Sunday, December 7, 2025

✊ The Big List of Protests

 https://theblop.org/

✊ The Big List of Protests

Monday, December 8, 2025

Event Flyer

Overpass Bannering: Dark Mode

Lacey, WA

Olympia Visibility Brigade is hosting an event to make a positive impact. Attendees are encouraged to bring warm clothing and a good mood to join the effort against hate.

🗓️
Monday, December 8, 2025
️🕒
4:30 PM
📝
Chehalis Western Trail / I-5
👥
Olympia Indivisible

Tuesday, December 9, 2025

Event Flyer

Corner Protest

Fort Collins, CO

We encourage participation in a recurring protest focused on positive civic engagement and political expression each Tuesday and Thursday. Join us to protect democracy and advocate for justice.

🗓️
Tuesday, December 9, 2025
️🕒
3:15 PM
📝
2601 S College Ave, Fort Collins, CO

Thursday, December 11, 2025

Event Flyer

Corner Protest

Fort Collins, CO

Join us for the Corner Protest focusing on positive engagement and the protection of democracy. It takes place every Tuesday and Thursday to express concerns and stand with the people.

🗓️
Thursday, December 11, 2025
️🕒
3:15 PM
📝
SW Corner of Drake and College

Saturday, December 13, 2025

Event Flyer

ACT UP Protest

Timnath, CO

We are gathering to protest and make a difference together. Bring a protest sign or flag; extras are provided if needed. This event occurs every other Saturday to express solidarity.

🗓️
Saturday, December 13, 2025
️🕒
10:00 AM
📝
Corner of Harmony Road & Weitzel
👥
Indivisible Timnath
Event Flyer

Shine with Pride

Salt Lake City, UT

Join us as we speak out against conversion camps. This event aims to raise awareness and support for change. Organized by People for Change Utah.

🗓️
Saturday, December 13, 2025
️🕒
12:00 PM
👥
People for Change Utah
Event Flyer

Shine with Pride

Salt Lake City, UT

We are hosting an event to speak out against conversion camps.

🗓️
Saturday, December 13, 2025
️🕒
12:00 PM
📝
Utah Capitol
👥
People for Change Utah
Event Flyer

Shine with Pride

Salt Lake City, UT

Join us to speak out against conversion camps. Stand with others at the Utah Capitol to make your voice heard.

🗓️
Saturday, December 13, 2025
️🕒
12:00 PM
📝
Utah Capitol
👥
People for Change Utah
Event Flyer

Olympia Visibility Brigade Overpass Bannering

Olympia, WA

We invite you to bring your high-visibility protest signs, flags, and a good mood to join us on the bridge to make good trouble.

🗓️
Saturday, December 13, 2025
️🕒
12:00 PM
📝
Downtown Olympia
👥
Olympia Indivisible
Event Flyer

Stand Up Loveland

Loveland, CO

A peaceful protest to stand up together in support of our constitutional rights, our immigrant community, our transgender community & our federal workforce. Bring a friend, signs & flags sharing your voice & heart with our community.

🗓️
Saturday, December 13, 2025
️🕒
12:00 PM
📝
Sidewalks from Sprouts to Tesla & along US-34

Monday, December 15, 2025

Event Flyer

Christmas Wonderland Market

Springfield

Join us for a festive day of holiday shopping, food, and fun.

🗓️
Monday, December 15, 2025
️🕒
10:00 AM
📝
Riverside Park
👥
Springfield Community Center

Tuesday, December 16, 2025

Event Flyer

Corner Protest

Fort Collins, CO

Join us for a recurring protest at the southwest corner of Drake and College in Fort Collins. We aim for positive engagement to protect democracy, acknowledging wrongs across political divides.

