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I checked out one of the many annual National Night Out events that were held throughout the United States on August 1. I went to the one that was held in the back parking lot of Beltway Plaza in Greenbelt, Maryland. I got some free food because some of the tables were handing out pizza slices, pulled pork sandwiches, and a variety of candy and other snacks. I also ran into a few of my friends while I was there. The weather was hot but this event was held in the late afternoon before sunset so it wasn’t too bad. At one point the Park Police helicopter arrived in the parking lot. Here are a couple of photos I shot after the helicopter landed.

National Night Out, August 1, 2023
National Night Out, August 1, 2023

I also shot video footage of this event, which includes the landing of that Park Police helicopter. I uploaded it on TikTok, Clapper, Instagram, and YouTube.

All in all it was a fun event and I had a good time.

I went to another Black Lives Matter rally and protest in Greenbelt in July. This time the event began in the late afternoon instead of 1 p.m. like the last one. Everyone was urged to wear masks and practice social distancing due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic. I shot some pictures of the rally.

Black Lives Matter Protest, July 20, 2020

As you can see, due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic, people were strongly encouraged to wear masks and stay apart from each other as much as possible.

Black Lives Matter Protest, July 20, 2020

Black Lives Matter Protest, July 20, 2020

The Greenbelt Police also attended. They were pretty peaceful, which was a nice contrast to other parts of the country (such as what is currently going on in Portland, Oregon).

Black Lives Matter Protest, July 20, 2020

Greenbelt Mayor Colin Byrd spoke at the rally.

Black Lives Matter Protest, July 20, 2020

When it came time for the march I tried marching with them. I managed to walk a bit further than the last march but I had a hard time breathing through my mask, chanting “BLACK LIVES MATTER”, and marching at the same time. Once again I ended up dropping out. Since I knew the march was going in a circular route, I positioned myself at the end of the route, where I managed to shoot this video.

After trying to participate in this march and the one on the previous week, I’m starting to think that I can’t march in the heat and wear a mask at the same time. I’m going to wait until the fall before I start thinking about marching in protests again because at least the weather will be cooler and less humid.

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Last week I finally mailed off my entry in The Brooklyn Art Library’s ongoing Sketchbook Project. The origins of that one can be traced to my involvement in last year’s Inktober 2019 (where the object is to create one new ink drawing then share it on social media evert day from October 1-31). One of my Facebook friends who is also my neighbor saw some of my work that I posted on that social media site and she messaged me with this tantalizing proposition. A few months ago she had decided to take part in The Sketchbook Project and she even sent away for the sketchbook, which also included a few ink pens (one was a black fine line pen and the others were brush-like ink pens in black, brown, green, and red). Then she was distracted by other things in her life and she hadn’t started her sketchbook by the time October came. She asked me if I would take over her sketchbook for free. I said yes and she gave me the sketchbook, the included ink pens, and her log-in information for the website.

Since I had already planned and started work on the bulk of the sketches for Inktober, I couldn’t begin work on this new sketchbook immediately. I decided to continue with my current sketchbook for the rest of Inktober then immediately switch to the new sketchbook after the month of October ended.

I finally took a look at The Sketchbook Project in early November and I saw that it had a February 1 deadline, which meant that I only had three months to fill it in then mail it to New York City. I hit upon an idea where I would do The Twelve Drawings of Christmas for the second year in a row while using this sketchbook for the drawings. (Which means that longtime readers of this blog will recognize at least half of the drawings in this post.) While I focused exclusively on winter/Christmas themes for the 2018 edition, for the 2019 edition I decided to include fewer Christmas-themed drawings since I was using a sketchbook that would ultimately be sent elsewhere and it would be looked at by other people (some of whom may not even celebrate Christmas at all) at other times of the year besides the winter holiday season.

I began doing the first of the drawings in this new sketchbook using the included pens only to discover that the paper was a bit on the thin side so the ink would bleed through to the other side. I initially thought about switching to just pencils so I could use both sides of each page but I only had three months to fill in this sketchbook before it was time for me to mail it back in and I had other things going on in my life so I really couldn’t devote 40-60 hours a week on this project.

