You could say it’s an oxymoron, but it is really much more. Militant pedestrianism is a new attitude about how you walk around town. Militant pedestrians demand full rights to practice the oldest form of transportation. It isn’t for everyone, but here are the principals:

1. Show no fear
2. Stake claim to what is yours

This may seem a little silly. People walk around town every day and don’t think of themselves as revolutionaries. But the fact is that we give up our rights and demur to cars all the time. Do you wait on the side of the street for a gap in the traffic before crossing? Do you squeeze through on the narrow telephone pole studded sidewalks while cars have two clear 14 ft. wide lanes at their disposal? A militant pedestrian (MP for short) will not rest until there is justice and full rights for the oppressed walking people.

What does this entail? Mostly it’s about how you approach a cross walk. The MPs never break stride on their approach. They stare down the driver who may or may not be slowing down and keep walking right into the street. These are not suicide missions. MPs win not with brute force, but with shear bravery. Cars almost always stop as they should, because it’s the law to yield to pedestrians in the crosswalk. The MP graciously waves to the polite driver in victory. If the driver does not stop, the MP is ready to jump out of the way and yell loudly at the scofflaw!

MPs often see clearing the sidewalk as their responsibility. They report property owners who have allowed vegetation to obstruct the sidewalk (Arcata public works: 822-5957). They carry a cell phones and call parking enforcement to notify them of cars illegally parked on sidewalks. Arcata Parking Enforcement’s number is 822-2428. HSU Police are at 826-5555.

Diagonalism

Some MPs take their cause outside the law. These radicals refuse to recognize the car infrastructure as legitimate. They always take the shortest route between 2 points, whether it involves j-walking cutting through parking lots and alleys, and for some, even walking over the tops of cars. This approach is dangerous, illegal and possibly counter-productive, so I don’t recommend it. But when you see someone walking where they probably shouldn’t be, they may be a diagonalist.

So if you are out there walking, take note of whether your rights are being violated. If you choose to practice militant pedestrianism, be brave, safe, and polite when drivers do the right thing. If you are driving around town, watch out, because some pedestrians are militant!