🗓️
Tuesday, December 16, 2025
️🕒
3:15 PM
📝
SW Corner of Drake and College
👥
[]
Event Flyer

Boston ICE Tea Party

Boston, MA

Join us in celebrating the 252nd anniversary of the Boston Tea Party. We will gather to express dissatisfaction with modern parallels to historic grievances, emphasizing a call to action against current authoritative measures. The evening includes a short march to the Waterfront Plaza after gathering.

🗓️
Tuesday, December 16, 2025
️🕒
7:15 PM
📝
Across from the Old South Meeting House. March to Waterfront Plaza.
👥
Boston Indivisible, MASS 501

Saturday, December 20, 2025

Event Flyer

Indivisible NWA Meeting

Bentonville, AR

Join us for our next monthly meeting aimed at empowering Arkansans to participate in democracy.

🗓️
Saturday, December 20, 2025
️🕒
1:00 PM
📝
Bentonville Public Library, Walton Foundation Community Room
👥
Indivisible NWA
Event Flyer

Olympia Visibility Brigade: Overpass Bannering

Olympia, WA

We invite people to join us with high-visibility protest signs and flags. This event aims to raise awareness and encourage action against perceived threats to democracy.

🗓️
Saturday, December 20, 2025
️🕒
12:00 PM
📝
Eastside St SE / I-5, Olympia
👥
Olympia Indivisible, Backbonecampaign.org, and TheBlop.org
Event Flyer

Stand Up Loveland

Loveland, CO

A peaceful protest in support of constitutional rights, immigrant, transgender communities, and federal workforce. The event encourages participants to bring signs and flags.

🗓️
Saturday, December 20, 2025
️🕒
12:00 PM
📝
Sprouts to Tesla

Monday, December 22, 2025

Event Flyer

Overpass Bannering: Dark Mode

Lacey, WA

Join us for an overpass bannering event to spread a message of love. Bring warm clothing and a good mood to help make good trouble.

🗓️
Monday, December 22, 2025
️🕒
4:30 PM
👥
Olympia Indivisible, Backbone Campaign, theblop.org

Saturday, December 27, 2025

Event Flyer

Olympia Visibility Brigade

Olympia, WA

We are organizing an overpass bannering event to stand against threats to democracy. Join us with high-visibility protest signs and flags on the bridge.

🗓️
Saturday, December 27, 2025
️🕒
12:00 PM
👥
Olympia Indivisible

Monday, December 29, 2025

Event Flyer

Olympia Visibility Brigade Overpass Bannering: Dark Mode

Tumwater, WA

Join us for an overpass bannering event to promote visibility and community action. Bring warm clothing and a good mood to participate in making good trouble.

🗓️
Monday, December 29, 2025
️🕒
4:30 PM
👥
Olympia Indivisible

 

Trumpelstiltskin

guyhair1_517UcgHYK3L._AC_UL320_SR256_320_.png  

Trumpelstiltskin

 

ha ha ill imprison her in my tower when ive won !!!!!

Outcast Nation - LGBTQIA+ -Homeless. Unseen. In New York City Special | 1h 38m 58sVideo has Closed Captions | CC Dives deep into the crisis of queer youth homelessness in one of the wealthiest cities in the world. Through vérité storytelling, in-depth interviews, and intimate portraits, the film explores what it means to grow up without a home, without protection, and often, without love. These are the stories of those living on the margins.. But it’s also a story of resilience and rebellion. 12/06/2025 | Expires 12/06/2028 | Rating TV-PG

 

Outcast Nation - LGBTQIA+ -Homeless. Unseen. In New York City

Special | 1h 38m 58sVideo has Closed Captions

Dives deep into the crisis of queer youth homelessness in one of the wealthiest cities in the world. Through vérité storytelling, in-depth interviews, and intimate portraits, the film explores what it means to grow up without a home, without protection, and often, without love. These are the stories of those living on the margins.. But it’s also a story of resilience and rebellion.