So I came up with the idea of pasting my own photographs on the other side of each bled-through page once I finished with each ink drawing. Using photographs definitely cut the amount of work on that sketchbook since printing and gluing the photo on a page is way quicker than drawing. This sketchbook would highlight my talents as an artist and photographer just like this blog.

For the photographs I decided on a theme. This year is the 10th anniversary of this blog so I decided to use only those photos that I had previously highlighted in this blog. Despite putting that limitation on myself, I still had a challenge of sifting through hundreds of photographs from the last 10 years in order to decide which ones I would actually use. For every photo I decided to use, there were probably hundreds of others that I could have also used. I also made an effort to have a variety of photographs so I wouldn’t get pegged by others as being only a photojournalist or only a portrait photographer or only a nature photographer, etc.

Once I finished my sketchbook the first thing I did before I sent it back to New York City was to make a YouTube video. If you like to listen to music while viewing my work, here is the video.

If you prefer to viewing still photos, I’ll list them here in the order that they were placed in the sketchbook. Every drawing and photograph have previously been mentioned in this blog so I’ll provide a link to the post in case you want to read about the story behind each visual. (The link will open in a new window.)

OUTSIDE FRONT COVER

Read the story behind this.

INSIDE FRONT COVER

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PAGE 1: THE JOKER AND ARTHUR FLECK

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PAGE 2: MADONNA GIRL DALE

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PAGE 3: A COSTUMED PERFORMER AT THE 2010 PIGTOWN FESTIVAL IN BALTIMORE

Pigtown Festival Attendee

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PAGE 4: HOWARD THE DUCK FAN ART

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PAGE 5: MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN

Read the story behind this.

PAGE 6: CLIMATE STRIKE PROTESTER WITH TRUMP BABY BALLOON, SEPTEMBER 20, 2019

Climate Strike, Washington, DC, September 20, 2019

Read the story behind this.

PAGE 7: BRUNI FROM FROZEN 2

Read the story behind this.

PAGE 8: BLUE HERON IN PALMETTO, FLORIDA

photo2

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PAGE 9: VOLKS DOLLFIE DREAM DOLL PEEKING FROM BEHIND CHERRY BLOSSOM TREE

Volks Dollfie Dream Doll Peeking From Cherry Blossom Tree

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PAGE 10: UNDER THE ZENTANGLE SEA

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PAGE 11: BABY YODA IN MEAN CUTIES

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PAGE 12: VOLKS DOLLFIE DREAM DOLL IN CHERRY BLOSSOM TREE

Volks Dollfie Dream Doll in Cherry Blossom Tree

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PAGE 13: FALL FOLIAGE AT CLARK’S ELIOAK FARM IN ELLICOTT CITY, MARYLAND

Rural Landscape

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PAGE 14: HATSUNE MIKU AND THE CLAUSES

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PAGE 15: A PENGUIN NATIVITY SCENE WITH LINUX

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PAGE 16: 2014 COWBOY AND INDIAN ALLIANCE PROTEST AGAINST THE KEYSTONE XL PIPELINE

Cowboy and Indian Alliance Protest on the National Mall, Washington, DC, April 25, 2014

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PAGE 17: COPS IN RIOT GEAR AT THE INNER HARBOR IN BALTIMORE DURING THE BALTIMORE UPRISING PROTESTING THE MURDER OF FREDDIE GRAY BY THE BALTIMORE CITY POLICE IN 2015

I've never seen anything like THIS at Harborplace or the Inner Harbor.

