Big demonstrations and marches are too often seen as a silver bullet. In bad histories of the Civil Rights Movement, even, tens of thousands of meetings, organizing drives, and small actions are forgotten, while only mass assemblies on the Washington Mall remain.

Today, marches tend to replace much of the work they are meant to demonstrate, namely organization- and infrastructure-building. Where at one time such demonstrations proved the strength of an insurgent political bloc, nowadays they are seen as an end in themselves.

But with Donald Trump’s health agenda set to kill thousands and immiserate millions more, and with Democratic resistance to it failing, now is precisely the time when we should organize a Medicare for All march on Washington.