Not my idea, cause I've heard it propose elsewhere before, but know what would be an awesome counter protest, especially if people know an event is gonna happen months in advance? A family friendly culture fair, held somewhere else in the city/county. People can celebrate with food and art, lectures, performances, local businesses, schools, and religious communities could get involved. There could be networking opportunities and educational opportunities. People could still make a statement in their own way, but it'd be much safer and I think more productive.Stop feeding the trolls, for one.
Maybe that would work, although to me the best idea is still to do nothing.
In this case, if you're a white person, silence IS tantamount to tacit approval. I'm sorry, and folks can be upset with me all they want, but if you look at the events that happened this weekend and can't even make it to your facebook to post a "Wow, that's fucked up" status, then you've got to question yourself. I'm not saying you need to suddenly become political, but as white people we've got to denounce these people. What happens any time there's a Muslim terror incident? We look at our local mosques and expect them to come out in opposition. And they do, partially out of self-preservation and partly because they too are disgusted by the actions of a minority. Well, it's our turn to do the same, to the same kinds of people. These people do not represent us, and we need to make it crystal clear, because we expect the same out of everyone else any other time.