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PAGE 18: UNITARIAN UNIVERSALIST FLAMING CHALICE

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PAGE 19: ROSCOE THE ROOSTER MEMORIAL IN TAKOMA PARK, MARYLAND

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PAGE 20: STATUE OUTSIDE OF ANN’S DARI-CREME IN GLEN BURNIE, MARYLAND

photo78

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PAGE 21: BABY RAFAEL

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PAGE 22: KRAMPUS TAKING DONALD TRUMP AWAY

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PAGE 23: JOLENE SUGARBAKER

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PAGE 24: COUNTER-PROTESTERS AT THE 2018 UNITE THE RIGHT 2 RALLY IN WASHINGTON, DC

Counter Protest Rally in Freedom Plaza

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PAGE 25: THE MAY DAY 2015 PROTEST AGAINST THE KILLING OF FREDDIE GRAY BY THE BALTIMORE CITY POLICE AT THE INNER HARBOR IN BALTIMORE

Protest rally at McKeldin Square near Harborplace.

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PAGE 26: EDGAR ALLAN POE AND THE RAVEN

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PAGE 27: UNDER THE ORANGE SKY

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PAGE 28: OCCUPY DC (PART OF THE LARGER OCCUPY WALL STREET MOVEMENT), MCPHERSON SQUARE, WASHINGTON, DC, NOVEMBER 5, 2011

Occupy DC, November 5, 2011

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PAGE 29: BUTTERFLY ON A FLOWER AT BROOKSIDE GARDENS IN WHEATON, MARYLAND

photo20

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PAGE 30: DONALD TRUMP AND HARLEY QUINN

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PAGE 31: COBB ISLAND, MARYLAND

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PAGE 32: RAINBOW OVER NORTH BEACH, MARYLAND, SEPTEMBER 12, 2019

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INSIDE BACK COVER

Read the story behind this.

OUTSIDE BACK COVER

Read the story behind this.

I felt a really great achievement in finishing this. There was a part of me that felt sorry that I had to mail it to New York City but that’s the way it goes. In a way working on this project is like having a child. You nuture it and make your own imprint on it but ultimately you have to let it go out into the wider world on its own as a completely independent entity. I don’t know if I’ll ever see my sketchbook again in person (let alone actually hold it in my hands one more time) but it was time for me to let go of it. At least I shot enough pictures and video footage so I can at least look at it again if I ever begin to feel sad over no longer having that sketchbook in my possession.

Yesterday I received an email from The Sketchbook Project informing me that my sketchbook has been assigned a new call number:

383.10-4

So if anyone ever goes to the Brooklyn Art Library and wants to see my sketchbook in person, you now know how to look for it.

From time to time I’ll probably log into the official website to see if anyone has checked it out or if the Brooklyn Art Library has sent it out on a road trip of some sort. It would interesting to see in the future whatever happened to that sketchbook. But right now I’m going to move on from that project and focus on other things in my life that needs attending to.

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I checked out this year’s National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland. I first went to Beltway Plaza Mall where I saw a lot of fun activity. Here’s a short video I shot of the highlight of the Beltway Plaza event.

Here are some of the still photos I shot, which include people of all ages skateboarding, wall climbing, dancing, and arts and crafts.

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

The Space, a makerspace located inside of Beltway Plaza Mall, had an arts and crafts table where people engaged in jewelry making.

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

There was someone from the Park Police who came to the event on horseback.

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

There were all kinds of police officers who were clearly enjoying the event and socialize with each other.

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out in Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

After spending some time at the Beltway Plaza event, I decided to go to one of the other National Night Out events that were also held in different parts of Greenbelt. I went to one at Roosevelt Center but I arrived just at the tail end when people started to pack up their stuff. I managed to get a few photos though.

National Night Out, Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out, Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

National Night Out, Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

Last, but not least, here is a photo of me standing in front of two life-sized cardboard cutouts of Eleanor and Franklin D. Roosevelt.

National Night Out, Greenbelt, Maryland, August 6, 2019

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How a legendary Alexander Calder installation got ensnared in Sears’ tortuous saga.

Art student delivers the perfect response to teacher’s request to “dial back the feminism.”

McMansion Hell’s tour through Texas’ most terrible fake castles.

Trump supporters consume and share the most fake news, Oxford study finds.

Teacher notices triplets talking only to each other and soon discovers that they are three starving orphans.

Chinese police are using facial recognition sunglasses to track citizens.

A new study shows that students learn way more effectively from print textbooks than screens.

