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Volume 27, Issue 14, November 11, 2004

Opinion

Dancin' in the streets

mugZoë Williams
Columnist

Before the election, Eminem released the lamest video of this election season. Cartoons of young infuriated people threw down their disappointments and suited up in black sweatshirts similar to those worn by the revolutionary anarchist black bloc. They stormed through the streets, at one point resolving police confrontation with a fire hose, their masses building. Eminem even said “Fuck Bush!” I was watching thinking, is Eminem actually doing something important?

But alas, Eminem led his flock, quite capable of making significant change, to register to vote.

The time has come for Eminem’s cartoon mob mask up, time for the hundreds of dedicated people on the Auraria Campus to take charge. That’s right, folks, it is time to take some direct action, reclaim everything that was stolen from us the moment this country accepted representational government.

One half of the country that showed up to the polls did not vote for W. That means just shy of 56 million people do not want a homophobic, war mongering, woman hating, corporate sock monkey in office. Add to that the 500,000 plus who voted third party, and the unknown non-voting masses. These are phenomenal numbers, numbers that can change the world.

Allow me to pull a John Lennon for a moment. Imagine if the thousands of people who worked so hard registering voters and ensuring turnout redirected their energies to mobilizing. Imagine if Punkvoter, Billionaires for Bush, Sheryl Crow and Bruce Springsteen brought the dedicated following that they herded to the ballot boxes into the streets.

Imagine if billionaire George Soros of Move On were willing to spend the millions of dollars he threw into television commercials on bailing activists out of jail.

Imagine if Inauguration Day just couldn’t happen. Four years ago, W. could not get out of his limo due to 20,000 protesters and an assault of eggs. What if this year he couldn’t even get out of bed, because 56 million protesters had shut down the U.S.?

No more business as usual, no more rallying under flags as Americans. Imagine if America refused to shut up and shop, and united under burning flags and banners. You may say that I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.

John Kerry may have lost this election, but that does not necessarily mean that George W. Bush won it. The fact of the matter is he cannot win if we do not let him. This is the era of direct action. Radical politics won this election.

Reform is only successful when the head honchos of the conjoined twin parties feel so much pressure from people in the streets, they throw them a bone. Want to make change? Want to stop this war machine? Want rights to safe and legal abortions? Want to stay out of Guantanamo Bay and still express dissent? Then, I’ll see you in the streets.

To quote James Larkin, “The great only appear as such because we are on our knees, LET US RISE!”