Big Bird, Grover and the Wild Things took pictures with fans in a sea of Obama/Biden signs and ‘Puppets Unite!’ posters. For anyone walking to the Smithsonian museums, they could be regaled by an activist dressed as Kermit singing “Rainbow Connection” as attendants cheered for the rights of their furry friends.
Co-organizers Chris Mecham and Michael Bellavia created their puppet march after the first presidential debate in which Governor Mitt Romney now infamously insisted he “loves Big Bird,” yet pledged to cut funding to PBS. Offended by the governor’s comments, the two men met on social media to vent their frustration and make their virtual idea a reality.
Their march’s mission is to increase awareness of the importance of federal funding to our public broadcasting system and to promote broad based support for its continuation, according to millionmuppetmarch.com.
While these marchers celebrated the Muppets, Romney supporters showed up in throngs this weekend to cheer the governor in battleground states Ohio, New Hampshire, Iowa and Colorado. If the Republican is elected this Tuesday, the marchers may find that the federal government isn’t always a benevolent puppetmaster.