How to get Donald Trump’s hair: An illustrated guide.

Home Depot apologizes after designers accuse the retailer of ripping off their work.

An explanation on a phenomenon known as Corporate Stockholm Syndrome.

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Josephine Baker: Entertainer, war hero, and civil rights champion.

The U.S. role in turning countries into “shitholes.”

Seven signs your client will never pay your invoice.

President Trump is not as unpopular as you think he is.

Doctor who gave Asperger syndrome its name was kid-killer for Hitler.

Why children aren’t behaving and what you can do about it.

Some said they’d flee Trump’s America. These people actually did.

A sad look at one woman who lost two sons in one night to opioids.

How to make fairy house night lights using recycled plastic bottles.

100 ways white people can make life less frustrating for people of color.

From Starbucks to Hashtags: We need to talk about why white Americans call the police on black people.

You can now use Airbnb to stay in the former home of F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, where F. Scott wrote the classic novel Tender is the Night.

Tapes prove how Trump lied his way onto the Forbes 400 list.

Luxury brands prefer to burn millions of dollars worth of clothes to letting the “wrong” shoppers buy them at a discount.

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As you may know, this past weekend was the one-year anniversary of the Unite the Right protest in Charlottesville which resulted in the horrible death of Heather Heyer. As for Donald Trump, he has steadfastly refused to denounce the white supremacists and their actions last year. There were quite a few vigils for the victims of Charlottesville (such as two events I went to in the same week on August 14 and August 16) but I find it telling that Donald Trump has refused to distance himself from these latter-day Nazis and KKK members and has said little about Heather Heyer or the other people who were victimized by the alt-right.

For the first anniversary of Charlottesville, one of the original organizers of the Unite the Right rally, Jason Kessler, wanted to do a repeat performance in Charlottesville. When he was denied a permit for his little shindig, he decided to move the event north to my hometown of Washington, DC. He probably figured that since Donald Trump is basically a racist fascist sympathizer, President Trump would be flattered if a group of his most loyal alt-right supporters would have a march to Lafayette Square (located just across from the White House) then have an Unite the Right 2 rally.

Except things didn’t turn out that way. Donald Trump decided to head out of town this weekend. (After all, even though they are his most ardent supporters, they aren’t rich like he and his cronies are so they really don’t matter at all, except for getting their votes at the ballot box in 2020.)

I decided to head down even though I knew that I would be risking my life in doing so. I’m just fed up with all of the hatred of the poor, minorities, and women that has sprung up gradually since Ronald Reagan was elected in 1980 and it has continued through the years until the hatred grew and grew and it’s now this big monster that is a threat to this country. I’ve experienced some of this hatred myself ever since I was in elementary school when the kids called me “retarded.” This taunting went through high school. Even though the teasing stopped during my freshman year at Anne Arundel Community College, I was still frequently looked down upon like I was some kind of an inferior lowlife freak (mainly from those who went to my high school—the students who went to different high schools and didn’t know about my so-called “retarded” reputation treated me like I was a human being). I ended up permanently moving from Glen Burnie as an adult because I knew that, no matter what I did, these people would never see me as anything other than someone who is inferior.

But I will admit that my experiences with facing this kind of hatred is nothing compared to an African American, as the families of people like Travon Martin, Freddie Gray, Sandra Bland, and numerous others will attest.

Going downtown to face those Nazis wasn’t an easy decision for me. I still remember vividly the car that was intentionally plowed into a group of people by that alt-right scumbag in Charlottesville. There was a possibility that something like that could’ve happened to me. I was still waffling on the fence about going to DC last Sunday until I saw this trailer for Michael Moore’s upcoming documentary, Fahrenheit 11/9.

Watching that preview only strengthened my resolve to go ahead with my plans for last Sunday. I was all ready to go downtown with my camera, take photos of these alt-right assholes, then plaster them all over social media in the hopes that someone will recognize these assholes and they either lose their jobs or get evicted from where they are living or their neighbors shun them or something equally bad happens to them.

