Becoming an Activist: Tiffany Weber

These are times that call us to action.  Luckily, members of the Clear Creek County Democrats are actively engaged in Clear Creek County, organizing protests, volunteering with local nonprofits, and working to bring about changes in the county, state, and nation.  Everyone has a different path to political action and activism.  “Becoming an Activist” is a periodic series that tells the individual stories of activists in our community.  If you have a story you would like to tell, please let us know.

This edition of “Becoming an Activist” features the story of Tiffany Weber, of Solidarity Warriors, one of the organizers of the recent No Kings Activists Fair on June 14.  Here, Tiffany describes her road to activism:

I was raised by my single mom. I remember doing homework in the waiting room of her office while she saw clients because we couldn’t afford childcare. I left home and started working to pay rent when I was 15. It was a struggle when many restaurant jobs were only part-time. When I was 16, I worked at a call center where the upper management walked all over the employees.

One coworker at the call center decided to start organizing the workplace. We met in secret. He coordinated with the IWW union. It was thrilling to witness the power of collective action in fighting for the rights of all workers. I learned that the only way to build power to fight against the 1% is through solidarity.

On 9/11, I was 19 years old. I was on a work trip in Minneapolis. I was supposed to fly home the next day. When the airports closed, there was nothing to do but stay in the hotel and watch the news. I watched George W. Bush declare, “We are at war. We just don’t know with who.” That chilled me to the core. I had a deep-seated fear that some innocent country would suffer once we declared war on the first enemy that the administration chose to target.

On March 22nd, 2003, after Bush declared war on Iraq and the first photos of civilian victims were published after the “shock and awe” bombing campaign, I decided to plan my first protest. I lived in a small town near Boulder, Colorado. I didn’t know anyone in Boulder except my coworkers. I sent an office-wide email full of my outrage against the administration for bombing innocent civilians and stating the time for my protest the following day. My email was met with conservative rhetoric and mockery, but I still proceeded with my plan for a protest.

I made 20 signs and brought them with me, hoping that people would spontaneously join me if I stood with them on a main street corner. I also brought my new hand-held camcorder. After about 30 minutes, I saw a group of people gathering a block down. I brought my signs, distributed them, and grabbed my camcorder. The large protest marched through the streets of Boulder, and I recorded my first protest video. It was amazing to feel the energy of the crowd and know that I wasn’t alone.

I organized the No Kings protest because I want people attending to feel they are part of a community. I want people who don’t come to the protest but may agree that in the United States of America, we don’t have kings, to know they are not alone. I want people who may not agree with us yet but have a little voice inside telling them that what the administration is doing is wrong, to know that there are millions of people waiting for them to join the movement.

In Solidarity,

Tiffany Weber

Solidarity Warriors

action@solidaritywarriors.org

Bluesky: @solidaritywarrior.bsky.social www.solidaritywarriors.org