The Resistance Fizzles Out in Philly

On a Wednesday evening in November, several dozen police officers stand watch in front of Philadelphia’s beaux-arts city hall. They’re on alert—but not entirely sure what for. A young bicycle cop tells me he too had heard there would be a protest tonight at Dilworth Park, here in the heart of municipal Philly.

If fewer than 20 people show up, half the officers here will get to stand down, he believes. Per a roll call on Facebook, I tell him that more than 700 had said they would attend. “Please, God, no,” he groans. A slightly senior officer standing next to us raises his eyebrows and sneaks a look at the south side of the building, where a small gathering’s begun.

So far, at 5:55, there are three people. The generously publicized “Primal Scream Against Trump” is scheduled to start in five minutes.

“Let's have a primal scream for the current state of our democracy! Gather together after work at Philadelphia's City Hall,” read the viral invitation. But on the first anniversary of Election Day 2016, these few apparently are the dregs of an anti-Trump resistance.

Or was it a hoax? Maybe a ploy to distract the police while a clever bandit pulls off a heist? Mike Hisy, 54, is taken aback by the challenge to his organization's seriousness. “I’ve been an activist over 40 years. I don’t joke,” he says. Mike’s come with the grassroots group Philly UP, a klatch of enraged progressives who found each other last year.