By Angelina Newsom:
On Saturday, January 21, women around the globe came together in a show of solidarity in the face of newly inaugurated President Donald J. Trump. A quick search online will pull up photographs from across the world. Their agendas were as diverse as the crowds that came together. Many women shared their concerns over the future of women’s rights, including fears that Roe v. Wade would be threatened. Others shared their concerns over the audio recording of Trump that was released just prior to the election. Others just turned out for support, as witnesses, or to lend support to the female cause in general. Many women also took to social media to show their solidarity from home or work. Some couldn’t make it, and brought the message online to share with their networks.
Various groups were involved and pushed their messages and views to the forefront using signs and sometimes costumes. Some were outlandish and silly, others were professional and well thought out. There was a little controversy over attendance at most of the marches, as most were pro-choice. A lot of pro-life women didn’t feel empowered or that it was a fair representation of women. I mean, in this country we all have different beliefs, and I can totally see where pro-life women felt as though they were being misrepresented by marchers simply because of gender.
As a female citizen and veteran, I completely support the First Amendment. I believe that change can occur when enough concerned citizens come together peaceably. For the most part, I saw nothing alarming. Some of the actions taken by the marchers were a little extravagant and theatrical; however, none of it made me think anything less of the citizens who were exercising their constitutional rights.
Then came the speeches.
As I’ve mentioned, I wouldn’t dream of depriving a person of their right to express how they feel. This applies even if I don’t agree with the speech. There is a fine line, however, between rhetoric and threat. When Madonna took the stage in our nation’s capital to address the crowd of marchers, she expressed her anger.
This quickly took a turn when she began dropping F words. I fully believe that we should be able to express our views without using profanity when we hold a position of great influence. I think this is especially true for celebrities. They hold a great deal of influence and power in this country, as they do worldwide. That is exactly why they lend their names and faces to various causes.
Celebrities have the power to compel the rest of society to answer a call to action. Madonna had all eyes on her, and instead of setting a stage of open dialogue and tolerance, she began her speech with a hostile tone.
Now, I do understand that Madonna has always been controversial. In fact, she was a pioneer in the women’s movement in the entertainment industry. She pushed the envelope further than any woman before her, or even at the time. She stayed true to that reputation by pushing the boundaries in Washington, D.C. Her jaw-dropping comment came later in her speech as she told the audience (and everyone watching worldwide), “Yes, I have thought an awful lot about blowing up the White House.” The social media world lit up in a frenzy.
As we enter a new phase of this country’s history, I have followed newscasts, podcasts, broadcasts, comments, and everything else in between. I have discussed issues at length with those who believe differently than I do. Out of mutual respect, those discussions have never included name-calling, profanity (at least toward one another), or threats of violence.
Regardless of whether or not we had resonated any of our respective logic onto the other, we walked away with the understanding that it’s just fine to simply agree to disagree. There are so many things going on in the world that we often forget there are people actually fighting in wars. We are living in very dangerous times. Terrorism is running rampant, and the enemy hides in plain sight.
In days long gone, you could distinguish the enemy by the uniform they wore. As military, we are taught to be ever vigilant and aware of our surroundings. This includes any threats of violence or intent.
As a matter of national security, Madonna committed a huge mistake. The behavior she exhibited would get your average citizen flagged and investigated. It should be common sense in this day and age that while you have freedom of speech, you are also subject to the consequences you may face because of that speech. She may as well have gotten onto a commercial flight and begun talking about bombs. You just can’t do that. Not only did Madonna communicate that she had a desire to commit violence against the highest office in the United States, she took away from the message that many women came out to peacefully convey.
Although she has since taken to her Instagram to clarify that she doesn’t condone violence, her statement has already tainted the women’s marches. Following the marches, President Trump said via his Twitter, “Peaceful protests are a hallmark of our democracy. Even if I don’t always agree, I recognize the rights of people to express their views.”
Angelina Newsom is an OpsLens Contributor and U.S. Army Veteran. She served ten years in the military, including a deployment to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. She studies Criminal Justice and is still active within the military community.
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