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December 3, 2007

This past Friday, I took part in my very first act of civil disobedience (CD) as part of a World AIDS Day protest. It was exhilarating and exciting and nerve-racking.  I knew what I was doing was important, but I think the experience would have meant even more if I'd known more about civil disobedience. So I want to provide you with some of the history of and the reasons for CD.

CD goes all the way back to the publication of Henry David Thoreau's 1849 essay of the same name in which he explains his refusal to pay a poll tax—an act that was meant to show his opposition to the Mexican-American War.

Acts of CD have been used to create huge changes all over the world and here in the US. Gandhi and Mandela used CD to end oppression in their India and South Africa. The bus boycotts and lunch counter sit-ins of the 1960's civil rights movement, here in the US, were acts of CD. Women in Great Britain used to CD to earn the right to vote. And the burning of draft cards and other mass demonstrations against the Vietnam War were acts of CD. Clearly, I am in good company, but I'm not sure I understood last week what I was really doing or even why it would work; I just knew that I was fed up with US policy on AIDS and I needed to do something.

We were using the "Act up, Fight Back" chant at the protest and so I thought ACT-UP New York would be a great place to go for more information. They explain that CD is usually an act that deliberately breaks a law because the person or group believes that the law is unjust.  They go on to explain that it isn't always that easy when protesting AIDS policy, etc. We have to use different tactics, such as sitting in front of the White House or the Capitol building and refusing to move until our demands are met. It's important to note that the goal of an act of CD is not to get arrested, but to have your demands met. That won't generally happen after one demonstration, but a well-executed act of CD will garner attention for your demands and educate others about your cause.

There, don't you feel super-informed? Now on to the really fun stuff—my first CD arrest.

A group of 40 students and activists sat on the sidewalk in front of the north portico of the White House, where an enormous (28-feet to be exact) red ribbon hung. We were demanding an increase in funding for the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEFPAR), and an end to policies such as the one-third abstinence-only earmark and the Prostitution Pledge. We were wearing t-shirts that labeled us as at-risk men, women, and children, as well as doctors, teachers, and nurses who had their hands tied by "red tape". We chanted "One warning, two warning, three warning, eight—we won't go 'til you cut the red tape!" and "When people with AIDS are under attack, what do we do? Act up, fight back!"

We got our three warnings, and then they started arresting us. I was terrified. I had decided at the last minute that I would join the group in risking arrest, so I was completely unprepared for what was going to be happening. In reality, it wasn't that scary at all. Our hands were held behind our backs with zip-ties, and we were given the option of walking or being carried (or dragged). Since I was already scared and unprepared I chose to walk, but others around me told the officers "I am not resisting arrest, but I am not going to stand up" and so they were carried, still chanting, to the waiting police van. We spent about four hours in jail and had to pay a $100 fee.

I learned a lot that night and met a lot of really awesome people. I haven't seen any direct, tangible results from the protest, but I still feel like I participated in something important and made a difference. And I can definitely see myself participating in an act of civil disobedience again.

Click here for more information on the history and reasons for CD.

And check out these links for media and photos from the demonstration on Friday!

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