Marches were planned for May Day today to protest the racist legislation that has been passes here in Arizona. The nativists that support such legislation were vowing massive counter-protests across the street. So what happened?
What happened is a demonstration of why those who would support legalized racism are always on the wrong side of history. The counter protestors showed up, alright They were able to muster around 30 people. Now that's a massive counter protest. Especially when you contrast it with the paltry 10,000 or so who marched in opposition to SB1070. (Initial local news accounts place the crowd at around 1,000 people, which is not correct. I saw for myself the mile-plus long group of marchers, standing shoulder to shoulder, taking up entire streets. I would have marched myself, but my back won't allow it.) I watched the group stop traffic for a solid half-hour as the crowd just kept growing and growing and growing. American flags were everywhere in the crowd. Whites and Latinos were side by side, chanting "Si Se Puede!" and cheering at the passing cars honking in support.
If this law were truly the right thing to do, if it truly enjoyed the widespread support that its backers claim, why is it they cannot get even a minimal amount of people to march on their behalf as well? It is because it is not the right thing to do. It is because the more people learn about this, the less they like the law. It is because they do not understand that every time in the past that racism has been given the color of law, the racists have always ended up on the wrong side of history.
I am a lifelong Arizonan, and the events of the past few weeks have made me ashamed of my home state. Seeing the thousands march today, however, made me feel prouder than I have in a long time.
Si, se puede.