It’s raining lightly on a grey June 14 in Washington DC as the grim parade rolls past the scowling birthday boy. Such a display of military might, power and dominance reeks of insecurity. It’s sad when someone must order over 6,000 soldiers to celebrate his birthday. What’s tragic is the bill for this extravaganza: by some estimates, over $45 million when $1 a day which can keep a child from starving in Sudan has been de-funded. The brash arrogance of it all cried out for a recitation of Psalm 75, used that day for morning prayer around the world:
“To the boastful I say, ’Do not boast’;
To the wicked, ‘Do not flaunt your strength,…
Do not speak with insolent pride.’”
Contrast that scene to parades all over the U.S., in small towns and large, where five million gather to protest “No Kings.” (Asked about it, the president replied, “We’re not a king,” inadvertently using the royal “we.”) Spirits are high; drums, speeches and chants uplift the crowd, and the home-made signs, with varying degrees of wit and artistry, convey the same message in many modes. A few favorites: “It must be bad when the introverts are here.” “We can afford tank parades but not Medicaid?” “Defrost ICE,” and “Remind me: which felonies lead to deportation and which to the presidency?” A mom with a toddler in a stroller and a baby in a Snugli on her chest carries a heartbreaking sign: “The Children Deserve Better.”
The tone of the latter parade was overwhelmingly human, quirky, compassionate. No one marched in step; no one stayed in straight lines. There was good reason for anger that week, especially in California, with the unlawful calling of the National Guard and Marines to pour kerosene onto the flames of unrest in Los Angeles and the ham-handed treatment of Senator Alex Padilla, thrown to the floor and hand-cuffed when he tried to ask Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem a question at a press conference. But almost all reports were of peaceful, nonviolent demonstration.
The whole experience left me feeling bolstered and affirmed that, “I’m not alone and I’m not crazy.” Further adding to this was an editorial by Pedro Rios about masked and militarized ICE agents arresting workers at an Italian restaurant in San Diego. In the midst of Neopolitan pizza, people walking their dogs and children playing: helmets, rifles and flashbang grenades? To their credit, the neighbors and restaurant patrons told the agents in “colorful language that they weren’t welcome.” As one observer said, “unmarked cars took away people who have been part of the fabric of this neighborhood for years.” (“How ICE raid affects California neighborhood” East Bay Times, June 15, 2025,) 9
The sheer cruelty of this government-sanctioned, racist violence reminded me of what Thomas Merton wrote in Disputed Questions, first published in 1953:
“So when as in our time, the whole world seems to have become one immense and idiotic fiction, and when the virus of mendacity creeps into every vein and organ of the social body, it would be abnormal and immoral if there were no reaction. It is even healthy that this reaction should sometime take the form of outspoken protest.” p. 194
Of course there is historical precedent for flaunting military power: the Roman Empire displayed its legions, armor and swords with imperial majesty, ruling by force and terror. Especially at Passover in Jerusalem, their march reminded the Jews they’d obliterate the oppressed people who tried any resistance. But at the same time, another small parade occurred: a ragtag group followed a man looking absurd on a donkey. As Deb Thomas points out in Into the Mess and Other Jesus Stories, “Jesus comes defenseless and weaponless into his kingship.”
Furthermore, he has the audacity to love the sociopath who so unfortunately governs the U.S. Which parade might he join? Or perhaps his stands alone and unique, a subversive and mysterious invitation.
Kathy Coffey 