My grandmother was at Stonewall in '69, and she always said that night sparked something that couldn't be put back in the box. Were things perfect after? No. But you can literally trace a line from those protests to marriage equality fifty years later. Change is slow and messy, but I've seen how visibility and collective anger can shift what's considered possible.

Honestly, I'm skeptical. We've had massive protests against every war since Vietnam and they still happen. People marched against the financial crisis in 2008 and nothing fundamentally changed. Politicians smile, nod, wait for the crowds to disperse, then go back to business as usual. Maybe protests make people feel good about themselves, but real change comes from money and lobbying, not signs.

The thing about protests is they're necessary but not sufficient - they create political space for actual change, but only if there's sustained organizing, legal challenges, electoral pressure, all of it working together. Thinking one weekend march will solve systemic problems is naive. But thinking protests are pointless because they don't instantly fix everything? That's equally naive. They're one tool, and yeah, sometimes the right tool at the right moment matters.