CMU School of Drama


Thursday, January 26, 2017

Parenting and Playwriting: The Lady Doth Protest (but not enough)

HowlRound: I haven’t attended a protest since 1992, the year I marched with a group of college students across the University of North Carolina’s verdant campus, demanding a freestanding black student union. The reasons are myriad: privilege, definitely; apathy, certainly; but mostly, personality. That student march was an aberration. I am, by nature, more recluse than activist. I read books on planes to avoid eye contact. I hide from the dry cleaner when he drops off clothes. When a stranger in the check-out line comments on the weather, I have to curb an instinct to growl. In short, I can think of nothing less pleasant than joining a crowd of strangers and chanting loudly.

Except now I can think of one thing.

3 comments:

Rebecca Meckler said...

I really enjoyed reading this article. I think that although Trieschmann did not have a good time, she say the value in what she was doing. Being able to show support for a cause is a great gift and we should not take it for granted. Freedom of the press, freedom of speech, and freedom to protest, are the foundation of our democracy and participating in it is arguable a civil responsibility. Nonetheless, I think that Trieschmann in this article nicely sums up why people are scared or unwilling to protest. Being an inner critic, is not something that I think was because of her theater background rather from a place of fear. It can be really hard to convince yourself to do something that you are scared. I think it’s great that Trieschmann is telling her daughter the truth about the rally; that it was loud and people were rude, but it was fulfilling and rewarding.

Alexa James-Cardenas said...

I really love reading this article, and one of the main reasons is because, without being too cynical, it shows the cons downsides of certain protests or in this case rallies. I not saying that gather people for a cause is bad nor am I saying that there is a right way to do it, but rather there are some wrong or cringe actions that you probably shouldn’t do. In specific I’m talking about that person egging on the police officer, and filming it. Just because you are in protest of something doesn’t mean you can disregard all other rules and laws. Rules are rules, and most are made in order to keep order, peace and/or well-being. So arguing about the 11’oclock curfew and trying to incite a fight with a police officer (who is just doing his job) instead protesting, but selfish and taking advantage of everyone who truly means good by being there. I find that in almost every protest, there are people who take the opportunity of a mass crowd to wild shit that they wouldn’t have necessarily the courage to do if they were by themselves. People like that, though intention may have been good at first, just ruin the message of peace, justice, equality, etc. for everyone. It is like how in elementary school, if one student does a bad thing, the teacher ends up punishing everyone. Which sucks, but you can’t really blame the teacher. Their authority is being challenged and so in attempt to keep it and to set an example, they end up lumping everyone together. Now imagine that scene but with police offers and protesters, they need to bring in control, so everyone gets in trouble. I’m much more of the fan of symbolistic images of hope, like in the last paragraph of the article, I believe that protest doesn’t have to loud or rowdy, but a simple gesture of holding hands united, singing and being as one.

Simone Schneeberg said...

I enjoyed this because it is a point of view I can relate to. My mother was a major activist in college and still does a thing here or there to this day. My sister goes out and marches, goes out and shows up to things requiring a presence to make a point. I've always been kind of cynical about it, but also just shy and crowd-phobic. Now, however, I feel like I should be doing something. With all the major issues popping up day after day, egregious attacks on human rights, I see everyone coming out, I see the beauty and the power in it, but I still can't go out. As much as I want to, something stops me. I guess I feel as though I don't fit in. I see more and more people go out, but they're all the same type deep down (or so it seems because they are the ones who scream the loudest). I'm not angry like them, I'm not passionate like them; I'm angry in my own way, passionate in my own way and it feels wrong. If more people like Trieschmann could get their voice out and show the perspective of these kinds of people, maybe we could get even more people to speak up and speak out. I know it helps me, maybe it could quell others' hesitations as well.