I strongly believe that this movement needs some epic, historical, unstoppable chants and slogans. I also believe that recent history proves that such chants and slogans tend to follow a simple formula: 3 words only, each word being only one syllable.
Here are the most impactful chants of the last few decades:
- Yes We Can.
- Feel The Bern.
- Eat The Rich.
- Drain The Swamp.
- Build The Wall.
These appeal to short attention spans. They are emotional. Sometimes they even imply a policy. They fit on a hat or t shirt or bumper sticker. They are ear worms. They have lasted.
When we make them wordier, they can make for a fun meme or moment, but history forgets them quickly.
I propose we mass brainstorm similar three word chants for the issues and policies of the day, until a winning chant is adopted by a charismatic leader to challenge Trump. I hope you all encourage your peers to workshop along these lines until a clear winner emerges within the movement.
Here are a few suggestions to kick things off:
- No More Kings.
- Let Goods Flow.
- Free Means All.
- Rise Or Fall.
If you have an idea or suggestion, please share in the comments. If you join a protest, see if any of these stick. We’re all in this together!
Another series of thoughts that just crossed my mind…
What’s up with words that end in ‘ORT’?
Abort, deport, import, export, extort…
What else is next?
When I have an answer, I’ll get back to you with a retort
Deport Elmo
Edit: Sure that’s not a 3 word chant, but it totally lends itself to 4 syllables…
De … Port … El … mo
Sure, make it Elon if you really want to make it clear, but I really hate typing his name out.
I think that’s a great chant, though I would support using his real name. I think we should use that one ASAP, but not rely on that to win the long game. We need to be for something that will carry us to a new party in control after this shit storm passes. But for now, getting rid of Elon would appeal to many across the aisle and would be a good first step.
What’s a good way to express this truthful though in as few words as possible?
‘What’s the difference between a clown and a politican? Clowns have to go to college.’
Is there any way to summarize and strip that down into just a few words worthy of a protest chant?
Fun challenge, I’ll try to tackle it for kicks!
What you have currently is a joke, with a setup and punchline. You can either try to maintain that structure with a setup word, transition verb, then punchline word structure… Or you can abandon the joke and repackage the subtext/implication of the joke as bold, explicit text. The first would require great cleverness. The second would be easier and clearer.
Example A: Joke Format (Setup, Transition Word, Punchline) - “Clowns Know More” or “Clowns Do Work”
That is kind of vague about what you are referring. It might take many drafts to get close to something that works well.
Example B: Abandon metaphor, replace subtext with text - “Trump’s A Chump.”
I first thought of Trump’s A Fool but I figure rhyming is catchier.
To be honest, I think a joke like this is fine as is, but doesn’t lend itself to a movement-defining rally call either way. It’s best used the way you wrote it as a hook to a speech talking point, or during a one-on-one conversation with an engaged individual, rather than a crowd call-and-response. You can then follow up with “Trump’s a chump” after you have their ear, as a way to hammer home your point and compel them to adopt this view.
To be fair, Trump attended a college, so you need to be ready to demonstrate he never studied, is lazy, and illiterate/ignorant.
I do think giving him the moniker “Chump Trump” to deride his stupid choices would help distance people from him. MAGA loves mocking others, hate being mocked, and deride those who fall victim to mockery.
You’re right, gotta be ready to dispute that.
Of course a number of politicians actually have gone to college, but it’s not an obligation.
Meanwhile, what do make of this?..
https://www.truthorfiction.com/trump-was-the-dumbest-gddamn-student/
Consider having a QR code for that URL handy if you are engaging folks 1-on-1 and taking this angle as your tactic! Be wary of using this tactic with folks who may hate professors, though. If they personally have been derided by educators and hate higher education, this tactic may backfire. With those folks, talk about how Trump lacks “common sense.” You should profile the listener and make an educated guess which way to take it.
As much as I like that idea, it’s been proven that QR codes can’t be taken too seriously anymore and should be assumed to be a security risk.
You can actually halftone one QR code on top of another, and either one of them will scan randomly.
I occasionally generate innocent split personality QR codes for fun, so I can fully confirm that such suspicious dual QR codes work.
So, with all due good conscience, I can’t see QR codes being taken seriously for protest causes.
Then you’ll have to say something like “Google it, it’s true” with confidence and press forward. That is, assuming Google hasn’t whitewashed it the same way they have the apple maps kill site image.
Oligarchs Cause Homelessness
And Prison Sentences…
Yeah it doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue all that well, just tossing some more ideas into the hat.