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The Wisconsin Protest Outdraws Glenn Beck’s Rally To Restore Honor
You wouldn’t know it if you were relying only on cable news, but according to the city of Madison, today’s protest was the largest yet. 85,000-150,000 Wisconsin residents took to the streets to stand up for their freedoms. This protest was larger than any Tea Party rally including Glenn Beck’s Rally to Restore Honor.
According to a press release from the city of Madison, “The largest gathering of the recent sustained protest movement took place Saturday, March 12th with an estimated 85,000 to 100,000 people coming to downtown Madison. They mixed with about 50 farmers on tractors, and some officers reported one donkey among the masses. At the end of the rally, there had been no arrests, and only a couple of minor medical emergencies. Law enforcement would again like to thank everyone who came to the Isthmus for keeping the peace, for being patient, and for respecting those with opposing views.”
The Madison estimate might be on the low end. According to the AFL-CIO blog attendance was estimated at 150,000, “With crowd estimates as high as 150,000 for the rally in Madison, Wisconsin working people prepared for the next step in their struggle for democracy and the middle class. They are mobilizing to recall at least eight Republican senators who participated in a rigged vote to take away public employee bargaining rights.”
In contrast the media hyped Rally to Restore Honor managed to draw only 87,000 people, and most of those were Republican activists who had been bused in for free by Freedom Works. The high end estimate for Beck’s rally is 100,000 which means that, a national rally put together and publicized by a right wing media feature with national radio and television shows, at best was able to equal one protest in Madison, Wisconsin.
There was no national media hype for the protest in Madison today. Heck, the national media, minus MSNBC, won’t even acknowledge the Wisconsin protests. For weeks now, more people have turned out for protests in Wisconsin than for any Tea Party event, but yet the media continues to ignore Wisconsin.
The reason for the media cold shoulder is that real grassroots movements, like what is happening in Wisconsin, are dangerous to corporate interests. Corporations don’t want more unionization. Workers with rights cost more, so they don’t want this whole power to the people thing catching on. What can’t be ignored is that there is a strong anti-corporate mood helping to fuel the re energized grass roots of the left, and in this era of news for profit, a backlash against corporate power in political process is not good for the bottom line. Instead of covering real news, the corporate media decides to stick with much safer corporate backed AstroTurf like the Tea Party and Glenn Beck.
Since much of the media has determined that right wing action sells, and the progressive narratives are dangerous, they do what they can to ignore stories of true protests and liberty in action. It is amazing what the protesters in Wisconsin have been able to do without the help of the media. Today’s Madison rally featured Tony Shaloub. Last weekend’s rally featured Michael Moore. Glenn Beck’s Rally to Restore Honor featured both Beck and Sarah Palin.
Yet, more Americans showed up in Madison than in Washington, D.C. to see Glenn Beck’s Tea Party circus. This fact is a testament to the true power of the feeling of liberty in all male and female hearts. Passions about freedom and liberty can’t be manufactured. They can’t be artificially added as a facade by corporate interests. It has to be real, and what’s going on in Wisconsin, and all over the country is real.
The media can only ignore it for so long. Their propping up of faux rallies and the corporate puppetry of Glenn Beck is an anesthetic that has worn off. Each night as the moguls of corporate media leave their towers and step into the evening air, they can hear a low rumble coming from the west.
Off in the distance the faint roar of American liberty can be heard, and each day the roar is moving closer. Hour by hour it gets a little louder, and soon the Republicans and all of their corporate masters will be swept asunder, because in the heart of America, freedom can never be denied.
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32 Responses to The Wisconsin Protest Outdraws Glenn Beck’s Rally To Restore Honor
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Sarah Jones
Mar. 12th, 2011 at 10:04 pm
I am so proud of these folks. I love this post. And damn you, you made me cry.
Shiva (Moderator)
Mar. 12th, 2011 at 10:33 pm
You were looking for a reason to cry all along and you know it
Sarah Jones
Mar. 12th, 2011 at 10:44 pm
OK, I got the weeper of the house disease, I admit it. I hear my case is only temporary, though.
