I get the sense that a lot of people see protesting as cringe because they don't understand what it accomplishes, and I get that... to them, I say: just go. Experience what it feels like to be part of a Very Large Crowd of your fellow citizens. That feeling has radical political implications.

I'm struck by the near-total failure of leadership across civil society, in a country that fetishizes the concept. Whole sections of leadership books at every bookstore. Named, endowed "leadership" institutes and curricula across higher ed. Awards and special recognition for "leaders." AND YET