I shouldn’t laugh at this headline, but I can’t help myself. To be clear, the attacks in Brussels that happened the other day are no laughing matter, and my heart completely goes out to all those who lost their lives, as well as their loved ones. But when you have a “March Against Fear” planned, then you have to cancel it due to said fear, that’s not really a good look.
To be fair, the Belgium authorities didn’t outright say that’s why they canceled the marched. They said their overworked police needed some consideration, which might actually be part of the reason. Still, let’s be real. The actual reason is probably so someone didn’t get blown up today, which admittedly would be an even worse look than cancelling some march.
With Brussels still on high alert, organizers called off a “march against fear” planned for Sunday after officials including the city’s mayor urged people to stay away in order to spare the over-taxed police force.
“The security of our citizens is an absolute priority,” said march organizer Emmanuel Foulon.
“We totally agree with the authorities’ request to delay this plan for a later date. We in turn ask citizens not to come to Brussels this Sunday.”
To me, this isn’t the right message to be sending right about now. I know President Obama caught a lot of flack for continuing with his South American travels in the immediate aftermath of the attacks. Admittedly, the tango photo-op probably wasn’t the best idea, in hindsight. I understand what his point was, though. We shouldn’t let these terrorists knock us out of our routines. If we act scared then the bastards win. George W. Bush said something similar many times, and he was also correct.
Canceling this march sends the wrong signals, not only to the terrorist organizations who want to kill us, but also to our own citizenry. Now is not the time to back down, it’s the time to stand up. I understand the position of the authorities in Brussels, but this was ill-advised, in my opinion.
