OXLAEYVoting with their feet
Sunday morning. E, X and I descend down the Metro station, deep underground. We’re going to the mass demonstration called for by the main opposition parties. The subway arrives, jammed full with people. We squeeze ourselves inside, violating all sense of personal space. Arriving at the Metro stop, the doors open but there is hardly any room for us to exit. The crowd in the subway is dangerously filled beyond capacity. We surge with the crown wall-sized advertisements for new apartment complexes and whitening toothpaste.
Above ground the size of the crowd impresses even the locals. Everyone is taking pictures, sensing that this is a historic day. In fact the crowd is estimated to be round 350,000. We march into the flow and move towards Independent Square, where protesters were banned from gathering the night before by a court injunction. As the mass approaches, the police suppose to be guarding the square melt away.
Imagine being in the middle of three collegiate football stadiums filled with angry citizens. They are stamping to stay warm in the freezing cold. There is quiet as various opposition politicians speak.
