Protest marches

Some marches are family friendly affairs with music, balloons etc, others are a bit menacing with threats of violence. I would expect parents to make a judgement as to whether their child would be happy on any particular protest. I know which type I prefer. No worse than parents who drag their children to church or take them to a music festival.

Witzend As I remember, "Reclaim the Streets" marches were held during the time that Peter Sutcliffe was murdering women. The police advice was for women not to go out, but the women were saying that as it was a man who was the danger, shouldn't it be men that should be told not to go out.

I remember around 20 years ago when a colleague's daughter took her baby on a 'Reclaim the Streets!' march.

As my colleague said, 'Reclaim them from what '?

Paddyann a late aunt and uncle of mine never missed a CND or Aldermaston march/protest. They'd walked miles in their lives and died in their 90's. Uncle was a communist and had befriended the likes of Michael Foot and his enterage.
We thought they were all crackers.

I've always felt it was a bit hard on children dragging them round a supermarket but that seems even more common. I blame the parents

I've been a protestor since I was old enough to join the CND marches in teh 60's I STILL march with them AND have a job or threeGilly I also manage to find time for Independence marches .I think if people are passionate about a cause they will make time to show their feelings by taking part in protests/support marches and demos.

I march with a group of friends who have amongst them doctors and lawyers and nurses and teachers ,carers and shopkeepers etc ...just ordinary folk who want a better world .NOT scroungers or scum or jacobites or whatever insult you want to hurl.
Apart from the odd Nuclear base protest there have never been arrests ...not one at any Independence march .Many take children with them because its THEIR future we march for and most children I know are interested in things like the environment and plastic consumption etc .Theres usually a party atmosphere at the end of the march and the kids love it JUST because its not YOUR way of doing things doesn't make it wrong .PS I dont have nor have I ever had a shaven or even half shaven head

Gillybob I've often wondered that myself.

Those children in pushchairs in the 70's will have grown up to protests ( children being influenced by their parent/s ) and will naturally be todays protesters. Sheeples !

That’s true, but it can’t be a very pleasant experience for a toddler.

Maybe older children would be keen to participate, but I don’t think it’s place for babies or toddlers

What puzzles me is what (if anything)do these professional protesters do for a living?

Actually it happened in the 1970s, nothing new. Not everyone has or had access to easy childcare, but still wanted to express their feelings about an issue. Becoming a parent can make a person care more about what is happening in the world, not sit passively at home.