I knew that there was a chance that I would end up like Heather Heyer but I swallowed that fear and headed downtown anyway. I began to realize that this is what a soldier in wartime has to deal with, especially if he or she is sent to the front lines.

Before I left home I took out a blank sheet of paper and wrote down my name, address, the phone numbers of my next of kin, the cell phone number of my housemate (who had just left for a week-long trip visiting relatives in New Jersey the day before), and the phone numbers of my church and the minister. Then I folded the paper and put it in the pocket of my shorts. I felt that should the worst happen to me like what happened to Heather Heyer last year, at least some people will be notified so they could plan some kind of a memorial service for all of my friends, relatives, and acquaintances.

So I took the Green Line Metro from the Greenbelt station. As I was about to board the train I noticed a bunch of people leaving the train who looked like they were cosplaying as their favorite anime and video game character. I remembered that the annual giant East Coast anime convention known as Otakon was that weekend and it was the third and final day when the entire con pretty much closes down after 3 p.m. (I used to go to Otakon but I haven’t been since 2013 because I grew tired of paying at least $75 for a weekend pass only to encounter huge crowds everywhere I went. Besides my finances have gotten increasingly dicey so I really can’t afford major splurges like Otakon at the moment.) So I boarded the Green Line train and switched at L’Enfant Plaza. While I was switching trains I saw this artist who was engrossed in doing this sketch right in the Metro station.

Artist

I switched to the Silver Line then got off at Federal Triangle. I made my way to Freedom Plaza, where many of the counter protesters had gathered.

Counter Protest Rally in Freedom Plaza

I arrived late in the afternoon just in time for the beginning of the march to Lafayette Square. I managed to get a few pictures of people with their signs.

Counter Protest Rally in Freedom Plaza

Counter Protest Rally in Freedom Plaza

Counter Protest Rally in Freedom Plaza

Counter Protest Rally in Freedom Plaza

Counter Protest Rally in Freedom Plaza

Counter Protest Rally in Freedom Plaza

Counter Protest Rally in Freedom Plaza

Counter Protest Rally in Freedom Plaza

As you can see from the photos there was a mix of people of all ages, races, gender identities, and sexual orientations. One of the people in the next photo even gave me free bottled water after I shot this picture.

Counter Protest Rally in Freedom Plaza

Counter Protest Rally in Freedom Plaza

Counter Protest Rally in Freedom Plaza

Eventually the march began from Freedom Plaza. I heard people with microphones or bullhorns warning us that this march was risky since we would be directly confronting the Unite the Right 2 people. People’s spirits were up despite the risks involved and the fact that it was very humid outside. (Fortunately the day was cloudy so we didn’t have to deal with being in direct sunlight.)

Counter Protest Rally in Freedom Plaza

So the march started to move towards Lafayette Square.

The March From Freedom Plaza to Lafayette Square

The March From Freedom Plaza to Lafayette Square

The March From Freedom Plaza to Lafayette Square

The March From Freedom Plaza to Lafayette Square

There were Secret Service people around, especially as we started to get closer to Lafayette Square.

The March From Freedom Plaza to Lafayette Square

There was a street musician on the march route who serenaded the marchers with his rendition of “Stand By Me” while singing this altered lyric, “No, I won’t be afraid. No I won’t be afraid of the KKK. For as long as you stand by me.” He also earned a lot of tip money that day (as you can see in the photo below).

The March From Freedom Plaza to Lafayette Square

The March From Freedom Plaza to Lafayette Square

The March From Freedom Plaza to Lafayette Square

The March From Freedom Plaza to Lafayette Square

The March From Freedom Plaza to Lafayette Square

The March From Freedom Plaza to Lafayette Square

We finally arrived at Lafayette Square where there was a huge police presence (some of them on horseback) along with extensive barricades that completely blocked the other end of Lafayette Square.

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

There was another street musician in Lafayette Square who was playing his violin while earning a huge amount of tips in the process.

