Political Activism

[Belsnickel]

So, one thing that has come about in this era has been a rise in activism and engagement. I don't think it will be sustained, and I think a lot of it is really surface level engagement where they aren't really digging into the meat of the policies. Then there are the violent ones. I figured we could discuss this rise in activism here. What do you think about it, good or bad? How long do you think it will last? How do you think it can be directed into something that is actually substantial rather than petulance?

I also figured we could bring stories of activism/engagement in places it hadn't been before. This is the story that prompted this for me. It's about Mennonites becoming politically active. Everyone knows about the Amish separating themselves from the world of "the English," and the Old Order Mennonites do that to a large extent as well. But the Mennonites and the Schwarzenau Brethren (German Baptist Brethren, Church of the Brethren, Dunkers, etc.) all believe in a firm separation of church and state. You don't typically find politicians from those groups because it is against those theologies to swear an oath. So these groups do not typically wander into the political arena.

That being said, you may have noticed my avatar. Mine has German on top, but this is the most common version you will see:


It comes from a church that I have actually attended many times as it is just a couple of blocks from my parents' house:

<shameless plug for their signs>

The activism we are seeing within the Mennonite community with regards to immigration has been huge. It ranges from things like those signs (which that started before the election, but was done in response to a growing anti-immigrant attitude in some areas) to Mennonites actually being engaged in local politics. I have seen Mennonites of the conservative variety (not full on Old Order) at political meetups in the area, and that is just blowing my mind.