Intersect: Crowd Coverage of Stewart-Colbert Rally

The view from Seventh Street NW caused dramatic gasps as rally goers reached the downward incline of the street and saw the crowd of tens...

The view from Seventh Street NW caused dramatic gasps as rally goers reached the downward incline of the street and saw the crowd of tens of thousands stretch beyond the south side of the mall.

I was walking down 7th Street NW and had just crossed E Street when I heard the first of an endless stream of people exclaim, "Oh my God...

I was walking down 7th Street NW and had just crossed E Street when I heard the first of an endless stream of people exclaim, "Oh my God!" (as well as more colorful phrases) as the view revealed the size of the crowd down the hill. I stood there for at least ten minutes as one person after another expressed their disbelief and then grabbed for their cameras to capture the tens of thousands of people already gathered on the mall.

We had a wonderful time at the rally. I did notice a large variety of ages, an absence of beer and loads of very polite people. I hope...

We had a wonderful time at the rally. I did notice a large variety of ages, an absence of beer and loads of very polite people. I hope people don't miss the point of the rally, that the news media may display a hopeless array of fear and drama, but we're(america) generally nice, smart, and intelligent people who will work TOGETHER to solve our problems. it was a blast!

My body's back in Southern California, but my heart's still in DC. It will probably be a few days before I wind down from the overwhelming...

My body's back in Southern California, but my heart's still in DC.

It will probably be a few days before I wind down from the overwhelming thrill of having been a part of the rally. Even when I am wound down and back into the swing of my day-to-day life, I'll remember the thrill of being surrounded by so many people unified by both a desire for progress through rational discussion... and laughter.

Laughter heals. Laughter sustains through hard times. The laughter my mom inspired is what sustains her in my heart. More each day, the laughter she inspired - not her painful end - is what I remember when I think of her.

Laughter and, of course, her love of music. When my friend took this video, I had no idea I'd soon be seeing my mom's beloved Cat Stevens (as she knew him) yet already felt strongly like my mom was there with me.

Leaving the rally a couple hours later, the sensation of my mom's presence lingered. I wrote this:
"I am still overjoyed by this. I just can't believe it. Standing there in the sunlight, colorful leaves drifting down around us, Cat Stevens in front of us. Crazy. Just crazy beautiful."

Even when the adrenaline has worn off, the awe of these moments will remain imprinted upon my heart.

Three women traveled from Kentucky and Florida for people-watching on the mall.

Three women traveled from Kentucky and Florida for people-watching on the mall. Watch the video »

From the west side of 4th Street, a mass of humanity stretched out of site behind and swept tsunami like up the museum steps to the North...

From the west side of 4th Street, a mass of humanity stretched out of site behind and swept tsunami like up the museum steps to the North and South. "Signs down" was the only admonitions from those with blocked sight lines and chants of "Louder! Louder!" from the far reaches swelling toward the stage.
Luck and planning found a spot near the deaf interpreter pavilion in a group of polite and patient folks. We were here to be counted among the caring - nothing more.
More than anything, I think we on the Mall voted that day.
We voted that this is not about power, it is not about control, it is not about winning, it is not about money, it is not about fame, fortune, or even honor.
It is about getting along and getting a job done.
Jon may eschew that this was a "Political" event, but it was. A (large, VERY large) group of busy folks took time out of their lives to say, with their action, they were fed up with the the political direction.
I am honored to be counted among these winners today.

So I awoke the morning of the Jon Stewart / Stephen Colbert "Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear expecting my room mate to wake up also to...

So I awoke the morning of the Jon Stewart / Stephen Colbert "Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear expecting my room mate to wake up also to go with. Unfortunately, he was dead to the world in his room, so I left without him. Arrived at Franconia/Springfield Metro around 10am to find the place packed. The bridge from the parking garage to the platform was jammed with hundreds of people queuing apparently just to get a farecard. Luckily I had a SmarTrip card with a balance on it so I walked right through to get on the next train. I'm convinced no less than 1,000-1,500 people were there waiting in line. And I would have never known to proceed had a K9 Cop standing sentinel at the bridge made an announcement.
There were lots of people from all over the country on the metro...I felt out of place as a local. People asked me for directions and advice once they discovered I knew my way around on the metro. I helped two women from Chicago find their way to the L'Enfent Plaza station where we arrived around 1045.
Already there were tens of thousands of people milling about near the Air and Space Museum and the environs surrounding the Mall. Once actually on the mall, it was jam packed, 100,000 easily, an hour before the rally began.
I moved my way up a bit until I was about 150 feet from one of the jumbo-tron screens. I'm fairly tall, so I was able to see over the heads of most people without too much effort. Lots of funny and creative signs around me: "Bears! Nature's Death Panel" and signs with ascii character faces from the Reddit site, etc. There were several signs that were so massive that lots of people had to shout to get those folks to put them down simply to see.
The Rally itself was lots of fun. Good music from the Roots, John Legend and all the musical acts throughout the show (Ozzy Osbourne, Yusuf Islam and the O'Jays on one stage...what!?). The comedy was fantastic and the message from Stewart at the end was poignant and inspiring. Safe to say that a good time was had by all!
Then the trip home.... Herded through the streets somewhat past the Air and Space building back to L'Enfant Plaza metro. Big lines outside the station. Queued up for a few minutes and managed to make it down into the station. Tried topping up my Smartrip card, but the machine wouldn't work with it! One of the Metro folks said that Smartrip was disabled or something. So I had to buy a farecard for a single trip (how bogus)... and that was the least of my worried. Once I got to the platform around 330, I did not get on a train until after 430. Every train that came through was packed to the GILLS with people. (Sidenote: why do parents with tandem strollers insist on shoving themselves and their massive stroller with their kids onto a crowded metro train? steam from ears) Finally got on a train and got a seat (!!) so even when the train did get crowded a bit, I was there in my cozy corner with leg room to boot.
I was hungry when I got home though so I had to stop by Five Guys to grab a burger and fries... Anyway though, it was a fantastic time and very positive. Now to November 2! Everyone mus first THINK and then go VOTE!

