In the immediate aftermath of Donald Trump’s November election victory, large numbers of those opposed to a second Trump regime were depressed, angry and disengaged. But after Trump and billionaire Elon Musk launched their unconstitutional attempt to eliminate entire federal agencies and recklessly fire tens of thousands of government employees without due process, many Americans were infuriated and eager to take action.
Fifty Fifty One, a decentralized rapid response hub created a spark tapping into Trump opponents yearning for collective action, that resulted in two days of nationwide protest on Feb. 5 and 17, where demonstrations attracting tens of thousands were organized in all 50 states. Federal workers and union activists whose jobs were terminated or threatened also organized large protests in Washington, D.C. and around the country. Opposition to Elon Musk’s role in the demolition of the federal government has been expressed in rallies organized in front of Tesla dealerships. In recent days, thousands of constituents flooded Republican and Democratic congressional representatives’ town hall meetings to voice their opposition to the Trump-Musk coup and demands to protect democracy.
Between The Lines’ Scott Harris spoke with Maria J. Stephan, co-lead and chief organizer with the Horizons Project and author and editor of five books on authoritarianism and civil resistance. Here she talks about her recent article, “We are Stronger Than We Think,” a discussion on strategies and tactics to effectively challenge government tyranny through the power of collective defiance and nonviolent direct action.
MARIA J. STEPHAN: I think we’re definitely in the midst of a constitutional crisis now. It’s just a question of how to define the severity of it. But I think it’s accurate to say that we’re experiencing something resembling an administrative coup where the incumbent administration, you know, attempts to systematically undermine checks and balances to weaponize government agencies, to purge non-loyalists, to punish opponents, to undermine civil liberties in an attempt to basically expand their power.
So the power of kind of the Trump administration, Trump insiders and the Musk kind of billionaire group that is propping up this administration — so we may not be at the point of a full authoritarian consolidation, but the pathway is being laid.
You know, there’s a crisis in terms of Congress, for example, being completely defanged at this point, not serving at all as a check on power, kind of this dismantling of the administrative state and the weaponization. And that’s, you know, when you study dictatorships both on the left and on the right around the world, that’s usually the number one strategy — to use government agencies to actively persecute opponents, punish non-loyalists. And that’s exactly what we’re seeing.
SCOTT HARRIS: Thank you for that, Maria. So in your article that we’ll be discussing tonight, the title of which is “We Are Stronger Than We Think,” you write the long history of popular resistance to government tyranny in this country and globally shows how broad-based movements can prevail even in the face of cruelty and abuse. They have relied on a wide range of nonviolent tactics, including those grounded in love, humor and hope, all while engaging in collective defiance and remaining resilient and disciplined. Inspiring words there.
Maria, what have you seen unfold in recent weeks across the country in terms of that resistance developing here as it has in other countries that you’ve researched?
MARIA J. STEPHAN: I think we’re seeing, you know, the spread of various acts of dissent, of loving defiance, of non-compliance. People who are refusing to go along with unlawful orders to abuses of power, to acts of cruelty. And, you know, it’s not just activists and others going out into the streets and demonstrating, although we did see that — the 505051 protests across the country on President’s Day. So definitely, activist movement groups have been out.
But we’re also seeing groups like the American Bar Association issuing declarations, condemning the administration’s attacks on the rule of law. We’re seeing the American Association of University Presidents issue statements against anticipatory obedience and, you know, vowing to stand by teachers, students and communities and not to cave into threats, to change curricula, to not teach about certain subjects, to resist efforts to undermine commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion.
You know, you’re seeing scientists taking to the streets in protests of cuts to NIH funding and CDC funding. You’re seeing youth from different movements. I’m thinking the Get Free group of like environmental racial justice, economic justice activists and immigrant rights groups who are walking out in a sign of rejection to the mass deportation policies. And so, I mean, that’s only a handful of things that are happening. And I think what’s interesting is it’s broad based.
It’s involving lots of different groups across society, some very organic in response to for example, cuts to federal funding. You may remember when, you know, there was an attempt to freeze funding, which would’ve affected Head Start and Medicaid critical services. You had mass mobilization across the country.
And these are not only in blue states or districts, these are in red areas and districts. And people say, “No, this is unacceptable. These are critical services.” So I think you’re just starting to see lots of different groups, including some unlikely folks starting to engage in acts of non-compliance and just refusing to go along with the status quo.
And there’s humor in them. There are funny memes. I mean, the civil servants, of course, you know, have been on the front lines following the firing of thousands of civil servants. And so you may remember when the whole “fork in the road letter” that they all received. So in response,you had civil servants who are sharing spoon emojis, and it’s like, you know, “Spoons are better than forks.” And it’s so, you know, you’ve got some humor, you’ve got joy, you’ve got humanity. That’s part of a lot of these acts of defiance happening across the country.
For more information, visit The Horizons Project at horizonsproject.us and 50501 at fiftyfifty.one.
Listen to Scott Harris’ in-depth interview with Maria J. Stephan (19:58) and see more articles and opinion pieces in the Related Links section of this page.
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