Speaking Truth to Power — Progressives Rally In Dallas On Election Eve

In Dallas, the mood was a little bit more rambunctious.

That evening, President Bush visited the “City of Exxon” to take the stage inside Reunion Arena to show his support for the seemingly-down-in-the-polls Republican Governor Rick Perry.

Then, something unusual occurred at least, unusual for Texas.

When news broke about Bush’s visit, a group of previously unconnected malcontents organized themselves, mad as hell and seeking a space to vent, and they found that space outside the arena in downtown Dallas.

Progressives in the Dallas metro area have been known to behave like a trodden-upon underclass of misanthropes, incapable of stringing together a well-funded campaign, even if their very right to dissent counted upon it. But that night showed some hope, at least for Dallas County.

At its height, the group pushed 250. As the night progressed, and the President’s limo drew nearer, news outlets around the city picked up on what was happening. And when the demonstrators started chanting, National Public Radio was on the scene.

The rally was organized by a variety of activist groups, but an inordinate number showed up because a friend of a friend heard about it on MySpace. One of the main flash points was the website DallasRally.com, which is becoming a central organizing point for pissed-off progressives in Big D.

The rally began at 4 p.m. About 100 people gathered at Ferris Plaza in front of The Dallas Morning News within the first hour. Their numbers spanned the progressive spectrum, from members of the New Black Panther Party to old-timers from the Dallas Peace Center.

“The mere presence of folks like this will show the country that even in Texas, the president will not find the support he thinks he has,” said organizer Hadi Jawad of Dallas. “We were against the war since the very beginning, while most of the country was for the war. Now, the country has turned against the war, and we feel like we have done our job. It’s a very hollow victory, though, because it has come about at the expense of close to 3,000 American lives and more than 600,000 Iraqi civilians.”

“A lot of my family’s in Iraq right now and I’m in ROTC,” said Brittany Stephenson, a DeSoto High School student. “Everybody over there in Iraq is dying for no purpose.” Stephenson turned 18 years of age on Election Day and had pre-registered to exercise her right the following day.

By nightfall, the energized group made its way to Reunion Arena.

“Before, you could watch people with all their ‘W-04’ stuff, and now I know people who tear their own stickers off,” said John Rhodes, a tattoo artist from Denton. “People would admit to me, ‘Yeah, I was against you two or three years ago, but now I’m with you.’ The movement is getting bigger.”

“BUSH ON TRIAL! BUSH ON TRIAL! BUSH ON TRIAL!” screamed the crowd, holding long banners with slogans, such as “WORST PRESIDENT EVER!” and “W stands for WAR CRIMES!” One chant that drew laughs from the otherwise angry demonstrators was, “Where is the pretzel? Up his ass!”