Phil Perspective
Mar. 13th, 2011 at 3:13 am
Speaking of crying. Maybe this will make Orange Julius cry. ;-)
Roy Orbison – “Crying”
MyAgendaIsTruth
Mar. 13th, 2011 at 9:27 pm
Try again you left wing progressive loons. Glenn Beck’s 8/28 Restoring Honor Rally in DC had 500,000+ people there not 87,000 the the liberal lame stream media lied about. Your protest was 90% students from the University a few minutes from the capital. They don’t pay taxes and are clueless about the real world. There was no trash or violence unlike your protest. People came from all 50 states at their own expense to Glenn Beck’s rally. Your rally was paid for by Unions who forced their people there to act outraged. You lost grow up act like an adult for once.
Shiva (Moderator)
Mar. 13th, 2011 at 10:09 pm
500,000? LOL!
Dan
Mar. 13th, 2011 at 10:31 pm
Dear Mr. Agenda: that’s total pants. None of the outrage was forced, and the overwhelming majority of the crowd were working people with their families. Look at any of the crowd photos taken by people who were there if you want to check this. The students who were there were a small part, and they are graduate students who also work. If you’re looking for a fight, we’ll see you at the ballot box. But in the mean time stop spreading insults, misinformation and hate.
Shiva (Moderator)
Mar. 13th, 2011 at 10:33 pm
You cant take anyone who thinks there were 500,000 people at the rally to restore silliness. Judging by Arial photos, that means that Stewarts rally had well over a million
Scott Rose
Mar. 12th, 2011 at 10:15 pm
It would appear honor has not yet been restored.
Sarah Jones
Mar. 12th, 2011 at 10:28 pm
Ha:-) Some would say that honor can not be restored where it never existed.
Nancy Lund
Mar. 12th, 2011 at 10:25 pm
And last week, Michael Moore was a surprise — it was not advertised that he would appear. I too am so proud of these real American!
TksABunchJohn
Mar. 12th, 2011 at 11:57 pm
Tony Shaloub was not announced either. Reverend Jesse Jackson was there as well, and gave a beautiful speech and prayer. The real rock STARS of the rally were by far the Fab 14 brave and heroic Senators. They each took at turn at the mic. It was truly thrilling to cheer and thank each one. Historic day. I am so honored to have been there.
MyAgendaIsTruth
Mar. 13th, 2011 at 9:31 pm
Michael Moore is one of those ‘evil’ rich people you progressive love to hate. Why not take his 10′s of millions and pay for the teachers. He is suing to get an additional $18 million. He is worth 50 million so he isn’t one of you. Just like Jesse Jackson or Trumpka they are all rich you are the ones making these idiots rich.
Shiva (Moderator)
Mar. 13th, 2011 at 10:14 pm
“rich people you progressive love to hate.”
Actually, we only hate corrupt rich people.
Secondly, Moore’s complaint with the rich was that they own far too much of the country’s wealth.
For example, right now the wealthy in this country own 80% of the wealth, the middle class and poor 20%.
For a country to be successful, the wealthy should have 20% of the wealth, the upper middle class 20%, the middle class 20% the lower middle 20% and the lower class 20%
Most people picked up on that.
Shiva (Moderator)
Mar. 12th, 2011 at 10:27 pm
So lets review:
Grassroots movement made up of hate and racism = Good copy.
Grassroots movement made up of people expressing their constitutional rights to protest a total attempt to destroy constitutional rights = bad copy.
There are several things that must happen. The removal of the main stream media to allow new media to spring up and compete for news. The country must be convinced to stop watching the news networks and get the stuff from various overseas sources
Removal by recall or election of all GOP people that try to do what Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio etc are doing.
Oh, Beck? When they found out there would be no signs, hangings, black people dragged behind cars, Jesus wasnt gonna show up, they couldnt spit tobacco on the grounds, not too many tea baggers were left to show up
Karen
Mar. 12th, 2011 at 11:23 pm
I wanted to stand up reading the last paragraph… Im inspired, allrighty – and it feels good. =]
Alli
Mar. 12th, 2011 at 11:28 pm
Apparently rational people are boring.
L
Mar. 12th, 2011 at 11:44 pm
Way cool… thank you!
TksABunchJohn
Mar. 13th, 2011 at 1:05 am
I can say Jason, that I was there the day there were 70,000 people (the day Brietbart bussed in his astroturf), and I was there today. It was probably double the people. It was mind boggling – and it was nothing less than festive jubilation and camaraderie.
