Long Rallies Aren’t Just Boring, They Make Us Less Safe

We’ve all been there. The rally was scheduled to start at noon, but didn’t get going until 12:20. All of the speakers went over their allotted time and two spoke for three times as long as they were supposed to. The emcee is giving full speeches of their own in between speakers. The executive director of an organization that sponsored the rallies hadn’t been on the initial program but now their staff is insisting they speak. And there’s an elected official who wants to “say a few words of support.”

At 12:30 the energy was electric. By 1:15pm most people were sitting down in the shade. At 2pm the crowd starts to thin out. By 3pm many of our marshals and our entire health and safety team had to leave for other commitments. And we still have 5 speakers left!

These long rallies aren’t just boring. They make us less safe.