On the stage at the east end of the Mall, just in front of the Capitol, the language of the day was comedy, news and music, live and on...

On the stage at the east end of the Mall, just in front of the Capitol, the language of the day was comedy, news and music, live and on video, blaring through huge speakers and flashing across enormous jumbotron screens. But the crowd was so vast that tens of thousands never got close enough to the stage, the speakers and the screens to see or hear anything but the tiniest echo of Comedy Central's elaborate show. For those us who had our rally six blocks and more down the Mall, the rally was just an enormous get together dominated by the homemade media that ordinary people could easily share--signs. There were some elaborate costumes and set pieces. There were some manufactured signs with manufactured messages. But mostly, there were hand-lettered signs that displayed the singular thoughts of the sign makers and carriers, who were of all ages, both genders, most religions and at least several races (although white people were in the majority).

The first sign carriers we encountered were the Vermont couple (above) who, as it turned out, really set the tone for the day, standing up for calm and rationality in a quiet, rational manner. My informal survey of the signs and the conversations showed that similar calls for calm and the many quiet protests against anger were the dominant message at the back of the rally.

After the anti-rage signs, the next most popular target of the rally-ers to restore sanity was Christine O'Donnell, the Tea Party's U.S. Senate candidate in Delaware, and her two equally famous proclamations (1) denying she is a witch and (2) denouncing masturbation.

This informal collection of sign language photos, most of them taken by my wife the photographer, Ellen Jacob, tells our story of the far end of the Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear.

I grew up in Washington and so, for me, there's always a bit of the personal mixed with any national event that takes place there. I was in...

I grew up in Washington and so, for me, there's always a bit of the personal mixed with any national event that takes place there. I was in DC on the 29th because I was attending the Online Journalism Association's 2010 annual conference. But Jon Stewart's rally was very much on my mind that night and my wife, Ellen Jacob, and I walked past the White House toward the National Mall to see how preparations for the event were coming along. As we passed the White House, we could see that preparations of another sort were under way--the presence of an airport fire truck and other emergency equipment marked the routine that surrounds any flight by Marine One. As the sun was just setting on a cold but perfectly clear evening, the helicopter flew overhead, across the Mall, taking the president to a political rally in Philadelphia. As national politics proceeded through the sky, on the ground, tourists strolled among the monuments, commuters clogged the streets, reporters recorded events large and small, and life in the national capital went on as usual. All that activity was going on behind us, to the north, but the Mall lay before us serene, calm, quiet. Waiting, as the Mall does, for whatever public drama or mass street theater might come next to affect, attack or merely comment on our national life. That's what I was thinking about as the sun went down that night in Washington, DC, on the eve of what I then believed would be one of the larger gatherings the mall or I had seen in quite some time.

According to my partner's uncle, hereinafter "BU," I was jinxing my birthday by proclaiming its awesomeness before the day was done. "Wait...

According to my partner's uncle, hereinafter "BU," I was jinxing my birthday by proclaiming its awesomeness before the day was done. "Wait till after midnight!"

It's well after midnight, and I think it's safe to proclaim:
That was one freakin' phenomenal birthday!

The rally was, for the most part, fun. What wasn't fun was better than fun; it was moving.

Before the rally even began, two teenagers broke their otherwise silence for the following exchange:
"I feel like I'm a part of something."
"You are. America."

As for the rally itself, I was moved by Yusuf Islam's appearance (!) and Jon's concluding speech. As for the former, I wept when Yusuf began Peace Train, disbelieving even so that I could really be witnessing one of my mom's favorite singers live. 50 yards away. The last eight months have been personally rocky as I've tried making peace with how much my mom suffered in her life, but these tears were all joy. I'd spent the weeks leading up to my birthday dreading it, only to find when I reached it that I didn't really feel alone. I may not be able to touch my mom's cheek anymore, and I'll never again feel her fingers through my hair, but when I closed my eyes yesterday? I felt her so strongly in my heart it didn't matter so much I can no longer touch her with my hands.

Equal parts cheesy and true!

As to the latter...

Even though I'd enjoyed the rest of the rally, I'd hoped there would be a moment of reflection to wrap everything together. Concluding the rally with Jon Stewart's (mostly) serious speech was such a force for cohesion; rather than being a bunch of strangers all standing in the same place, we were, for the duration of the speech, together, all of us unified by belief in the truths reflected in Jon's words. These are hard times, but they are not indeed end times. As Jon proclaimed and my mom's death recently affirmed, hard times are best gotten through together.

My friends and I ventured away absolutely tired, and absolutely delighted.

After some downtime, my friends went one way and I went another. Specifically, I was whisked away to a vegan eatery by my BU, who I'd never met before but felt instantly at ease with. Adding to the thrill of the evening, the ladies seated next to us were both - like me - from Los Angeles. Even more spectacularly, one of them had recently moved to my hometown. This, of course, led to multiple snapshots and virtually instant Facebook friendships.

Afterward, I was given an on-the-fly nighttime tour of the capitol. I'd had a fair deal of IPA by this point, so what I remember most clearly is sitting on Uncle Einstein's knee for a photo opp. If my brain fails me on the reminder, that's fine. I've got a handful of photos to fill in the blanks!

In conclusion? My score's only an estimate, but I'd wager I won around 432 points this weekend.

As for the weekend? BU was right. I did lose something. But really? A pair of eyeglasses was a small price to pay for all this wonder.