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

So we all crowded into one end of Lafayette Square while trying to see if anyone had seen any alt-right Nazis or KKK people there. I overheard someone who was sitting in a tree saying that she could barely see them because they were located so far on the other side of the park. So we all waited patiently as we heard thunder and saw a few lightning bolts appear before the rain really started. (Which is why you can see plenty of umbrellas in some of these photographs.)

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

At one point a guy approached me asking if I want a free sign that he had just made up. Apparently he had created a bunch of signs and he decided to give them away. I took him up on his offer. Here is what that sign looked like.

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

Here’s a glimpse of the White House in the distance.

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

PETA was there as well along with two costumed folks.

Counter Protesters in Lafayette Square, Washington, DC, August 12,2018

Lafayette Park has long been home to this 24-hour-a-day/7-days-per-week anti-nuclear protest camp that has been there since Ronald Reagan occupied the White House. It has continued even though both of its original founders are now deceased. I saw that this camp had been moved from its usual spot at the edge of Lafayette Park that’s closest to the White House all the way over to where the counter protesters were gathered. (Unfortunately I didn’t take a picture of that site.)

After waiting for a while I pulled out my smartphone looking for news on the alt-right protesters only to find out that a whopping 20-25 protesters from the other side had shown up. The counter protesters outnumbered the alt-right protesters. When I read later news reports, I saw how pathetic the turnout really was on the other side.

Unite the Right was a pathetic failure

There were plenty of reasons for the pathetic display. But the basic issue is that Charlottesville was a complete disaster — a moment that was supposed to somehow win white nationalists favor, but actively turned much of the nation against them when they engaged in violence and, in one case, literal murder.

White nationalists dwarfed by crowds of counter protesters in Washington

The showing from “Unite the Right 2” participants fell far short of the hundreds that organizer Jason Kessler was expecting, based on his event permit application.

Kessler, who organized last year’s “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, blamed the low turnout on logistical issues and confusion regarding the group’s transportation — a claim echoed by at least two men who spoke to reporters. “People are scared to come out after what happened last year,” one of the men added.

Rally by White Nationalists Was Over Almost Before It Began

After weeks of hype, white supremacists managed to muster just a couple of dozen supporters on Sunday in the nation’s capital for the first anniversary of their deadly rally in Charlottesville, Va., finding themselves greatly outnumbered by counterprotesters, police officers and representatives of the news media.

Unite the Right: White nationalists outnumbered at Washington rally

As a small group of white supremacists gathered for their second “Unite the Right” rally, the rain began to fall.

Much like the sodden pavements outside the White House, the follow up to last year’s rally in Charlottesville was nothing more than a damp squib.

This last article explains why I never saw any alt-right protesters nor was I able to come up to them close enough so I could get a shot with my camera.

‘Hell no’: counterprotesters outnumber white supremacists at White House rally

To protect their safety and that of others, officials had organised a special route for the parade. Kessler and his companions were escorted onto the metro. A special car was prepared for them, the Southern Poverty Law Center reported. In downtown Washington, police officers said they planned to clear part of the metro station platform to escort Kessler up to the street. As he came up the elevators, he was met with hundreds of news photographers and a roar of outrage from protesters amassed waiting.

In Lafayette Park, in front of the White House, Kessler and his tiny group of supporters were taken away to their own distant corner of the park talked to each other in front of journalists. Cordoned off and dozens of meters away, too far to even see him, a crowd of thousands of counter-protesters waved signs and shouted their disapproval.

In a nutshell, the tiny alt-right group showed up at Lafayette Square earlier than originally scheduled then decided to cut their rally short when the rain came down and leave the area. So the counter protesters won this round simply by outnumbering the alt-right.

To be honest, I don’t even know what Jason Kessler was thinking when he decided that DC would be the perfect place to have his little hate rally. With the exception of having a white supremacist currently occupying the White House, he was holding a rally in hostile territory. There is an African American majority living in that city. Plus there are plenty of Latinos and LGBTQ folks who also call DC home. There was no way in hell that they were going to sit back and let the alt-right have their rally with no blowback at all. Especially since it was the one-year anniversary of that brutal murder of Heather Heyer at the hands (or maybe I should say car) of a white supremacist.

