Saturday: The People Are Coming

Signs, chants, and safety.

This Saturday, October 18th, the air will hum with chants that echo off buildings and voices that fills the spaces between them. Flags wave, signs flash, drums keep time. Strangers meet each other’s eyes and smile, not because they agree on everything, but because they still believe in the promise of free people standing together for their Constitution. This is what democracy looks like.

Your Saturday morning might not start with fanfare. You might start it off by filling your thermos, printing a few more flyers, or taping the last corner of your protest sign.

We are already dismantling the idea that power belongs anywhere other than to the people. Each handwritten sign, shared ride, or paperclip being handed to a stranger says the same thing: the strength of this country has always lived in the hands of its citizens.

What looks like your every-day, morning routine… brewing coffee, packing snacks, texting a friend directions, is the start to a day about to make history. It’s the muscle memory of a free society, as long as we can keep it this way.

We are marching on Saturday because we know that doing nothing, changes nothing. Indivisible is suggesting protesters wear yellow, the color of optimism that refuses to fade, and a handful of 50501 Facebook group participants are calling to wear purple, calm, deliberate, the shade of endurance. And we can’t forget those who will be participating in Operation Inflation, the unexpected wave of creativity sparked by the Portland frog. Many will be dressed in inflatable costumes to demonstrate their resistance. But color is secondary to presence because democracy depends on participation, not uniform.

Many people will also be bringing something much smaller but with a strong symbolic meaning, the paperclip. A simple office supply that holds things together under pressure.

We’ll hold the line together, even when it bends.

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Your Sign is Actually Really Important

Every protest begins with a message on your sign.

A protest sign is storytelling and solidarity combined into whatever you decide to fit on your cardboard. Your sign is when private conviction becomes public record. When you write a message on cardboard and carry it out into your community, you’re saying: I am part of this time in history.

Great signs are not always visually aesthetic, but they’re clear with their messaging. They declare and demand attention. Someone should be able to read yours from across the street and know exactly what you stand for.

As many of you know by now, this week, creativity has become its own form of courage. Operation Inflation began with one inflatable frog in Portland and has now spread across the country: a parade of inflatable frogs, dinosaurs, and unicorns filling your social media feed and flooding the streets. It’s protest as performance art, but also protest as protection because joy draws people in, and humor disarms those who’d rather see us divided. This is how we create our own narrative. Through collective creativity.

Here are a few tips, these are not sign-making rules, but if you’ve never made a sign, these might help you out:
When you make your sign, consider thinking like both a writer and a witness.
Keep it short (brevity holds memory.)
Use bold lines and clear contrast for example: yellow and black hardly go unnoticed.
Protect it from the rain with waterproof ink.
Give it some personality: a small or large emblem like a red “X” over a crown, a frog, or a paperclip.

💡 Here are just a few ideas being shared around:

• No Kings! No Dictators!

• Fear Will Not Silence Us

• I’d Rather Be ______ Than Fighting Fascism

• Trump is the Worst President Since Trump

• Nope. Since 1776.

The best sign is always the most personal.
It’s the message that resonates the most with you and the meaning behind it.

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Chanting in Unity

Chanting is one of the oldest forms of resistance. From ancient temples to labor strikes, from civil rights marches to city squares, people have always used rhythm and repetition to make a statement.

The sound of democracy is a collective chorus. It may be uneven, imperfect, even chaotic at times, but that noise is what freedom sounds like. It’s the sound of us fighting to keep our rights and to protect the country we love.

Here are some chant ideas posted from our 50501 Facebook Group.
Feel free to save and print this out:

🐸 Unofficial Operation Inflation addition:
“We’re inflated- and we’re not deflating!”
Humor has always had a way of defusing fear.
It replaces dread with defiance and can lift heaviness with laughter.

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Protest Safety

The most revolutionary part of protesting is the care we show to one another as a community.

The No Kings protest, is a peaceful protest.
You can read more about 50501 values by viewing our website here.
We’re showing up to be seen and to make a statement. Our strength is in the visible power of people who believe in our country enough to stand for it.

Peaceful protests take planning to ensure that everyone gets home safely.
The more organized we are, the more peaceful we stay.

Here are a few safety tips:
It is a good idea to know your route before you arrive.
You’ll want to bring water and some snacks.
Write a legal aid number on your arm in case your phone dies.
If you can, walk with a friend or in a group.

Keep your focus on de-escalation: speak calmly, avoid confrontation, and remember that people will most likely be recording.
Agitators are only there to try to make us look bad, do not let them.
Masks protect privacy as much as health and reflective gear keeps you visible after dark.

If you see someone struggling, help them.
If you see tension rising, move away and encourage others to do the same.

Before You Go

• Charge your phone 🔋 and disable face unlock.

  • Read this if you are debating bringing your phone to a protest.

• Write legal numbers on your arm

• Bring water and snacks

• Dress for endurance, not aesthetics

• Leave valuables home

• Travel with friends or in a group

For POC, your presence is both brave and vital. Take precautions: travel in groups, stay near trained volunteers or legal observers, avoid isolation.
If you are white, your safety is statistically greater, use that advantage like armor. Stand between, not apart. Protect without patronizing.

Solidarity means understanding where risk lives and volunteering to carry some of it.

During the Protest

Stay aware of your surroundings.
Listen to marshals, they are the peace keepers.
Panic is contagious, composure can neutralize it.

After the Protest

Go home. Shower. Drink water. Eat some veggies. Touch grass.
Write everything down while it’s clear.
What you saw may matter later.
If you witnessed harassment or violence, report it.
We protect our community members.

For more information on Marching, check out the Activist Handbook Here.

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What We Carry Into History

This Saturday, the streets will be filled with over 2,500 protests across the nation.

You’ll see tons of creative and brilliant signs, you’ll hear voices chanting and music playing, you’ll be shoulder to shoulder with people who would stand up for your rights and who care about you without needing to personally know you, because all of us who showed up, hold space for empathy and care deeply for others.

For a moment, thousands of separate lives will move as one across the country and supported by over 25 countries across the globe. We are all bound by the belief that a people still have the right, and the responsibility, to be protest and be heard. We inherit the same responsibility that generations before us carried through marches, picket lines, and vigils.

So wear what feels like courage. Carry what still matters. Protect each other with everything you’ve got. And when you see someone standing alone, offer them a paperclip, a smile, a space beside you.

That’s how protests become movements. That’s how movements become moments. And that’s how moments, if we keep showing up, become history.
This is what democracy looks like.

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Key Takeaways

• Bring a sign that is meaningful to you and powerful.

• Use chants to synchronize courage, they’re the heartbeat of protests.

• Protect one another, especially people of color, who too often bear heavier risks.

• Whatever color or costume you decide to wear, your presence matters most.

• Stay vigilant and be safe.

Blue with The 50501 Movement

❤️ If this helped you prepare, tap the heart, share it with one person planning to march, and tell us what your sign will say in the comments. Thank you for reading and for supporting independent journalism.