textsfromsolarpunk

Here's the thing. There are two ways to stop protests: repress protesters or change policies.

As cynical as I am about the average American, there is a limit to the level of violence against protesters the country will tolerate.

So of course the inconvenienced middle class will demand their masters stop the protests. And of course their masters will turn to state violence and police power.

But if the protesters are brave enough and committed enough and refuse to back down against violence, we'll see the same thing as happened in the civil rights movement: people see the commitment of the protesters and come to support their cause, and people see the level of violence deployed against the protesters and out of guilt and shame demand their masters find a peaceful solution.

(This is why the American right wing is trying so hard to normalize violence against protesters and convincing people (like you) to blame protesters for making violent repression necessary - so they can use violence more freely before public opinion turns against them. Just so you know.)

You think that the people you made late for work are lobbying their bosses to stop destroying the planet so the protestors will go away and they can be on time for work again, and those bosses are listening, and that's the avenue by which we're going to stop climate change?

Yes. Exactly. Being late for work one time won't change anyone's mind. But when there are ongoing protests, ongoing unrest, when the middle classes are inconvenienced and disrupted over and over again and those darn stubborn climate protesters won't stop no matter how hard the police beat them, well, then you might see a demand for genuine change.