To put this into perspective, Milwaukee holds the world’s largest music festival, Summerfest, which draws hundreds of thousands every year (over 10 days). I will avoid it unless there’s a must-see band, as I am prone to claustrophobia, and Summerfest crowds have sent me into panic attacks in the past. The massively more huge crowd today, so united, so UN-defeated, so energized, effected me not at all. I didn’t even think about the fact that I should have been alarmed by the size of the crowd until I was on my long drive home. Amazing! Smiling, laughing, singing, chanting, exchanging ideas, fist-bumping….and after the speeches, in one of the many great taverns of Madison, hugging, taking pictures with, and tipping beers with people from all over the country. Michigan, Illinois, Minnesota, New Mexico (he booked a flight as soon as he watched the 3 minute vote). None of these folks I talked to were bussed in. They came of their own volition. I know that there were buses today, but many came on their own. We exchanged twitter names, emails…
I was curious about who watches MSNBC at night and when they started, so I conducted my own personal poll. I was thrilled to find out that most I asked said they just started watching 3 weeks ago, and that they are now addicted! Rachel Maddow, Lawrence and Ed were not set to record every night. This is fantastic news, as as you stated, Jason, the main stream media is turning their corporate backs on what is happening, they are part and parcel to the right wing agenda.
I am heartened, the country is waking up to what we, the choir, have known for a long time. Scott Walker, I believe, will go down in history. But, it will be the wrong side of it.
TksABunchJohn
Mar. 13th, 2011 at 1:18 am
Correction: Are NOW set to tivo… hey, I did tip a couple beers, and it’s midnight, and I’m blissfully exhausted!
novenator
Mar. 13th, 2011 at 1:23 am
It also needs to be noted that there has been a severe lack of coverage by the so-called “liberal media” over the last 3 weeks where hundreds of thousands of people have protested in all 50 states around the country too: www.politicususa.com/en/w...
novenator
Mar. 13th, 2011 at 1:24 am
crap, linked to this post. I meant to link here: freakoutnation.com/2011/0...
majii
Mar. 13th, 2011 at 6:04 am
The MSM may not be reporting it, but you can believe that the corporatists are paying close attention to these protests!
Eykis
Mar. 13th, 2011 at 10:13 am
Jason,
Great article. Thanks for reporting. Thank you to the Wisconsinites who are making their voices heard for the rest of the American populace.
There have been rallies daily here in Nashville and they get NO MENTION on the national media. They are reported here on the local media but I have not heard a single word nationally. The states that are mentioned are Ohio, Michigan, Indiana and Wisconsin. Tennessee is just one of the many other states with protests going and it should be reported.
There is a national Jobs rally on Tuesday – everyone must sign up.
Hey Boner,
WHERE ARE THE JOBS?
Anne
Mar. 13th, 2011 at 12:01 pm
I support the protesters 100%, and it’s extremely encouraging to know that the protests have not abated. Aside from the uplift from the fact that the numbers were so large, this protest also underscores the honor of the protesters versus the dishonor and cowardice of Walker and the 18 Republican state senators who voted with him.
Richard Baumann
Mar. 13th, 2011 at 2:23 pm
I was there both Saturdays that had record attendance. I was told personally by one of the news crews that were parked on the side street that there were 150,000 plus the 26th. They wait to brodcast at 5pm so the crowd is massively less. Check out my Facebook site if you want to ee the REAL picture. I don’t know exact amounts but I can say personally yesterday was double that of the 26th. You couldn’t move !
Shiva (Moderator)
Mar. 13th, 2011 at 3:35 pm
Glad you were there Richard
Richard Baumann
Mar. 13th, 2011 at 2:25 pm
They are starting to protest against corps. Madison has a protest against MENARDS TODAY !
Alvin
Mar. 13th, 2011 at 4:53 pm
WOW! Jason, did you ever jump the shark. Keep crowdsourcing.
Mike Kay
Mar. 14th, 2011 at 11:34 am
Truth trumps Beck!
We’ve created a workers’ rally song “Down On The Line” in support of the hardworking middle class brothers & sisters nationwide. You can listen & download it free here:
www.mikekonopka.com/downo...
Fight on! The Joe Hill Heartlanders
fit
Mar. 14th, 2011 at 2:29 pm
Stop the wars!