12/06/2025 | Expires 12/06/2028 | Rating TV-PG

watch Outcast Nation

Saturday, December 6, 2025

the 40 days of trumpmas - a surreal serial poem

 guyhair1_517UcgHYK3L._AC_UL320_SR256_320_.png 

Remember, remember! The fifth of trumpvember

 the 40 days of trumpmas - a serial poem

 

for 40 days the trumpeter reigns,

his lies and hate on whom he disdains,

but election day will come so soon,

we'll no longer hear the orange baboon;

 

in 39 days full of world wide problems.

we could elect him to get rid of the muslims,

but as he'll rant on trivialities of his presidential life,

what could be worse? - you could be his wife;

 

in 38 days just what will you do?

the donald has said he likes lgbtq,

but as he bullies his women and all his men too,

if youre questioning, what stops him from bullying you?

 

in just 37 days, some people are saying,

(or pleading or hoping or some even praying)

the duke of prunes will dye his forelock purple my friend,

and thus make america grape again,

 

our days are down to just 36,

before our problems the don will fix,

he will on day one do what hes said - true,

he'll wall out our enemies - and fat women too!

 

on the 35th day of trumpmas

yes just seven weeks remain!

will the polls and tallies deliver us

donald with his golden mane?

 

34 days and the vice-pipers have piped,

though pence didnt say why donalds suit shouldnt be striped,

he wouldnt defend his master's string pulling,

to make america great? - who do they think they're fooling?

 

just 33 days till the macho tornado,

unless its blown away by hurricane machado,

with women and voters he has so much to loose.

keep your mouth shut donald (unless youre changing your shoes)

 

32 days and we’ve been hit by the big blowhard,

donald spoke here in fla (oh, we had a hurricane too)

this administration gives us playing the race card, a weak economy, and unemployment

but if you want a job you could be donald’s campaign manager (unless youre a jew)

 

31 days, just a month, remains;

will the donald say hes sorry, and his baser impulses restrain?

or keep blaming bill clinton for our moral demise;

when trump speaks to us, our NO votes must be our replies!

 

election comes this time (in 30 days) each 4 years,

time for praise and tears and fears;

as polls will open in many states,

vote early, please dont vote late!

 

down to 29, just a leap february,

and theres still the donald quite

contrary;

donald donald, how does your garden grow?

quoth the master debater, "with pretty maids groped in a row"

 

just 28 days - later or soon,

and the zombies will rise, led by the big goon;

unless everyone gets a reality inoculation,

i might have to move to canada for a well deserved vacation; 

 

now just 27, less than 4 weeks,

no time for you to say 'yikes!' or 'eeeks!'

obama wants to go to mars and colonize it for man,

lets send trump tomorrow! and colonize it for orangutan!

 

26 days are all that remain,

will our democracy and economy go down the drain?

if we all keep listening to the blustering oaf,

will he give jobs and prosperity? - or just half a loaf

 

25 days - will more women speak?,

of the antics of donald who the presidency seeks,

dating 14 year old girls or groping their mothers,

how did the gop pick him over the others?,

 

24 days - were down to two dozen,

the next woman who speaks just might be your cousin,

or mother or sister, aunt, niece, even daughter,

describing the circumstance in which donald caught her,

 

23 days left and trump doesnt yet have as many accusers,

as cosby, but he assures us that they are all really losers,

sent by bankers or hillary with secret agendas,

to disrupt our election of him - our defender!,

 

22 days and we know charity begins at home,

but donalds attention is so prone to roam,

his gift that disappeared to 911 survivors from his foundation?,

oops! maybe donald spent it on a vacation,

 

21 days and trump says the election may be rig-ly,

if hes not the winner and his total's not big-ly,

tremendously higher than hillary gets,

he warns his supporters may all lose their wits,

 

20 days left and while george zimmerman still walks free,

the man who shot at HIM got 20 years - while trayvon got eternity,

trump wants us to support our cops and maintain law and order,

he'll put all the inner city dwellers in jail, and send the immigrant criminals far across the border,

 

