Over three months ago, an acquaintance of mine expressed a problem he had with men in Arizona protesting legislation against immigrants. During the seventh inning of the Arizona Diamondbacks’ game against the New York Mets, two men carried Mexican flags and ran across the field.

“This is the wrong way to express your disapproval,” he said. “If you simply can’t stand it here . then go back and take your flag with you..”

There are two kinds of protest: essential and destructive.

Essential protest is a force that challenges perceived wrongs, such as legislation that allows authorities to profile people.

Destructive protest demeans people, often demanding that they be silent or leave the country.

The men who ran across the baseball field were clothed, and their flag was not the Confederate flag or a swastika.

They chanted, “Oppose racism!” and “Boycott Arizona!”

Their protest was justified and their statement was heard. No one was harmed.

Kirk Gibson, interim manager of the Diamondbacks, said, “You have an opinion, I have an opinion. They have the right to say what they want, but it’s no distraction.”

British imperialists felt differently about Gandhi, who liberated India after years of passive resistance, fasting, and imprisonment. He inspired millions.

Where there are class hierarchies and bigotry, there must be a voice eager to confront injustice.

Not all protests are born primarily to change laws. Some aim to combat hatred at a local level.

The Westboro Baptist Church, known for protesting at the funerals of homosexuals and soldiers, faced essential protest when they arrived outside the courthouse after having rallied at Matthew Shepard’s funeral.

Facing the loss of their son to a hate crime, Shepard’s parents would have had to continue enduring the sight of the church’s infuriating disregard for human loss.

Shepard’s friend Romaine Patterson became the founder of Angel Action, and she organized a group of people wearing wings that stood 10 feet high as they stood outside the courthouse and blocked the church’s members from sight.

In Washington, D.C., hundreds of Muslims began their first annual event known as “Islam on Capitol Hill.” Muslim families brought their children through the halls of Congress and shared speeches on the Capitol lawn.

The organizer of the event, Abdul Malik, said, “It’s important for young Muslims to understand … that this is a land of freedom, even though there may be people objecting to building a mosque in New York or threatening to burn the Quran. Muslim children need to know that this is their country and that they have a responsibility to protect and honor it.”

Malik received a plethora of hate mail for his efforts; he plans to coordinate the event every year.

The controversy of the mosque in New York is a prime example of the importance in exposing the nation to the pressures and responsibilities of a country that values freedom.

Natalie Maines of the Dixie Chicks vocalized that she was ashamed George Bush was from Texas. There was an uprising of anger and a series of death threats from Americans who felt betrayed, but her band’s next album – a product of essential protest – won multiple Grammy awards.

“Shut up and sing,” they were told. They didn’t shut up, but they did sing. People listened.

Two decades ago, thousands of protesters in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square were killed. The military opened fire on them in an act of destructive protest, an act of mass murder.

The following morning, a man known as “Tank Man” and “Unknown Rebel” blocked a line of Chinese tanks. He stood in front of the leading tank and moved only when the tank attempted to turn past him.

No one knows if he is alive or dead. His name is also unknown, but the image of him standing in front a column of tanks is an awe-inspiring message that we must stand up for what is right.

A protest such as that is never pointless. At worst, it is a message that goes lost to those not listening, but it endures and continues for those willing to hear it.

You do not have to agree with someone, but you cannot ignore a person who is standing in front of a moving tank.

In the words of another important protester: “You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one. I hope someday you will join us, and the world will be as one.

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