The day was bright. The crowd was big. The roads along Waikiki, Kapiolani, and Magic Island were closed off by the city on January 28 for an organized protest for a crisis thousands of miles away. More than 3,000 activists and organizers of many backgrounds had gathered together to walk those streets for one shared cause: Palestinian liberation. It is an issue the center of which takes place on the opposite side of the globe, being voiced and fought for all the way here in Hawai’i. I was one of those protesters, along with a close friend of mine who had pushed me and many others to get educated and involved.
When we arrived it was exciting to see the number of people who were already congregating around the designated meeting area, all of vastly different demographics, all wearing the same shirts which were being distributed for free by the organizers. These shirts were a visual representation of our unity. And the energy was just contagious. People were freely striking up conversation with one another, introducing themselves, talking about life, politics, themselves. These were a collection of some of the strongest individuals I’ve ever seen.
It takes courage to come out to a protest. There’s always the threat of violence present, as it can be difficult to control large groups of people, and even harder to control those from outside the group. And beyond that, it’s scary to just go out there and be seen. Every time I go out to protest, I have a lingering anxiety at the back of my mind that I may be caught up in a picture or video posted to the news, and that by some unlikely chance my parents, teachers, coaches, or classmates might see it.
There’s this perspective held by many people that those who push for change “care too much.” In today’s culture people seem to be put off by sincerity. It can be associated with a lack of self-awareness, to make your problems their problems. This combined with the idea that any action taken to try to make meaningful change is empty, as though we as individuals cannot in any way affect the world around us.
And, they’re almost right.
Individuals can’t get much done on their own, but the real power comes from large-scale organization, a bringing together of many people behind one common cause: the strength in numbers. I believe strongly in this particular cause, yet I was still hesitant. If it weren’t for my friend, I would probably never have gone out to do something like this. And consequently, that friend wouldn’t have been able to go either because their parents don’t want them going alone.
The point of my experience is not to protest, specifically. My point is to pay attention to the world around you, find something that interests you, then find people. Come together. Learn about it. Make a difference.
