I was here in Madison during the protests in the spring of 2011, when Governor Walker and Wisconsin legislators signed the collective bargaining law. At the 'Recall Walker' rally on November 19th, I noticed a couple of things that were very different. This time the protesters seemed very well-trained. While going through these photos, notice the abundance of 'smiles'. When I'd point a camera at someone, they'd go from shouting and harassing, to serene and smiling in a split second. Another thing I noticed was that the 'blue fist' signs were gone, for the most part. In previous protests in Madison, the blue fist signs were everywhere. Evidently union leadership has decided to abandon it, since it associated their cause with Communism.
The public union hasn't changed, and either has their 'in-your-face' and 'win by any means necessary' attitude. But they have become much more media savvy. They have learned from their past mistakes. It seems like union leadership has taken some lessons from Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Muslim Brotherhood when it comes to dealing with media coverage.
The public union hasn't changed, and either has their 'in-your-face' and 'win by any means necessary' attitude. But they have become much more media savvy. They have learned from their past mistakes. It seems like union leadership has taken some lessons from Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Muslim Brotherhood when it comes to dealing with media coverage.
Please click on the image to go to Picasa site where you can see the tags on individuals in the photos