A different crowd

Right now, an enormous crowd is outside our apartment. They're not wearing red and yellow. They're not waving flags. Instead they're waving signs. “Papa go home” one read. “My taxes are not for your beliefs,” said another. It’s a little scary when an anti-Pope and anti-WYD protest is going on right outside your window. Especially when I’m part of the opposing group, and the uprising requires cops in riot gear and helicopters. I felt especially bad for a group of WYD volunteers who were walking down my street in their bright green official polos.

The news said that this protest was a conglomerate of anti-Pope groups, gay rights and pro-choice supporters, and a secular movement here in Spain that emphasizes the separation of church and state. Other groups and lines of beliefs were likely involved.

I don’t mind protests. I agree with the right to dissent. I think people should be allowed to voice their opinions even if they are against my own beliefs and life principles. I don’t, however, condone disrespect, fighting, mob intimidation, or vandalism.

There was a good amount of property damage last night just outside my window. This morning, I awoke to walls littered with graffiti.

I must admit, in terms of pride, these protesters certainly matched the levels of the youth marching around Madrid with their flags, singing songs and acknowledging their fellow comrades. The only difference is that one movement was rooted in good values that uplift, and the other had roots that sprouted destruction and degradation.

In the end, no I don’t agree with the protesters on several points – though some I may share some sympathies with, like their economic frustrations– but I will, like Voltaire and Evelyn Beatrice Hall, defend their right to say it… in a peaceful way.