April 19th anti-Trump/ MAGA protests are grounded in our patriotic history

TAT readers,

I’ve been wanting to write today’s essay, ever since publishing last Wednesday’s, A threat advisory about April 19th and 20th, by Trump & the far-right GOP. Gratefully, your feedback tells me that you appreciate that I frame many of my essays, with stories about our history, our founding fathers and their intent for our nation. As the son of a history and government teacher and lifelong professional educator, your acceptance of this approach is heartwarming to me and I’m certain, my long-passed father, smiling down on these essays. He impressed on me from the time I could hold a book sitting in front of his collection of history and government books, mostly over hundred years old, that we either live our historical truth, or lose the priceless gifts of liberty, enshrined in our founding principles. I hold these principles dear to my heart.

Within those august principles, lie the reasons that throughout our history, we as a nation have been inspired to resist all threats, collectively and with but one exception, the Civil War. Well, that is until Russia attacked and still attacks our nation via influence operations and most insidiously, in conjunction with today’s MAGA GOP, funded largely by oligarchs, US or otherwise. Our republic has never been homogenous regarding political beliefs, but outside of the exceptions of the Civil War and the Trump era we always rallied to the cause of liberty… together. This has occurred because we have always pursued those principles which include the absolute right to live as a free people, regardless of class, race, religion or otherwise.

It’s also true that we have often taken, “three steps forward and two steps back,” but we also always gained ground, far more often than losing it. We mostly agreed on our patriotic, constitutional principles, until the late seventies when the Newt Gingrich crowd began a scorched earth policy in our politics. In other words, whatever the Republicans wanted was good and the other side of the aisle was bad. There could be no more, fraternizing with the enemy, even for critical issues for our nation. Don’t get me wrong, there have been plenty of setbacks from the other side as well, but more often than not, at least they would reach across the aisle.

What this means in today’s American political landscape, is that the Republican Party is no longer conservative, but far-right extremism. Their motivations for their extremist views are deeply embedded in historical revisionism narratives, especially regarding our nation’s founding. Today, most Republicans, sucking for thirty plus years at the teats of FOX News and their ilk, have such a distorted view of our founding principles and history of our founding, that they only respond to the propagandists that spew their fake-patriotism, around the clock, every day of the year. This is very much the topic of last Wednesday’s post about their revisionist history that revolves around April 19th and 20th.

Below are some examples from Wednesday’s essay.

- April, the 15th, when income tax filings are due, is also noted by anti-government extremists.  The Michigan Militia, for example, has traditionally held a "TaxBlast" event to protest it.  This year, the event, renamed Militia Field Day, is occurring on April 16.

- Known planned celebrations include an April 16 event in Osceola, Indiana, hosted by the National Knights of the Ku Klux Klan, to celebrate the birthdays of both Hitler and Klan leader Ray Larsen.  They also include the "6th Annual Adolf Hitler Birthday Bash," scheduled for April 23 in Detroit, Michigan.  This hate rock concert is organized by the Northern Hammerskins each year and will feature hate music bands Max Resist and Final War.  Possible celebrations may take place in New Jersey and Florida, but details have not been finalized.

- Anti-government extremists pay more attention to April 19, which is the anniversary both of the violent end to the Branch Davidian standoff at Waco, Texas, in 1993, and the bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City two years later by Timothy McVeigh, in a twisted act of retaliation for Waco.  A variety of Oklahoma City bombing conspiracy theorists will be holding a two-day event, "OKC Bombing:  A Day of Truth 10 Years Later," in Oklahoma City on April 19-20, 2005.

- For white supremacists, the key April date is April 20, the anniversary of the birth of Adolf Hitler.  Each year, racists and anti-Semites schedule several events to celebrate the Nazi leader's birthday.  Because April 20, 2005, occurs in the middle of the week, this year such celebrations can occur on the previous weekend (April 16-17) or following weekend (April 23-24) as well. 

- Although not tied to any particular extremist group or movement, the anniversary of the tragic Columbine, Colorado, school shootings also falls on April 20.  This anniversary may seem more significant in the wake of the recent deadly school shootings in Minnesota.

- They also include the "6th Annual Adolf Hitler Birthday Bash," scheduled for April 23 in Detroit, Michigan.  This hate rock concert is organized by the Northern Hammerskins each year and will feature hate music bands Max Resist and Final War.  Possible celebrations may take place in New Jersey and Florida, but details have not been finalized.

- A threat advisory about April 19th and 20th, by Trump & the far-right GOP
- Truth about Threats
- Cobaugh
- April 9, 2025

Lexington and Concord, Deposition 20, Primary Source, Gould

Well, my fellow citizens who like me, will be in the streets this Saturday, April 19th, protesting the fascist version of the Republican Party, our motivations are actually grounded in our real history. This weekend is even more historically inspiring to real patriots than the far-right’s fake patriotic inspirations. April 19th, 1775, was the “shot heard round the world,” or in plain speak, the first battle between organized colonists, standing their ground against British troops advancing to enforce King George the III’s oppressive policies over them. The colonies had lost their patience to be treated as equal subjects of Britain and that historic shot across the bow at the advancing troops from Minutemen on that bridge in Concord, Massachusetts, became that shot heard round the world.

