Emily, thank you so much for writing this article. I had a visceral reaction when I initially watched the video and am still angry. I kept shouting at the video, “Lock arms, ladies! Don’t let them take her!” We need to be upstanders, not bystanders. I get it, it’s scary so I immediately looked up what to know when protesting or speaking out generally. I found this from the ACLU: https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights. When you know your rights, you can be prepared and hopefully more confident when situations like this arise. Sadly, it’s not going away but we need to be informed.
This video continues to haunt me, but it also has me looking up active bystander training in my area. I think we should all go to one if we can. It can be hard to get involved, but practice prepares us and makes us stronger.
I've watched the video numerous times and have been keeping tabs on following up on all of it, but reading the end of your post just made me cry. Thank you, Emily.
AAJC partnered with Right to Be to host really incredible bystander training sessions at the height of anti-Asian harassment during COVID, and it looks like they've turned it into a YouTube series! The training is (unfortunately) applicable to many situations nowadays, and I feel like I'm always ready to put the 5 Ds into action as a reuslt. Highly recommend! https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLShboSEeEaPQ5JKO6L9DG78V8AcXyZjZh&si=pYYb6-IR1ICa-Nii
Thank you for this - when I first saw your link to this video on Sunday I kept thinking “what would I do? What would be safe but helpful thing to do?” I’m 78 -would that bully security team grab a white-haired senior woman if she stood up for this protestor? The suggested action points were helpful - I’ve shared with my daughters and DIL. And I’m still furious
"The question isn’t whether there will be consequences for speaking up. There always have been. The question is whether those consequences will make us quieter or louder." Time to put on our J. Lo hats. Let's get loud.
Emily, Thank you so much for bringing this discussion to us . It was a horrible situation and I can’t stop thinking about how awful this woman was treated.
This video was so hard to watch. I got chills and my heart was racing and I teared up. I went down a rabbit hole afterward and not only does the sheriff appear to be breaking the law as he is on disability from I think it was LA sheriff's office. Interesting, then, that Lear started in Cali and they both ended up in Idaho.
Thank you for putting into words what I could not, Emily. I haven't been able to watch the video, just the thought of it makes me physically sick. We are living the beginning of the Handmaid's Tale and it's terrifying
Hi Emily-- Thank you, as always, for your lovely posts with ACTIONABLE steps we can all take in our daily lives. The horrors persist, but you've given me so many clear ways I can engage and help me feel less hopeless.
With the GOP actively advising their members to not do townhalls (live, tele, etc.)--how can we that live in red districts best make our opinions known to our elected representatives? It feels like calling is falling on deaf ears at this point, but I'm not sure that the next step is scheduling an office visit.
Do you have a primer on how best to prepare for an office visit? How to get your elected reps to hear your thoughts when they seem hell-bent on living in their echo chamber?
Emily, First, thank you. Second, I recently read that many Republicans on the Hill disagree with what the administration is doing and demanding from them, but are afraid to vote their conscious, or their constituents' will. Not just because they prize incumbency and Musk/Trump are using that, but because they fear physical harm to their families. (chilling to type that in the U.S.)
So, if "We have a choice here. We can internalize that threat, letting it shape our actions, making us smaller and quieter, or we can make this a galvanizing moment. We can choose to reject the fear they’re trying to instill in US," **how do we encourage a block of Republicans to stand up and do what's right?** I feel that those folks, above all, need your tips here -- they are acting like bystanders out of fear sometimes. Calling is great, if they are your reps, but I feel we need to instill courage somehow.
Emily, thank you so much for writing this article. I had a visceral reaction when I initially watched the video and am still angry. I kept shouting at the video, “Lock arms, ladies! Don’t let them take her!” We need to be upstanders, not bystanders. I get it, it’s scary so I immediately looked up what to know when protesting or speaking out generally. I found this from the ACLU: https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights. When you know your rights, you can be prepared and hopefully more confident when situations like this arise. Sadly, it’s not going away but we need to be informed.
I stand with Dr. Teresa Borrenpohl.
Thank you for the resource!
This video continues to haunt me, but it also has me looking up active bystander training in my area. I think we should all go to one if we can. It can be hard to get involved, but practice prepares us and makes us stronger.
I've watched the video numerous times and have been keeping tabs on following up on all of it, but reading the end of your post just made me cry. Thank you, Emily.
AAJC partnered with Right to Be to host really incredible bystander training sessions at the height of anti-Asian harassment during COVID, and it looks like they've turned it into a YouTube series! The training is (unfortunately) applicable to many situations nowadays, and I feel like I'm always ready to put the 5 Ds into action as a reuslt. Highly recommend! https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLShboSEeEaPQ5JKO6L9DG78V8AcXyZjZh&si=pYYb6-IR1ICa-Nii
Thank you for the resource!
Thank you for articulating these feelings and action points. Enlightening and useful as always.
Thank you for this - when I first saw your link to this video on Sunday I kept thinking “what would I do? What would be safe but helpful thing to do?” I’m 78 -would that bully security team grab a white-haired senior woman if she stood up for this protestor? The suggested action points were helpful - I’ve shared with my daughters and DIL. And I’m still furious
"The question isn’t whether there will be consequences for speaking up. There always have been. The question is whether those consequences will make us quieter or louder." Time to put on our J. Lo hats. Let's get loud.
Emily, Thank you so much for bringing this discussion to us . It was a horrible situation and I can’t stop thinking about how awful this woman was treated.
This video was so hard to watch. I got chills and my heart was racing and I teared up. I went down a rabbit hole afterward and not only does the sheriff appear to be breaking the law as he is on disability from I think it was LA sheriff's office. Interesting, then, that Lear started in Cali and they both ended up in Idaho.
Thank you for putting into words what I could not, Emily. I haven't been able to watch the video, just the thought of it makes me physically sick. We are living the beginning of the Handmaid's Tale and it's terrifying
Hi Emily-- Thank you, as always, for your lovely posts with ACTIONABLE steps we can all take in our daily lives. The horrors persist, but you've given me so many clear ways I can engage and help me feel less hopeless.
With the GOP actively advising their members to not do townhalls (live, tele, etc.)--how can we that live in red districts best make our opinions known to our elected representatives? It feels like calling is falling on deaf ears at this point, but I'm not sure that the next step is scheduling an office visit.
Do you have a primer on how best to prepare for an office visit? How to get your elected reps to hear your thoughts when they seem hell-bent on living in their echo chamber?
Thank you!
I’ve attended bystander training done through this organization https://righttobe.org/training/bystander-intervention-training/
You can have them come to your office or community group
Emily, First, thank you. Second, I recently read that many Republicans on the Hill disagree with what the administration is doing and demanding from them, but are afraid to vote their conscious, or their constituents' will. Not just because they prize incumbency and Musk/Trump are using that, but because they fear physical harm to their families. (chilling to type that in the U.S.)
So, if "We have a choice here. We can internalize that threat, letting it shape our actions, making us smaller and quieter, or we can make this a galvanizing moment. We can choose to reject the fear they’re trying to instill in US," **how do we encourage a block of Republicans to stand up and do what's right?** I feel that those folks, above all, need your tips here -- they are acting like bystanders out of fear sometimes. Calling is great, if they are your reps, but I feel we need to instill courage somehow.
(My source: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/feb/27/republicans-trump-threats)