19 days left till we all go to pretend,

to elect someone to lead us, as if on it our lives depend,

but wise man, donald trump, already really knows,

who we really voted for - a wolf in president's clothes?,

 

18 days and we bad hombres demand a rebate,

on the ill feelings left since the comments of one candidate,

the debaters have met in their final grudge match,

but only donald can say from whose hands victory will be snatched,

 

17 days and our government is corrupt with quid pro quo,

did you take latin at wharton? is that how you know?,

donald wants us to fire at them all - the bureaucrats lined up in rows,

and believe me, corruption is a subject. that donald really knows,

 

16 days - lets set term limits on all our office holders,

and put all our women in binders - or maybe in folders,

donalds endless complaints are becoming a sour whine,

have a little cheese with that, from wisconsin, where 

hillary's doing fine,

 

15 days and on stocking covered thighs did linger,

two miniature hands with two thumbs and eight tiny fingers,

they belonged to the donald who believed that he owned,

any thing that he wanted - or anyone he got alone,

 

14 days yes only two weeks,

till the duke of orange assends to the throne he seeks?,

to rule all americans, the strong and the weak?,

and dominate the globe with power that's peak?,

 

the 13th day to go - does that seem unlucky?,

not for donald whos lately been appearing quite plucky,

claiming media, polls, and parties are against him,

and rallying his multitudes with wit waxing dim,

 

on the 12th day of trumpmas donald awoke with a jerk,

promptly fired his latest campaign manager (who considered that a perk),

if youre "AAAfroAAAmurikan" and unemployed i can put you to work,

barked donald the businessman from behind his sly smirk,

 

it's the 11th and engineer casey trump is in the caboose,

i hear some of you saying oh no! what's the use,

our campaign will probably just go off the tracks,

but donald says its ok - cause he's got "the blacks",

 

just ten days left yes only one-zero,

til donald is hoping that he'll be your hero,

as new hillary emails come under investigation,

donald hopes to rename camp david to camp donald for

his vacations,

 

like a cat has nine lives we're left with only 9 days,

till we're subject to donald? and his old wicked ways,

on foreign affairs he says he'll save us from isis,

but his domestic affairs are misogyny and crisis,

 

our days are numbered - yes only eight,

till once again we make america great,

by getting rid of candidates who have nothing to add,

goodbye donald you wont make america sad,

 

just one week to go - its day minus seven,

till america's lifted above - to trumpty dump heaven?,

where for rich folks like donald opportunity abounds,

and we keep the working poor with a wall that surrounds,

 

how the time it does fly its already day 6,

till americans problems the donald will fix,

his solutions begin on trumpday number one,

dont you like them? they'll come at the barrel of a gun,

 

Five days to go, baby, One in five,

No one here gets out alive, now,

david dukes not opposed to all jews,

he backs trump - who are you going to choose?,

 

only 4 days left till the armaged-don,

he'll seize power by the horns once he has won,

and donnie will be what he longs for - a winner,

using the FBI to wreak havoc on hillary the sinner,

 

only three left, just a triad of days,

and the donald his supporters continues to amaze,

with hoopla and folderoll made up in his head,

his winning temperament will leave us all dead,

 

just a pair of days - 2 - till trump paradise,

since these words you're reading please heed my advice,

the creatures that surround us are beginning to bite,

'blacks for trump' fear the Illuminati so lets turn out their light,

 

just a single day left till our thanksgiving,

deliver us from donald and preserve the living,

forget sanity and disgard your misgivings,

but pray hard to your gods that they'll be forgiving,

since we've got the nukes why can't we use'em?,

on the road to 2016 why couldn't we lose HIM?,

 

and trumpmas now has finally come,

the tallies will count up to a winning sum,

unless the earth is struck soon by a cataclysmic comet,

to elect a candidate who just makes you want to vomit?,

we wish you a merry trumpmas at this time each 4 years,

if you have'nt voted you've lost the chance to mitigate your fears,

cause donald duck is ready to lead, forget your crocodile tears,

so you'd better get the vaseline and lubricate your rears!

