Agreed, but it's 48 hours later, and it seems like more and more subreddits have decided to continue protesting indefinitely, which I'm really happy to see. I too have no clue how effective it'll be, but it's showing a much clearer message.

From how I understood it (I could be wrong), the initial blackout was planned for june 30th when the API changes come into effect, and the current (previous?) protest was due to Spez's AskReddit responses. Basically, this was the warning, the 30th is the big one.

The blackout is a way to engage in a way that makes things inconvenient for people not informed about the issue so that awareness is generated. Like picketting the mayor's office or blocking a public intersection.

I think a blackout has a much higher impact than deleting accounts.

There are so many users nobody notices when a few disappear. But when a subreddit goes dark it's most certainly noticeable.

It's evident by now Reddit management doesn't care. Two days raise awareness amongst users. Maybe the two days won't be the last for many subreddits or people. And I'm sure more people became more aware, or thought more about the situation and alternatives than without a two day blackout.