As the Inauguration ceremonies begin this morning, so do the protests in the streets. Though it is still early, the masses of protesters have begun to grow in Washington, D.C. and elsewhere.
For better or for worse – violent or peaceful – the number of protesters is expected to far outweigh the number of celebratory inauguration attendees. This is especially true of the women’s march event set for the day after the Inauguration, but even on the ceremonial day, the protests are growing quickly.
Already, some protesters have gotten into some trouble by trying to block the entrance to the inauguration venue, while other masked marchers have reportedly smashed windows of buildings in D.C..
No doubt there will be a great amount of misinformation as paid disruptors will be encouraged to cause damage and smear the reputation of the protests. Reporters must be vigilant to ensure that any damages they report in response to the protests are truly from anti-Trump demonstrators rather than right-wingers who are intent on misleading the public.
Below is one example of trouble being caused by reported anti-Trump protesters. We can expect much more as the day goes on.
Anti-Trump protesters smash windows of Starbucks in Washington.pic.twitter.com/sGctnf7zqh
— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) January 20, 2017