stay informed

Make your voice heard

 https://5calls.org/

Welcome to the

resistance

 https://www.buildtheresistance.org/

  

INDIVISIBLE: A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO DEMOCRACY ON THE BRINK

https://indivisible.org/resource/guide 


What can I do to fight this coup?

 https://choosedemocracy.us/

 

 Welcome to the Trump ability War Room

 https://accountable.us/home/trump-accountability-war-room/ 

 

 https://deptofpeoplewhowork.org/ 

 

 https://www.justsecurity.org/

https://www.lawfaremedia.org/ 

https://events.pol-rev.com/search 

https://meidasnews.com/news 

https://www.youtube.com/@MeidasTouch/videos 

Rep. Jasmine Crockett

https://www.youtube.com/@RepJasmine/videos 

 

 

 https://www.youtube.com/@ElizabethWarren/videos

https://www.youtube.com/@senatorvanhollen/videos

https://www.youtube.com/@SenatorWhitehouse/videos 

 https://www.youtube.com/@AOC/videos 

https://www.youtube.com/@BernieSanders/videos

 https://www.youtube.com/@SenatorJeffMerkleyYT/videos

 

 https://www.youtube.com/@SenatorChrisMurphy/videos

https://www.youtube.com/@RepRoKhanna/videos 

https://www.politico.com/ 

https://www.youtube.com/@ForbesBreakingNews/videos 

https://www.nbcnews.com/ 

https://www.nvunheard.org/protest-listings/?q=ergonomic%20backpack 

 

https://www.youtube.com/@SenatorChrisMurphy/videos

https://www.youtube.com/@RepRoKhanna/videos 

https://www.politico.com/ 

https://www.youtube.com/@ForbesBreakingNews/videos 

https://www.nbcnews.com/ 

https://www.nvunheard.org/protest-listings/?q=ergonomic%20backpack

donald, The orange faced oligarch

 

drumpfreath.jpgdonald, The orange faced oligarch

 

 donald, The orange faced oligarch

 

You know bush1, and bush2, and
reagan, and nixon,
gingrich, and ryan, and
kasich and christie,
fiorina and gilmore,
huckabee and bush,
and gilmore and carson,
and cruz and rubio,
santorum and paul,
But do you recall
The most famous republican of all?
 
donald, The orange faced oligarch
had a lot of shiny bling
and if you ever saw him
you would say that that's his thing
 
All of the other republicans
used to laugh and call him names
They never let poor donald
play in the republican games.
 
Then once long before Christmas eve
breitbart came to say:
"donald with your bling so bright,
won't you guide our movement tonight?"
 
Then all the republicans loved him
as they shouted out with glee,
donald, The orange faced oligarch,
you'll go down in history!
 
thanks to Johnny Marks
 

Big Tents and Collective Action Can Defeat Authoritarianism

 https://www.justsecurity.org/113995/collective-action-defeats-authoritarianism/

 

Big Tents and Collective Action Can Defeat Authoritarianism

In their recent New York Times essay, Steven Levitsky, Lucan Way, and Daniel Ziblatt argue that the United States has crossed over into a form of competitive authoritarianism, a system that may have elections but in which dissent is costly and the playing field is tilted against the opposition. Civil rights attorney Sherrilyn Ifill has long sounded the alarm about the “grave crisis of democracy” in the United States, due to the influence of racism and the erosion of the rule of law. They all cite the importance of civic engagement and “getting off the sidelines” in confronting authoritarianism. But how have people in this country and globally turned around autocratic systems? Often, it’s been through broad democratic fronts and collective mass action.

