Early estimates say over 9 million people attended No Kings rallies today around the country. I was there at the rally in Madison, Wisconsin, one of over 100 rallies in Wisconsin alone. Now, as I’m back home, I’m listening to a youtube video of Senator Bernie Sanders speaking at the rally in St. Paul as I write and think about what to do next.

Honestly, I haven’t got many words today. So much has already been said. Yet, maybe someone hasn’t heard. Maybe there is something of value yet to be heard, so we keep speaking.

There was something I found in Madison’s rally today that gave me joy and built my rising hope. I arrived at the capitol about an hour before the march got to the site. I wanted to just see what was going on and how the crowd would build. What I saw was people visiting, smiling, enjoying each other’s company around dozen’s of booths lined up along the sidewalk as music played and the set up crew did sound checks. There were people of all ages, races, genders, and abilities. This place designed to fight the greatest evils in the world had become a festival ground. Madison, like thousands of other places around the country and the world is doing it, creating the festival spaces, proving that we cannot be held down. We will continue to stand up and dance!

It is through that creation of community and our ability to find joy to sing and dance and celebrate even in the hardest of times that we will win.