Something must be done
About vengeance, a badge and a gun
'Cause I'll rip the mike, rip the stage, rip the system
I was born to rage against 'em

 

"Know Your Enemy" - Rage Against The Machine

For me, day two of the Republican National Convention was all about the very different ways Americans express their anger and dissatisfaction with the United States government, and the Republican Party in particular.

It began at The Target Center where former US presidential candidate Ron Paul's growing army of followers had assembled for the Rally For The Republic.  What is it about Texas congressman Paul that inspired thousands of people from all over the country (and at least one guy I met from Austrailia) to fill a basketball arena just miles away from the Republican Convention when he isn't the party's nominee?

According to Trevor Lyman of www.breakthematrix.com, Paul's message resonates because it centers around allowing citizens to keep more of their own money.  "Money and wealth is actually liberty because it gives you choice.  Liberty is about having choice."

If Paul and the members of his Campaign For Liberty had their way, they would end the War in Iraq, bring American troops home from overseas, abolish the IRS, abolish the Federal Reserve, and other large expensive programs like Medicare.  They are working towards this goal by organizing and creating a grassroots network of likeminded individuals and groups who want to change the way government is run.

Lyman stepped into the vanguard of this fight when he helped organize moneybombs - grassroots fundraising events that infused millions of dollars into Paul's presidential campaign.  All of that money came from ordinary citizens who are tired of the system, and appreciate Paul's message of liberty.

Others at the event are taking different paths to liberty.  I spoke with Chris Lawless and Will Buchanan of the Free State Project, a group of individuals and families who are moving to the state of New Hampshire.  Their plan is to use their activism and numbers to create the freest state in the nation.  Buchanan and his wife Brooke are walking across the country to promote the project as they move from Hawaii to New Hampshire.

The members of Ron Paul's revolution are mostly conservative Libertarians and Republicans.  Over in St. Paul, liberal and progressive activists staged an event called Ripple Effect where outspoken political artists like Michael Franti, Anti-Flag, and Dead Prez joined activists like CodePink co-founder Medea Benjamin, Native American activist and former Green Party vice-presidential nominee Winona Laduke, and current Green Party VP nominee Rosa Clemente for a concert to promote peace and social justice.

The Ripple Effect  event highlighted an approach to revolution that seems a bit different from the Rally for the Republic's.  While people at both gatherings talked about the erosion of civil liberties in the US, the Rally focused on the ways Americans can calmly use the freedoms we have to gain more freedom.  At Ripple Effect, activists expressed their anger at the government, and railed against the abuse and injustice that exist.

One highlight of the event, however, displayed both sides of the coin.

Minnesota State Police refused to allow Rage Against The Machine on stage at The Ripple Effect Concert. Officers said the band didn't have a permit to perform and was not part of the event though they were invited by organizers and  Anti-Flag. The bands and organizers argued that no individual artist had signed a permit, and singling out Rage was a violation of the band's free speech. 

The crowd shouted "Let them play" and sang "The Star-Spangled Banner", but the police officers were steadfast, and formed a line to prevent the band from taking the stage.

When negotiations failed, Rage went into the crowd and performed acapella thru a bullhorn.  The energy created was phenomenal.  It was a testiment to the power of Rage Against The Machine's music and to the power of music as a transformative agent.

Afterward though, the crowd left the concert and folded into a Poor People's March that was already in progress.  The peaceful leaders of that protest sometimes clashed with the energized and angered young people who came from the concert.  Chants in the crowd alternated between "Healthcare is a human right" and "Whose streets?  Our streets!"

The police intimidation, which has been heavy-handed throughout the RNC increased as the march got closer to the Xcel Center.  When the protest arrived at the RNC's gates, the parade was closed up behind the free speech zones.

Leaders of the poor people's march went inside to deliver a citizen's arrest to the RNC for "crimes against humanity".  The thousands of once angry protestors waited outside quietly.  Once the symbolic arrest warrant was delivered, many people left.  Those who didn't were met with more tear gas and intimidation from the police.

In the end, all the revolutionary energy dissipated because so many people were ready to act, but had no idea what to do.