The Gray

Second protest march out my front door, from Alberta Park to downtown.

Impressive turnout. I don’t suspect the numbers will diminish.

My east coast homies, and the rest of the country want to know what’s up with Portland. They heard the entire city is on fire, and anarchy is on the march to their hometown. They think the crowd is 100% unemployed white kids destroying shit for no good reason, hijacking BLM.

Truth is, there's a good deal of that. Also there’s vets, moms, teachers, my neighbors, and every single other identity that make up this city. Each have their reasons for being in the mix. Income inequality, BLM, feds and fascism, unemployment, pandemic panic, general youth angst, mental illness, government lies and ineffectuality. There’s much to be angry about.

Many are marching to seek change, while some stay into the wee hours to burn this mother down. The distinction between rioter and protester have people choosing sides in yet another issue they’ve deemed black and white. They ignore nuance. They see no gray. The media loves the divide. As the Dark Side says, “Let the hate flow through you. Give in to your anger. Click on our link!”.

But as usual, the gray is the biggest part. I hate watching isolated small portions of my city destroyed, just as much as the country dislikes watching it on CNN. But I see the gray. As much as I dislike the rioter’s tactics, they’re a necessary component in the broader spectrum of the movement. We need extremes to move the needle, and that needle has been stationary far too long. This isn’t to say police shouldn’t keep riots at bay, or swiftly end violent factions within the movement. Everything in its right place.

This isn’t a partisan thing. You need extremes on both sides. I hate right-wing militia tactics, but they help move the needle to keep neoliberal government from getting too big. Too much extremism is too much, but the gray keeps that in check too.

Whether you like it or not, we are actually all in this together.

Embrace the gray, there is good in the gray.