There’s nothing un-American about protesting
In light of the recent protests regarding Obamacare and women’s rights, which are prompting local demonstrations in solidarity, we should keep in mind that the election of Donald Trump to the presidency was the result of a mass protest, a national voter protest.
In fact the election and re-election of President Barack Obama can also be seen as a protest vote, with large numbers of voters protesting for change.
The right to protest is an all-American tradition, indirectly codified in the First Amendment of the Constution allowing the people to “petition the government for a redress of grievances.” Peaceably assembling (another First Amendment freedom) to protest is a form of democracy in action.
Local events related to national protests are reported in this newspaper not because we are taking the side of the protesters, but because it is news you need to know. You need to know what issues are important enough to your fellow Americans that they are compelled to take to the streets to express their opposition. You need to know that such events are not just taking place in the community where you live but across the country as well.
Coverage of these events is printed the newspaper because you as a reader and voter need to know about what is going on in your community, in your state and in your country in order to cast an informed vote in the next election.
Covering protests does not mean we as a newspaper support one cause or another, just as printing a news story on a terrorist attack does not constitute an endorsement of terrorism. The coverage does indicate our passionate endorsement of the freedoms of speech and the press in the First Amendment, which also includes the people’s right to protest the government’s actions.
We might not agree with what the protesters say, but we fully support their right to say it.
Instead of canceling your subscription to this portal of knowledge and information because we cover a protest that conflicts with your values and opinions within the echo chamber you live in on social media, we would suggest you use your local newspaper to advocate your point of view.
How? Write a letter to the editor. Or even better, organize supporters — the more, the better — make signs with lots of color and big letters and peaceably march for your cause.
This newspaper is here for all the people, regardless of where they fall on the political spectrum, because we are dedicated to the proposition that all people are created equal.
A Daily Mining Gazette editorial