By Ed Coghlan.

A true chronic pain patient protest has gained remarkable progress in the last month.

The “Don’t’ Punish Pain Rally” that was created by a Rhode Island woman will have events in 46 states on Tuesday September 18th. Her name is Claudia Merandi.

In case you are wondering, the states that have not scheduled rallies are North Dakota, South Dakota, New Mexico, Vermont.

“I would say, each state, has between 30 and 200 people protesting, depending on the venue. Some states have two to three venues,” said Merandi.

If you are wondering, “how did I miss this?”

You haven’t.

Said Merandi:

“I want people to know that it’s not too late to protest. They don’t have to go to their State’s capitol. I created this protest to be amenable to all. People are free to protest in front of a CVS, a State building, or whatever is convenient for them. If they visit the website, they can reach me, and I can help them, or another team member can assist, or they can find us on the national Facebook page. they have their own State Facebook page to organize within so there’s plenty of members on those pages to assist. That’s why I created a group page for each state. Sometimes it’s easier to organize within your own State on a separate page.”

Merandi believes that this effort, which started because she (as a chronic pain sufferer) thought the CDC guidelines were negatively impacting fellow patients, was worthy of protest.

Here’s a link to the Don’t Punish Pain Rally Facebook page.

“I guess the biggest complaint that we hear is there are still thousands that don’t know about the protest because we’re limited in how we can advertise due to being a volunteer- based organization,” she said.

In case you are wondering what happens after Tuesday’s rallies, Merandi believes it’s only the beginning.

“Post September 18th, I will focus on Canada and Australia, get them organized, and then put most of my energies into legislation,” said Merandi.

Click here to find a rally near you.

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