Why Are Demonstrations And Protests A Part Of Life?

They are going on regularly

Demonstrations are sometimes called rallies or protests

People may wonder when the demonstrations and protests will end. The answer is likely never. They have become part of life in the United States. There will always be some issue that people feel passionate about so they will make their feelings known through demonstrations.

There have been protests and demonstrations over the past few years about politics, racism, shootings, COVID, masks, LGBTQ, transgender, Ukraine, and for many other reasons or topics.

After the killing of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer, racism again came to the forefront in the news and on the minds of most people. Peaceful demonstrations against racism and police brutality of Black men began all around the United States with some in other parts of the world as well. The protests went on for a long time. Sometimes they were not peaceful, and there was a heavy police presence.

There were protests when Donald Trump and his followers were claiming that the election was stolen from him.

Some demonstrations or rallies turned into riots with destruction to property and death to people such as happened on January 6, 2021, in Washington, D.C. at the Capitol.

People are protesting because changes are not being made. It takes a lot of time to make meaningful change to laws and attitudes. There has been a LOT of time which has gone by since protests against racism began decades ago.

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. started working diligently on civil rights with peaceful protests in the 1950s. He was a minister who preached nonviolence. He and his followers would not fight back when they were attacked by police and others during the protests when they turned into riots.

The riots in Los Angeles went on for two weeks in 1991 after the beating of Rodney King was caught on camera. Trayvon Martin was a 17 year old Black youth when he was shot in Florida in 2012 by George Zimmerman, who was acquitted of the murder. Michael Brown was 18 when he was killed by a police officer in Ferguson, Missouri. Freddie Gray was 25 when he died in police custody in Baltimore in 2015.

Many acts of injustice and inequality against Black people have occurred. Local protests were held for many of the incidents.

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Diversity is part of life. Yet racism exists throughout the world.

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Racism has gone on for far too long. There have been chances to fix things for years, and still racism continues. Although some progress has been made, there is still much racism which is adversely affecting minorities. Demonstrations are held to bring attention to the matter of racism.

During this time of the coronavirus pandemic, people are protesting against other things besides racism. They are fighting for their “rights” to not wear masks, to not practice social distancing, and to do whatever they please. People protested against the opening of schools. Some people are finding any excuse to hold their own demonstrations.

Why have demonstrations, protests, rallies, and riots become such a big part of our lives? Because people want their voices heard and their views made known. They have found an effective way to get attention.

Conditions in the world need to improve so that there can be fewer protests. Some peaceful demonstrations were beneficial. Actions must be taken so that people can have a better life and lessen the need for protests.

Our problems are man-made, therefore they may be solved by man. No problem of human destiny is beyond human beings. [John F. Kennedy]

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