Dear Friends,
CLICK HERE FOR THIS WEEK’S PODCAST
Here’s some news most Democrats and all Republican presidential wannabes won’t like: Donald Trump is planning an Iowa rally.
I imagine most of you haven’t been to a Trump rally. Can’t blame you, really. I’ve been to three. All ended in what the late John Lewis would’ve called “good trouble.”
(Shari Hrdina captured this shot of two Trump supporters eyeing us suspiciously as we plan our action. Left to right: Peter Clay, George McCloskey, Kristy Medo, Miriam Kashia, and me.)
My first experience at a Trump rally was in Waterloo on October 7, 2015. It was a “Rosie the Riveter” action, organized in partnership with The Climate Mobilization. On cue, we raised signs and chanted “mobilize now.” We were promptly and forcibly escorted out by Trump’s supporters. Miriam was pushed hard and nearly knocked over.
(Left to right: Todd Steichen, Miriam Kashia, Kathy Byrnes, Martin Monroe, and me.)
My second Trump rally was right after the President returned from Great Britain where, in a 90-minute conversation with Prince Charles, his climate-denial credentials were on full display. Among other notable takeaways, Trump blamed climate change on China, India, and Russia, insisting that the US had one of “the cleanest climates there are,” whatever that means.
So when President Trump came to West Des Moines for a fundraiser on June 10, 2019, five Bold Iowa activists called out his climate denial with dramatic flair. Dressing in adult diapers and holding a sign blocking traffic to the venue’s parking lot we were, of course, arrested.
While I hope never again to wear a diaper in public (or in private, for that matter), our dramatic action generated significant attention. More important, with the help of attorney Channing Dutton, we were able to raise climate justification at our trial. We didn’t win, but it’s significant that we were allowed to argue that line of defense.
(Kathy Byrnes discusses climate change and grandchildren with a Trump supporter.)
My third Trump rally was at Drake University on January 30, 2020. Kathy and I had scored free tickets. But by the time we arrived, all 7,000 Knapp Center seats were filled. Perhaps that was just as well.
Kathy and I made our way to the overflow area, where hundreds of late arrivals were watching the rally on a big screen. Dissenting voices were supposed to cloister within a so-called “Free Speech Zone,” but Kathy and I insisted on mingling with the Trumpers.
In the thick of the crowd, Kathryn the Fierce hoisted her “Climate is a Crisis” sign. Immediately, a couple Trump supporters told us we would be forcibly removed if the sign didn’t come down. Kathy persisted, and after she got into a terse but respectful conversation with the gentleman in the photo, above, we were left alone.
So, Trump will soon visit Iowa again. Do I attend or weed the garden? If I attend, do I wear my activist hat or my journalist hat? What course of action would you advise — and do you plan to attend?
Running through my mind during all such conversations is the question, “In this moment of existential crisis, what is my duty to people and planet?” There’s rarely a simple answer, and never just one. Certainly not this time. Stay tuned.
— Ed Fallon
*******
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THIS WEEK’S PODCAST, CO-HOSTED WITH CHARLES GOLDMAN:
Connie Boesen
(02:23) Connie Boesen, candidate for re-election to the Des Moines City Council;
(13:00) The hidden costs of rare earth metals needed to power the Green New Deal;
(26:50) Could Afghanistan cost the Dems in 2022, and help Trump in 2024?
(40:01) “Race” is a term with no biological basis;
(53:35) Anti-vax theory says COVID vaccines spread Delta variant;
(1:06:35) Food security includes forage-friendly cities, with Kathy Byrnes.
Here’s our interview with Connie Boesen on YouTube — please subscribe!
Subscribe to the Fallon Forum on Stitcher, Apple Podcasts, or your preferred podcast platform. Check out our website and Facebook Page, and listen to the program on these and other local affiliates:
– KHOI 89.1 FM (Ames, Iowa)
– KICI.LP 105.3 FM (Iowa City, Iowa)
– WHIV 102.3 FM (New Orleans, Louisiana)
– KPIP-LP, 94.7 FM (Fayette, Missouri)
– KCEI 90.1 FM (Taos, New Mexico)
– KRFP 90.3 FM (Moscow, Idaho)
Please support the local businesses and non-profits who make this program possible. Click on their logos on the Fallon Forum website and in our weekly email, and visit Dr. Drake Family Psychiatry, Story County Veterinary Clinic, Bold Iowa, and Birds & Bees Urban Farm.
Thanks for supporting the progressive alternative to the right-wing shock jocks!
Ed Fallon