@JohnPhilpin @manton Agreed John. I think and feel, deep in my core, that we in the US have become so insecure as a function of capitalism in culture as well as in terms of financial security, that we will do anything to avoid rocking the boat, even if it is just a gentle rocking and even if the actual repercussions are low to nonexistent. It is enough that there may be repercussions at all that many often quietly walk away. At least, that's my general observation.
I've often argued that there should be no "activists" because all citizens should be more active, more vocal, more willing to engage, protest and rock the boat. If such activism were more common it would be more normal and perhaps easier for us to converse about the difficult issues. But as it is the culture encourages a more passive, disengaged citizenship in favor of consumerism of cultural capitalism: sports and entertainment being examples of how our energy is channeled into approved, not-political good-for-capitalism "pastimes". Professional sports are a great example of a space where it's okay to yell, wave banners and be quite rowdy.