[gnosis]

It is hoped that this rally will inspire others, and make more people aware of the issue and the opposition the people have to living in a surveillance state.

The effects of protests might not be immediately obvious, and perhaps might never be publicly acknowledged. However, they can have a serious impact.

Here's one important example:

"Many people don't know it, but Nixon was considering using nuclear weapons in Vietnam. At that time, Nixon was also repeatedly saying that he didn't care what the American people thought about Vietnam, and that he was going to escalate the war anyway. However, according to a biography by a well-known historian, when Nixon saw hundreds of thousands of protesters on TV, he dropped his secret plan of nuking Vietnam."[1]

[1] - http://www.opednews.com/Diary/Why-Nixon-Didn-t-Nuke-Viet-by-...