Iconic pro-democracy movements include the U.S. civil rights movement, the Polish Solidarity movement, the anti-apartheid struggle in South Africa, and the “No” campaign that ousted Augusto Pinochet in Chile. More recent examples are the successful civic uprisings against autocratic leaders in Brazil (where the slide to autocracy under President Jair Bolsonaro was stopped), South Korea (where an autocratic President Yoon Suk Yeol was impeached and removed from power), and Serbia (where a corrupt Prime Minister Milos Vucevic was removed, though the democratic turn-around remains incomplete). All featured these key elements:

  • Sustained mass participation by diverse groups and sectors in society.
  • Tactical innovation including the use of organized noncooperation, like boycotts and strikes, that directly remove a regime’s sources of power.
  • Defections within key pillars upholding authoritarian regimes like businesses, religious organizations, unions, professional associations, bureaucracies, and security forces.
  • Resilience and discipline in the face of rising repression.

My research with political scientist Erica Chenoweth and multiple other studies have found that the strongest bulwarks against authoritarianism are broad-based democratic fronts that bring people together across race, class, creed, sector, and geography to engage in sustained nonviolent mass action. According to recent research by political scientists Jonathan Pinckney and Claire Trilling, the probability of stopping democratic backsliding is about 7.5 percent when populations rely exclusively on institutional channels like elections, litigations, and legislative action, without a  civil resistance movement that uses extra-institutional tactics like protests, boycotts, and strikes; with a civil resistance movement, the chances are 51.7 percent.

Civil resistance “works” by raising the costs of tyranny and systematically removing the sources of power for an autocrat and his enablers. All authoritarian regimes rely on support from key institutions in society, including political parties, businesses, unions, religious organizations, bureaucracies, courts, media outlets, and security forces. When members of these pillars stop cooperating with the regime – workers deny their labor and skills, businesses withhold financial contributions, bureaucrats do things slowly or ineffectively, faith organizations stop providing moral approval, soldiers defy orders to use violence against protestors – it becomes difficult or impossible for autocrats to stay in power.

That explains why organized noncooperation by key pillars is so key to the success of pro-democracy movements. In South Korea last year, mass action by key sectors played a critical role in stopping an attempted coup. Actions included the Confederation of Trade Unions, which threatened an indefinite general strike unless President Yoon Suk Yeol lifted martial law, then launched sector-specific, time-bound strikes and walk-outs by cafeteria workers and others.

Divide-and-Rule vs. Collective Action

Autocrats and their enablers thrive on divide and rule, using attacks on individuals and groups — be they immigrants, law firms, or businesses — to spread fear and discourage opposition from others. Overcoming these barriers to collective action can be difficult, particularly when individuals and their families face the possibility of lost livelihoods, social ostracism, and death threats for refusing to go along.

Yet, we know that collective action is the best way for groups to protect themselves, avoid becoming cogs in an evil machine, and go on offense against autocrats. There is safety in numbers. When people feel supported, when they know that others have their backs, they are more likely to engage in courageous acts. Solidarity incentivizes courage – and it creates the will and opportunity to mobilize a lot more people and power for the political fight against autocracy.

Sustaining solidarity requires organization. During the civil rights movement, the greatest pro-democracy movement in U.S. history, organizations like the Southern Christian Leadership Conference and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee brought together churches, unions, and students to engage in collective action “for jobs and freedom.” Organized noncooperation campaigns like the bus boycotts, lunch counter sit-ins, and sanitation worker strikes, supported by carpools, strike funds, and mutual aid, and combined with strategic litigation by groups like the NAACP, dismantled Jim Crow and paved the way for multi-racial democracy.

