Left in Central

Stop the Far Right. No Tyrants. No Kings.

Living away from my home country comes with pluses and minuses. I get opportunities I’d never have, even as someone who is relatively privileged where I’m from. But it also comes with some isolation. I don’t always want to be around Americans, but I also don’t always want to be the only American in the room, especially when the talk of the day is the policy of… America.

Anyone who has spent time in London lately might ask, “When are you ever the only American in the room? You guys are everywhere.” True, there are a lot of us. But right now, at the café I’m in, there are eight people, and I’m the only one. Moving on before I digress into talking about how this good-natured ribbing can feel a bit hostile at times.

I’ve always been politically active in some way. Voter registration is a task I have found my way to consistently since I was able to register to vote myself. I’ve done this in front of supermarkets, at naturalisation events, farmers’ markets, concerts, door-to-door, via phone, and even in London near Highgate. This simple task makes me feel connected in a way that isn’t partisan but is just part of helping people exercise their right as US citizens. It is sacred. The SAVE Act and all of the voter suppression actions that have come before it make it more sacred.

In most elections, I’ve done canvassing and calling. I dread both sometimes, but then there is that one call or one person who opens a door that makes all of the social anxiety worth it.

I have protested. I’m not good at protesting. I get self-conscious during chants. My voice starts to go. The crowds are big. My signs are just OK. I usually go alone and have to find people, even though there are SO MANY PEOPLE. I’m more comfortable being alone when there are fewer people around or when I’m truly alone. There are so many reasons not to go to a protest. In the US, I’ve been worried about gun violence. Yesterday, when I heard there might be counter-protesters, I was worried about other violence.

But then, there is a reason to go.

There is power in numbers, and in order for there to be numbers, people have to show up. And yesterday, they showed up in central London, in droves. And it was beautiful. Even when I stood in nearly the same spot for over two hours, as we did not move from our starting point, it was beautiful. People showed up.

In the US, my friends were going to attend “No Kings” marches, specifically aimed at the Trump administration. Here, the scope was broader. We have a king in the UK, so the name changes to “No Tyrants” for those of us going against Trump. Tyrant is a more apt word, in my opinion, but Trump might not understand it. But also, in the UK, the only concern isn’t Trump. There is a far-right movement threatening many aspects of this country. And the proximity to Europe, where far-right politicians have been elected in the past few years—and where recent history tells us that hasn’t gone well before—is also a concern.

Around Noon, I found the Democrats Abroad group and was able to meet fellow Americans who made their way to that same spot. Eventually, not really part of the full group, I went off with a couple of people to find a place further up the line to cut in and march. I’m grateful they invited me to join them because sometimes having MS means that my leg gets a bit wonky after a few hours of standing around, and I didn’t want to march before I needed to do this protest as a sit-in instead. It felt empowering to hold my sign and walk and make eye contact with other like-minded people, and see how many people stood at the side of the road or walked in front of me and behind me, all for the same general belief that this matters. Protecting our societies and each other matters. Stopping the far right matters.

It is complex to express the love of country and disdain for its leadership. It is hard to accept that people you call your fellow citizens think so differently from you. It’s hard to talk about intolerance while also knowing that you yourself are intolerant when it comes to certain things.

There is so much to be upset about every day. Being outside the US doesn’t make it easier to watch what’s happening there.

I saw a lot of anti-Trump signs and a lot of anti-war signs at the rally. There were also signs about kindness.

When Trump decided to join Netanyahu in the war (which he is now calling a “little excursion”…) with Iran, it was an act of corrupt and dangerous men carrying out their own violent desires. It has led to the deaths of American soldiers and many others. And for Jewish people, there has been another wave of antisemitic violence, with the attack on Jewish ambulances in London last week and at a synagogue the week before in the US.

To be clear, of course I think the Ayatollah was horrible and was abusing and oppressing the Iranian people, but neither Trump nor Netanyahu can claim that they actually care about that. Trump is deflecting attention away from the Epstein files and Netanyahu likely from Palestine. The US’ general failure in Iran so far (which has cost American and other lives and is truly shameful), and Israel’s current invasion of southern Lebanon (for example), aren’t really helping the Iranian people, are they?

People were marching to oppose the war and the sale of arms to support it.

Outside of the war, there are countless other trespasses taking place against the American people, including the current lack of funding to pay TSA workers. There is money to pay them if there is money for an “excursion”. Then there are stupid things like a Trump coin and Trump’s signature on US currency. But it all points to one thing: we need to fight against authoritarianism.

So, yesterday, I marched into central London with ~499,999 others. I found comfort in being around others who swing left, or at least move to the left of the far right. I don’t know if it’ll have an effect on policy and recognise that I’m in the UK, far from home. Everyone had their own reason for being there, their own top concerns. I want the country I’m living in to protect itself before it is too late. And then there is the country I left. I want it to get back to good. Great isn’t working.