The bigger story of what happened this week, beyond the micro-victory of getting the CBC to remove and fix a short video on Canada’s gun laws, is the display of power by grassroots, decentralized, uncoordinated, independent, networked actors.
A tiny display, but a display.
Thousands of advocates, activists and supporters of shooters’ rights across the country wrote, read and shared information through newsletters and blogs and Twitter and Facebook and e-mail.
Nothing new there, but we did it. We did it.
We informed each other, we inspired each other, we took action together, we created change together.
A tiny change, but change.
When was the last time a major media corporation pulled an article or video to fix it based on the feedback of gun owners? Exactly.
This week, one person dissected the video, another picked up on it and suggested contacting the CBC ombudsman, another promoted that idea, another (or several) wrote to the CBC, and thousands of people read, shared, liked and retweeted. One gun-rights blogger told me his page views spiked on his CBC updates. In my case, more people subscribed to TheGunBlog.ca in the past two days than in any 48-hour period since I started it more than two years ago. (I bow my head in a silent “Thank you” to every single one.)
“Today, the video. Tomorrow, the Firearms Act!”
It may be premature to print the banners and T-shirts, but … Why not?
If a handful of us acting independently achieved what we did this week on this itsy-bitsy-teeny-weeny video recall, imagine how we could change the things that really matter if we got organized.
We’d own this place.
That’s why I’m here, and if you’re still reading this, I assume it’s why you’re here, too.
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