“Let it end in our generation”: Some reflections on the Car Mob and pro-democracy movement in Isaan

In a time of political dissent, people in the Northeast have turned to unique ways of protesting. From July to August 2021, people all over Isaan participated in over 40 Car Mobs, a new way to protest–from the safety of one’s car. In her latest contribution, Saowanee T. Alexander underscores how Car Mobs have embodied the hopes and dreams of the pro-democracy movement in the Northeast.

Story by Saowanee T. Alexander

It was August 1, 2021. Roughly around 3:30 p.m., in the heat of the monsoon sun, I was sitting in my idling car with the driver’s door rolled down to where I could clearly see the vivaciousness of things around me. 

It was just about a year after the sensational, unprecedented youth-led anti-regime protest activities started in mid-2020 that grew out of school and university campus protests after the Constitutional Court’s verdict dissolved youths’ favorite…