Global Pushback on Autocracy

In three recent countries where societies reversed democratic backsliding to at least a significant degree – Poland (following nearly a decade of Law and Justice Party rule, though another president from that party was just elected who is likely to be a significant barrier), Brazil (under the Bolsonaro administration), and Zambia (in the late-1990s-early 2000s) — collective action across sectors and ideologies was key. In Brazil, in response to the far-right then-president Bolsonaro’s constitutional violations, more than 100 businesses, unions, universities, and civil society organizations signed a letter, “In Defense of Democracy and Justice,” which was published in the main national newspapers. Evangelical and Catholic faith leaders jointly denounced Bolsonaro’s totalitarian ways and called for his impeachment. The broad front helped defeat Bolsonaro electorally in 2022, and after he attempted to overturn the election results through a coup in January 2023, powerful organizations like the Conference of Bishops denounced the “criminal attacks on the democratic rule of law” and Bolsonaro was removed from power.

In Poland, lawyers and judges took to the streets alongside youth and women’s movements to challenge the Law and Justice party’s (PiS) attacks on the judiciary, while the Episcopal Conference refused to celebrate mass at a rally for Poland’s Independence Day, citing the regime’s “un-Christian nationalism.” The opposition Civic Coalition that defeated PiS in the 2023 elections, which included parties that spanned left, right, and center, emphasized the effects of democratic decline on ordinary Poles, while using the language of hope and civic patriotism to mobilize people. The recent presidential election results show that progress is not always linear, and the struggle must continue. Now that the Trump administration and the FBI have started arresting U.S. judges, it may be time for America’s own legal professionals to consider nontraditional tactics like those used by Polish judges and lawyers (taking to the streets with other civic actors, refusing regime orders) and Pakistani judges (walking out of courthouses and marching in black robes) in their pro-democracy struggles.

In Zambia, when President Frederick Chiluba attempted to manipulate the country’s Constitution to run for a third presidential term in 2001, the three national church bodies for Catholics, Protestants, and evangelicals formed an alliance with the nation’s lawyers (grouped in the Law Association of Zambia) to campaign against the constitutional changes. Their collective action was ultimately successful and Chiluba was forced to abandon his plans.

In the United States, with MAGA leaders – and Trump himself — already suggesting a possible third term for him, it will be essential for faith organizations (Catholic bishops, evangelical associations, protestant denominations, Jewish, Muslim, and interfaith organizations) to loudly and defiantly say “no.” The organization where I work, the Horizons Project, and the anti-authoritarianism group Protect Democracy have launched a “Faithful Fight” toolkit series to offer ways for faith communities to confront authoritarianism.

Collective Action Gaining Strength in the U.S.

During the first Trump administration, cross-sector collective action was key to stopping the worst abuses of power. The “Muslim Ban” was blocked by a powerful coalition of lawyers, immigration groups, civil liberties organizations, and faith groups who collectively and stubbornly refused to go along with it, including through a visceral rush on the airports to welcome and aid arriving refugees. Before the 2020 election, the AFL-CIO, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Evangelicals, and the National African American Clergy Network joined forces to call for free and fair elections and a peaceful transfer of power.

Under Trump 2.0, after initial capitulations by tech companies including Meta, media outlets such as ABC News, universities like Columbia, and law firms including Paul Weiss, the tide is starting to shift. More than 500 law firms filed an amicus brief in support of Perkins Coie’s lawsuit against the Trump administration’s executive order that targeted the firm, which was struck down in court, a decision followed by two more similar judicial victories for the rule of law. Brave lawyers like Rachel Cohen, who left her firm to protest its refusal to stand up to Trump, created a ripple effect, and firms that capitulated to Trump’s demands have lost major clients. Courage is contagious.

More than two dozen religious groups, including the Mennonite Church, the Episcopal Church, the Union for Reform Judaism, and the Unitarian Universalist Association sued the federal government in response to the Trump administration’s policy making it easier for immigration officials to make arrests at houses of worship. The faith coalition insisted that the change to the “sensitive locations” policy infringes on their religious freedom. Hundreds of some of the most powerful private philanthropies, from across the political and ideological spectrum, have recently banded together to preempt possible administration attacks on their tax-exempt status, preparing legal and other strategies.

