Travel expenses, taking time off work, food and drink, accommodations...
> It doesn't take money to volunteer, even if it's just maintaining a newsletter or occasionally seeking donations for your local org.
Many activists do those things, though. They're still dragged through the mud for "not doing enough" or "just talking."
> It's very easy to throw stones from afar when you've never been in the trenches.
I've never flown a helicopter, but when someone puts one in a tree I can still say "dude fucked it up." and be correct.
> Those who don't do often make unreasonable demands because they have no connection to the reality of the situation of actually getting a thing done.
"Reasonable," "civil," "practical," are all examples of words used by those empowered by a status quo to resist changes to it. "We're happy to discuss issues, but the discussion should be ciiiiviiil" which I mean, yeah, I generally prefer civil discussions, but when the topic at hand is decidedly uncivil, for example taking people's children and imprisoning them at the border, then I believe an uncivil response is warranted.
Most protest organizers can set you up with a free bus ticket if you reach out to them and are in a reasonable bus distance. Your city may even have discount bus tickets already available if your protest is happening at a government building (which is an ideal place to protest). There are people at protests who go not for any protest cause itself, but to make sure people get water and don't die from heat stroke. Fill a water bottle before you go.
No, going to protest on the cheap won't get you an airplane ticket and a free lunch. Pack a sandwich if you want to eat. If you can't afford that, ask your fellow protestors for some crackers or something. Remember that your fellow protestors are on your side, and will actually help you.. if you ask them. They're not psychic.
> I've never flown a helicopter, but when someone puts one in a tree I can still say "dude fucked it up." and be correct.
Can you? What if it was a SAR helicopter that was given bad flight relay information and got caught in a storm? Helicopters sometimes crash, and it's not always the fault of the pilot.
> but when the topic at hand is decidedly uncivil, for example taking people's children and imprisoning them at the border, then I believe an uncivil response is warranted.
It's possible to disagree with a situation, be civil, and take time to understand it. I've spoken to the people who work in those "prisons" with children, and most of them are dramatically against the wall, but also recognize when a kid who is 8 shows up at an international border alone, they need to go somewhere.
Again, that doesn't mean you have to agree with it, but throwing stones at the people who are at least trying to help isn't productive.