And Again

Back in 2004, the BBC had a call for photographs of what was going on in people's local areas. I don't remember if it was a general thing, or a contest, but either way, I grabbed my camera and headed out. There was a small recurring demonstration not very far from where I lived, and that seemed like the sort of thing that would make for interesting pictures.

November, 2004

I was driving by today, and they were still at it. And since I had my camera with me, I stopped and took some more pictures.

January, 2025

I admire the commitment of the regulars. They've been at this for more than 20 years now, rain or shine. Even though, as one of them said to me, they haven't saved the world yet.

I drop by every so often, when I think to, or when I'm driving by and see them. They recognize me now; the days when their response would be "Who are you working for?" and "Why are you taking pictures?" are long gone. Now it's: "Hey, good to see you!" and "It's been a while!"

The core group is about 9 or 10 people, but the size of the gatherings ebb and flow with events. When people are really worked up, there might be twenty or thirty people out there. When it's business as usual, attendance can drop to as low as six.

Despite the idea that protest is for the young, most of the people there are older than I am. That's also lead to some attrition in their numbers as people have grown sick or disabled, or simply died. Younger people don't seem to be interested in joining them.

I expect them to keep at it until the last of them has become too infirm to attend. And I'll keep dropping in from time to time, if for no other reason than to let them know that someone is still interested.