Oh shit! Was the protest today?!

You had completely forgotten about the protest down at the women's clinic. You and some of your activist friends were planning to counter-protest some right-wing CHUDs who were harassing pregnant people. It made your blood boil just thinking about it. All that other shit you had to get done would need to wait. You had a patriarchy to smash.

You catch a ride downtown with your friend Anne and their partner Jack. The three of you spend the whole car ride grooving to some chill tunes and laughing about the last time you'd gone out to protest these assholes. Whenever these MAGA punks raised their smug heads in your town you and your friends always chased them off, and you looked forward to more of the same today.

You park a few blocks from the clinic and walk down to the protest. Already things feel a little off. The right-wing contingent seems a lot bigger and louder than usual, and your side just seems a little smaller and quieter. You try not to let it bother you as you take your place on the line.

Your adrenaline-fueled confidence doesn't last long, though. After a few escalating rounds of insults the right-wingers - mostly 20s-to-30s aged white men with a certain trailer-park look to them - got tired of being yelled at and surged forward. Your eyes widen with fear and you reach out to lock arms with your comrades. You gasp and look around as you realize that everyone else is retreating.

"C'mon RC!" Jack is grabbing at your arm and pulling you after him. Anne is already halfway down the block, following the other protesters and booking it as fast as they can. You feel a twinge of disappointment that your friends are running away, that your side is giving up so easily. You glance over your shoulder and see the advancing wall of beards and dirty baseball caps, and your disappointment turns to fear.