I joined retired college professor and impeachment advocate John Nirenberg on Saturday for the final leg of his “March in My Name” Boston-to-Washington D.C. walk to demonstrate for impeachment of Bush and Cheney.

You can read more about John’s goals and views at his web site; suffice it to say he’s an articulate and persuasive advocate for impeachment, as he proved again in his remarks at the end of his and our march, across the street from the National Archives:

…even with the separation of powers, even with the checks and balances, even with the staggered election cycles, they put in impeachment. Because they so feared that the executive would be tempted to abuse his power much like the kings and queens that they were familiar with. […]

And yet today we find ourselves now facing a crisis of the Constitution… The Democrats have in their silence granted a pardon to the President and the Vice President … and future presidents. Not only has their silence granted them a pardon for their many crimes, but their silence has also amended the Constitution. By being silent and allowing a shift in power from Congress to the executive they have changed the document — they have changed the Constitution which …they have sworn to uphold… […]

We wouldn’t have ever thought the Constitution would be trashed peacefully, quietly, through silence.

Impeachment advocate, Capitol
in background. Note the poncho.
Originally uploaded by Thomas Nephew

But in some ways the most telling moment of the day came after we thought the day was over. John’s wife Allison wanted to visit the National Archives, where original copies of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights are enshrined. However, she was wearing a yellow poncho with the words

And that wasn’t allowed. Allison, writing at “March in My Name”:

I tried to talk to the guard about my goal in being in the building – simply to see the Constitution of the United States. He wasn’t convinced and kept repeating his mantra, “Just take off the poncho and you can go in.” I asked him what was wrong with my poncho. He replied that they do not allow protests inside the building. I said that I was not protesting, that I was just an American citizen visiting the most important document of our country. […]

I asked for a copy of the policy that mandated I remove my objectionable clothing in order to see the Constitution. They would provide nothing… I asked them how the policy is practiced - that knowing how they interpret and implement the policy might help me understand the policy or law I was violating. They simply and finally said, “You will have to leave if you do not remove your garment.”

So she chose to leave.

And, as I was turning to leave, I told him he was part and parcel of the reason that I found it necessary to articulate my point of view to “Save the Constitution,” on my clothing. “You might want to read the Constitution before you leave work today to find out what this is all about.” I said as I left.

Outside, Allison told us, “I’m not going to take off a poncho with a political statement on it to go in and see the document giving me the right to keep it on.”

For more on the march, see my post “Walking to strengthen a weakened Constitution“; this post is adapted from it. See also my friend Michelle Bailey’s (”Impeach Them”) post, slideshow, and above all the excellent video she filmed, edited, produced, and uploaded this weekend. (I’d post it, but keep having trouble with embedding videos here, though obviously it can be done.)

“Welcome to Washington, D.C.! To your right, the National Archives. The Archives are charged with hermetically sealing off the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights from the American people and any complaints they might have about their government.”

Photo originally uploaded by Thomas Nephew