Republicans. This is a quick scan, with great data to pull out but very clear recommendations:
Focus on the impact when messaging about Congressional Republicans’ proposed budget plan: Costs will go up and benefits will be cut, while the wealthy and big corporations receive additional tax breaks.
Acknowledge the tax system is broken and rigged to benefit the wealthiest individuals instead of people who work for a living.
Highlight the “why” — Republicans in Congress want to cut Medicaid and increase costs for everyday Americans so they can give additional tax breaks to already wealthy individuals and corporations.
Thanks for reading, friend – I’m glad to see you here! You’re making a difference, I promise.
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We had just over 300 people in Lowell, MI. Lowell is anything but a blue town, pop 6300. Grand Rapids had thousands, just 18 miles away. Holland MI had great turn out as well.
It was great to be amongst others with similar views here in an area which has traditionally been quite red.
This was my first protest.
Wildly, I'm not sure I'm quite up for calling the people "who represent us" - But I'm absolutely going to keep hitting the rallies in CoMo, assuming I'm not running fertilizer to a farmer's field out here in NEMO.
Moberly had, if I remember, some thing amount - 70, I seem to recall. And it's ... well... You know.
But to hear that Moberly had one at all was the most uplifting thing I've heard in ages.
This protest got me joining Swing Blue, North East and North West MO Democratic clubs, and hoping Iight be able to round up the remnants of the Monroe County Democrats, soy little town of 1200- can start putting it out there, too.
Might even get the gumption to put the MCD back together, if I find they've been dissolved; Almost everyone I talk to out here has some reason to resent this regime, and I suspect they're getting fed up with Business As Usual in Jeff, as well.