As dawn broke, crisp and clear on the 19th of April 1775, 77 patriots urgently formed themselves into a skirmish line on the Lexington Commons. Their formation looked much like they had practiced once a month for the past year or so. As they peered through the dawn light at the 700 professional British troops at the other end of the commons, it was clear that this was going to be no practice. Within minutes of first being alerted, there they stood, preparing for the first time to offer armed resistance against the battle-hardened troops who’d fought all across the British empire. These intrepid souls, known as “Minutemen,” as dictated by law a year earlier had been formed from a mix of local militias, in which membership was a requirement. They were a cross-section of early colonial life, part native, part immigrant, and from differing backgrounds. These men may have assembled because of the legal requirement but what truly bound them together was their deep, burning passion to be free of the meddlesome oppression of a foreign government.  

When shots cut the cool, crisp dawn air, eight minutemen fell dead in what would become the first casualties of our war for independence. That first skirmish on the commons in Lexington led to the North Bridge and Concord shortly afterwards, where fate reversed its course for the British troops. All along their advance into Concord and throughout their retreat back to Boston, minutemen continued to pour out of their towns, villages and farms, until their numbers exceeded 3,000. 

The brief dawn success in Lexington for the seven hundred British grenadiers and light infantry that had marched out from Boston was their last of the expedition. They would suffer 79 dead and 149 wounded by the time they limped back into Boston having been under assault the entire way. Colonial casualties would reach 49 killed and 39 wounded. Britain would be stunned and humiliated by their encounter with the patriots, which signaled full rebellion. Eight years later, the humiliation complete, Britain would recognize our independence. American resolve in the face of a threat would never again be underestimated.

- PERSPECTIVE: Everyone Must Be a Modern-Day Minuteman to Protect Our Election
- Homeland Security Today Magazine
- Paul Cobaugh
- July 31st, 2019

Britain, arguably the most powerful nation on earth at the time had all of the advantages but that shot from Concord Bridge, was the earliest sign that patriotic Americans don’t back down regardless of the odds. Especially when it is our very freedom that is at stake. Trump and the historical revisionists, now subservient to the Russian-styled tactics of overthrowing democracies, have lost touch with who our nation and its citizens, really are. They are betting on fake patriotism while that the resistance, operates on the adrenalin of our truth, not some made-up Hollywood styled movie script.

That true patriotic fervor, beats in the heart of all Americans, not blinded by extremist ideology. The GOP may fan the flames of their so-called base with red meat fake patriotism, but it only reaches so deep in them. True patriotism is quite literally in our DNA. The resistance, despite the Trumpian GOP’s overwhelming advantages, is vulnerable to the same patriotic fervor that moved Minutemen onto Lexington Commons, to stand against hundreds of regular British regulars. Britain briefly carried the field that chilly April morning, but would lose dearly, as they retreated all the way back to Boston. They would also, eight years later, lose the war. David had beaten Goliath.

This painting depicts the forces of British Major General Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis (1738–1805) (who was not himself present at the surrender), surrendering to French and American forces after the Siege of Yorktown (September 28 – October 19, 1781) during the American Revolutionary War. The central figures depicted are Generals Charles O'Hara and Benjamin Lincoln. The United States government commissioned Trumbull to paint patriotic paintings, including this piece, for them in 1817, paying for the piece in 1820.

So, when we take to the streets this coming Saturday, don’t think about the seemingly overwhelming advantages that this Republican administration has. Those advantages are powered by beliefs only skin deep, while that the soul of our resistance, beats deep in the hearts of all honest Americans. Like Britain in 1775, Trump may be able to suppress the press, a violation of our First Amendment, wage a war of propaganda and create unconstitutional laws by EO or via his cowering, submissive, Republican Congress, but it won’t help him.

As I like to say and which is well grounded in our historical truths, “you cannot push an American patriot too far until we say, “oh hell no” and make you regret pushing us too far. Trump and the Republican Party have reached that point and are too arrogant to realize that it us, who now have the upper hand. For the past two weeks, the success of the April 5th, Hands-Off protests have driven Trump and the GOP, to crack down even harder on our constitutional rights, falsely believing that we are intimidated.

Let them believe as they wish, because it will not help them. The spittle-laden, extremist threats, emanating from Trump and his most vile influencers, do nothing but whet our appetite to teach them a lesson, hopefully a peaceful one too. The harder they push, the less likely that their coup attempt will end peacefully, but that’s their decision, not ours. Like Boston, Concord, Lexington and all the towns and villages in between two hundred and fifty years ago, once begun, we will see this through to the end and now, honest patriotism gives us the advantage we need. There are far more real patriots, than the minority GOP MAGA crowd. This is something else they should but won’t likely consider.

There are now, only two possible outcomes for this tragic era, to win on the right side of history, or still be a Republican. There are no other options, and I know which side I will stand on. With the way my follower and subscriber numbers are increasing, I’d say that I’ll be in good company on the right side of history. Thank you to all.

If you celebrate Easter, you’ll have two important things to celebrate this weekend.

See you in the streets on Saturday

Paul

Home | Boston, MA | Revolution 250

On a related note, I want to hype something really amazing in the Boston Area this weekend, commemorating the 250th anniversary of the beginning of our Revolutionary War. This begins today and runs through Saturday, the 19th. This is some poetic justice when on Saturday, the entire country will be once again fighting for freedom. The weekend celebration includes reenactments of Paul Revere’s midnight ride, the battles of Concord and Lexington, plus so many other wonderful historical events. Boston was a hotbed of revolutionary fervor leading up to the war and produced some of our most famous founders, like John Adams, Samuel Adams, James Hancock etc.

Thank you, Boston and partners, Boston Strong