One More Day!

That was the chant that reverberated throughout downtown Milwaukee this afternoon at the John Kerry's rally. Tens of thousands of people braved the elements and stood for several hours in the cold and wet and dreary weather just to show their support and solidarity for Kerry. Though Jon Bon Jovi was also there to perform but I didn't think that was what pulled the people to the rally. The fact that thousands of people showed up for this event was simply amazing when the weather couldn't have gotten any worse (well, it could have snowed.) Today's event reminded me of the emergency protest in DC on the first day of the Iraq invasion. The words about the protest spreaded out in a matter of a few hours after the invasion was launched, and after 5pm, there were seas of people gathering in Dupont Circle amidst the freezing rain and the battering wind-chill to participate in the protest and the march to the White House. In short, it was inspiring to see this kind of commitment of the people in trying to affect changes and in exercising their First Amendment rights. People do have the options of either sitting comfortably on their couch in the warmth of their houses watching some stupid reality-show on TV or standing out in the bone-chilling cold agitating for something they truly believe in, and these people made their choice accordingly. Anyway, I was drenching wet when I got to class but fortunately, though my books were soaked, the notes were still legible and nothing that a warm radiator won't fix.

The funny thing was, at the same time, Bush was also holding his own rally a stone's throw away from the Kerry's rally. Both rallies were only separated by a short bridge that spans the Milwaukee river--just a mere 500 feet away or so. The difference was that Bush and the rich Republicans can afford to be inside a building while the hardy souls of the Kerry's supporters were toughening it out in the freezing rain. The essence of both rallies today is just to show how important the state of Wisconsin is to this presidential election. Why choose to spend the final day of the campaign in Wisconsin--or Milwaukee for that matter--when they can go somewhere else? Wisconsin is a battleground state and this will be state that gets to decide on who will be the next President of the US. Wisconsinites are smart and independent people and they know an imposter when they see one. This is the state that has a long history of progressive political culture--Milwaukee used to have three Socialist mayors--and it doesn't take too kindly on a candidate that serves at the behest of the rich and powerful and not the will of the people. Wisconsin, with its working-class roots, has been short-shrifted for the past four years and we're not going to take it a day longer. One more day! El Pueblo Unido Jama Sera Vencido! The people united will never be defeated!