Hell, many of the local bars and restaurants in DC had decided that they would not serve any white nationalists.

I arrived in downtown DC while bracing myself for the likely possibility of a violent confrontation. In the end it turned out that I stood a greater chance of being struck by lightning than getting killed by a Nazi. I’m glad that no one was killed on Sunday and that the alt-right were too minuscule to provide much of a threat.

I grew tired of sitting in the rain with my umbrella so I decided to head back to the nearest Metro station that was opened. Metro, in its infinite wisdom (sarcasm), decided to close the two Metro stations that were closest to Lafayette Square. I ended up walking several blocks until I found the Gallery Place/Chinatown Metro station. While I was walking I saw a group of black-clad antifa demonstrators blocking the corner of 13th and G Streets, Northwest. I didn’t know why they were doing this. They managed to get this white car that was headed in the antifa’s direction to turn around and drive a different route. Here are a few photos of what I saw on my way back to the Gallery Place/Chinatown Metro station.

Counter Protesters Agains the Unite the Right 2 Protesters

Counter Protesters Agains the Unite the Right 2 Protesters

Counter Protesters Agains the Unite the Right 2 Protesters

I just kept on walking towards the Metro station. It’s just as well that I kept my distance because I read some news stories about antifa and they weren’t flattering at all:

Unite the Right 2018: antifa attacks police and journalists in Charlottesville and DC

At Unite the Right, black-clad antifa again give peaceful protesters a bad name.

I would rather focus on the fact that the counter protesters won through largely peaceful means. However, I read this opinion piece that sounds pretty alarming: I was at the sad white supremacists gathering. It didn’t fool me. Their movement is rising.

It sounds like the counter protesters have won a battle but it hasn’t decisively won the war—yet. We’ll see how things turn out in the mid-term elections this November. In the meantime, here’s a video I also shot at the counter protest that included all kinds of footage ranging from shouting some unique slogans (such as “Oy Vey! Oy Vey! Nazi Scum Go Away!”) to street musicians serenading the counter protesters as they made their way to Lafayette Square.

Here’s hoping that there won’t be a Unite the Right 3 anywhere in the United States next year.

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The boss at my current day job decided to spend a large chunk of August in India with his family (where they originally came from). No, I’m not getting paid while he’s in India visiting members of his extended family who still live there. (Without going into details, let’s just say that I’ve been working for this guy for over four months and not only have my hours not increased to full-time work, despite his assurances that it would eventually happen, but they have gotten increasingly erratic.) I took a one-day offer to do some side work for a friend of mine while he’s working at his day job in Takoma Park, Maryland.

The annual National Night Out happened to be taking place on that same day and it’s near where my friend works so my friend and I decided to head over to that event to check it out. I’ve attended the National Night Out events in Greenbelt (and I even wrote a blog post about it back in 2016) so I was okay with seeing how a different town observes that event. I took some photos as well.

The event was held in the parking lot outside of Piney Branch Elementary School (which was closed for summer vacation). The police closed down the street that went past the school.

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

The police and other local community groups gave away free food and drinks. I managed to eat a hot dog and a hamburger for dinner.

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

A local television station was covering this event.

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

MacGruff the Crimefighting Dog was there greeting people and having his picture taken with them.

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

There were all kinds of activities for people of all ages to do, including playing with a giant chess set, playing with a giant Jenga tower, petting a police horse, and playing various games. A deejay was there spinning the tunes while all this was happening. Everyone present seemed to have a good time.

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

There was even a “Dunk-A-Cop” game where kids could throw balls to soak a cop.

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

There was a petition drive to recall the Takoma Park City Council. I don’t know what the issue was about nor did I bother to find out because I don’t live in Takoma Park.

National Night Out, August 7, 2018

Here’s a video of the event, which I helped to shoot and edit using a friend’s iPodTouch. I played around with the slow-motion features of this camera during the jump rope footage, which was pretty interesting when I viewed it later.

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Ramadan

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