There was a freak-fest on Peachtree Street today. More accurately, there was a libertarian "End the Fed" rally at the Federal Reserve building in Atlanta. Unfortunately, it became a freak-fest. Please don't misunderstand me: I don't dislike the eccentric, quirky, and colorful people that came to protest a truly awful institution. I was with them. Most of them were reasonable and intelligent. Unfortunately, ten people marred the face of the gathering. The other forty of us were normal or as normal as libertarians can be. What could have been an event promoting sympathy and even support for a worthy cause became a political circus act.
These ten consisted of three "9/11 Truthers", 2 people warning us about the New World Order, and 5 gun toting activists. I'm not sure what exactly the gun guys official stance was, but they liked the U.S. Constitution, hated the Federal Reserve, and carried semi-automatic WWII-era assault rifles with clearly displayed ammunition. Yes, they were carrying assault rifles as a part of a demonstration against a bank. These three fringe elements were spread through the crowd, and they were very vocal. If I had seen this rally a year ago, I would have thought the whole group was insane. I'm sure that many people driving or walking by DID think that.
Unfortunately, this is pandemic in the libertarian movement. It's not that all, or even many, libertarians believe in conspiracy theories, but that our rallies and other events are being hijacked by a fringy and unstable minority. We give other people the impression that we believe the crazy stuff. By rallying with radicals, we allow ourselves to become linked with people who do not represent our policies, our thought process, or our convictions. We allow the best belief system that exist, the supremacy of liberty, to be mixed with half-hashed theories worthy of a C-grade novel.
People judge you based on your friends. They judge ideas based on the ideas they're linked with. We can't afford to contaminate our best ideas with another person's crazy notions. Liberty activists must learn to deliver a clear message.
We have to clean up the message we present at rallies and other public events. We can do that pretty easily.
First, understand the purpose of the event. Why are you gathering? What will you achieve with this event? What are the goals? You can't very well achieve a goal you haven't set. In the context of a demonstration like a rally, what message are you trying to communicate, and to whom are you trying to communicate it? If you don't know your message, neither will anyone else. Your event is guaranteed to fail.
Second, and possibly most importantly, LIMIT THE SCOPE OF THE EVENT! Pick specific issues and push them hard. Don't cross-contaminate them. This allows you to be more efficient with your time. Picking specific issues can also help rally more support for your cause. Left-wing democrats will join you in protesting war, but not in a anti-war, anti-taxes, Ron Paul 2012 rally.
Third, make sure the purpose of the event is clear to participants. We want attendance at our events, but remember the goal. Does an "End the Fed" movement benefit from signs and demonstrations protesting TSA Screenings? I don't see how. When organizing the event, communicate to group leaders its intended goals, and make sure they're willing to limit themselves to that. Make it clear that you do not want to mix issues.
Finally, both organizers and participants need to be respectful of others' time and efforts. If you believe 9/11 was an inside job, you're free to declare that. It's not fair to inject that into an event they organized for a different purpose. Committing to an "End the Fed" event then arriving with a "Legalize Marijuana" sign is not honest. In the business world we call that fraud. People are committing their time to the rally. Respect that. If you want to spread your theory on the "New World Order", you're welcome to hold your own rally. Don't hijack mine.
Remember our philosophy is correct. The cause of liberty is the most noble pursuit you can become involved with. I love liberty, and I want to work effectively towards it. These confused masses that pretend to be organized protests do not help that. If you want to help the movement, learn to get organized, and learn to stick with the message.
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