THINK 3 VIDEO NEWS: Albany inaugurates resistance to Trump

The day after Donald Trump took the oath of office, an estimated 7,000 people thronged West Capitol Park in Albany for an "Inaugurate Resitance" rally coinciding with the "Million Women March" in Washington and demonstrations across the country. Following an afternoon of workshops preparing participants for a promised "100 Days of Resistance," demonstrators marched along Washington Avenue to the capitol at 4 p.m. I arrived there at approximately 4:15 p.m. There was already a good crowd on the capitol grounds proper, and many more were coming in.

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Later, I made my way into the park and shot this panoramic footage of the crowd reacting to one of the speeches.

The loneliest (or bravest) man in Albany today was a sole Trump supporter who attempted to remonstrate with demonstrators. When I arrived he was telling a woman with a "Love Trumps Hate" sign that Trump didn't hate anybody, the proof of that being his appointment of Dr. Carson to his Cabinet. After filming the march on Washington Ave., I returned to Swan Street to find him arguing with some other people. He has just told a woman that protesters should get jobs instead of collecting Welfare at the Social Services office up the street as the video begins.

I think the 7,000 estimate was a good one. It was the biggest political crowd I'd seen in Albany since the day Trump and Bernie Sanders were both in town, and part of the problem that led to this rally taking the place is that you never saw such a crowd come out for Hillary Clinton during the campaign. That's perfectly understandable given Hillary Clinton, but if today teaches us anything it's that it's much easier in this country to be against something (or someone) than for something. If anything, Americans may be more culturally inclined to opposition than affirmation, since only by opposing the powers that be can you prove to yourself that you're free. That's why I can't agree with they hysterics who see Trump as the coming of American fascism, since fascism requires a commitment to affirmation that few Americans care to make. It's more likely that Trump will go the way of George W. Bush, who started out beloved for his folksy common-man quality but left office largely despised. Of course, I'm one of those people who doubted whether Trump could ever become President, so don't take my word for any of this -- but don't panic, either.

Here are some random bonus photos of the demonstration.

 Some of the signs reflected the fundamentally feminist nature of the event.

Not all participants were strictly feminist.

 

Turnabout is fair play in this marcher's opinion

Give the President a few years, based on past practice,

 and he probably will fulfill these folks' demand.

Here's our heckler moments before I started recording him.

 

Finally, I would have loved to see the heckler take on these guys, 
but by this point I think he had left. And that's probably 
the only time I could use "left" to describe him.