The Rutgers University Senate called on the school’s president to formally propose and help establish a Mutual Academic Defense Compact (MADC) among all members of the Big Ten Academic Alliance. “Under this compact, all participating institutions shall commit meaningful funding to a shared or distributed defense fund. This fund shall be used to provide immediate and strategic support to any member institution under direct political or legal infringement.” While faculty senates at several Big Ten universities have passed non-binding resolutions endorsing the MADC, university administrations have so far not formally adopted the proposal.

Hundreds of Harvard University professors, including members of the American Association of University Professors, which earlier issued a statement “Against Anticipatory Obedience,” called on university leadership to resist demands by the Trump administration to change its protest and hiring policies and cooperate with federal immigration officials. After the administration cut $2 billion in federal grants to the university, Harvard fought back and sued the Trump administration at each tightening of the screw. Sixty current and former university presidents co-signed an editorial in Fortune offering support for Harvard’s acts of defiance.

Importantly, unions, which are often the first targets of authoritarian regimes, are stepping up their collective action. The AFL-CIO has launched the “Department of People Who Work for a Living” to report on DOGE’s cuts and what ordinary people can do to fight back. The National Treasury Employees Union, which represents workers in 37 federal agencies, sued the Trump administration over an executive order that declared the unions hostile to his agenda and could block collective bargaining rights. The Chicago Teachers Union reached a tentative collective bargaining agreement with Chicago Public Schools that reaffirms sanctuary school protections, protects the ability to teach Black history, gives veteran teachers a raise, and offers further protections. The Federal Unionists Network (FUN) is building solidarity across the federal sector of the labor movement, including through trainings and direct actions.

While these sector-specific actions are important, collective action across different sectors packs an even bigger punch. Mass demonstrations, like the April 5 Hands Off protests, the May Day rallies on May 1, the Unite For Veterans rally on June 6, the June 10 Pentecost Witness for a Moral Budget action, and the June 14 No Kings nationwide protest to coincide with Trump’s planned military parade that day, are important ways to demonstrate unity, solidarity, and mass defiance. Yet, it takes more muscular forms of protest and noncooperation, like walkouts, labor strikes, and economic boycotts, to stop autocrats in their tracks. Economic noncooperation campaigns like the Tesla Takedown, which has contributed to a plummeting of Tesla stock prices (and dampened Musk’s political ambitions), the Target boycott over its anti-DEI policies, which includes a “buycott” of Black-owned businesses and banks, and a pressure campaign targeting Avelo airlines, which runs deportation flights for ICE and has lost state subsidies as a result of civic action, are examples of what is possible.

Supporting and coordinating mass action, including organized noncooperation across different sectors and pillars, takes a commitment to big-tent organizing. That is something the Horizons Project is committed to building with other critical organizations from the faith, veterans, union, professional associations, and business pillars, and with civic groups that span the political and ideological spectrum. With a focus on deep relationship-building, shared analysis, training, and collective action at the state and national level, this broad-front effort is designed to move pillars away from supporting authoritarianism and towards a constitutional democracy grounded in freedom and justice for all.

Conclusion

The United States is at a critical turning point and Americans are stronger than they often think. Protests and collective actions across the country are intensifying as the circle of those harmed by this regime expands. While it is impossible to predict triggers for mass action (intensified repression, defying court orders, cuts to social security, attempts to subvert elections), investing in the relational infrastructure that will underpin any future mobilization and organized noncooperation is critical. That includes working with people with whom we mostly agree, but also with those with whom we may vehemently disagree on many things but can find common cause in advancing a society free from government tyranny.

Also critical is grounding this work in an affirmative vision of the kind of inclusive democracy that prioritizes human dignity and human flourishing, and where community care is emphasized and equality under the law is guaranteed. Especially in bleak political times, bold projects are necessary that can bring together unlikely allies such as those seeking to reduce money in politics, restore dignity in labor, or replace solutions depending on incarceration with reparative justice. The journey from individual angst to collective action, from siloed work to big-tent formations, from overreliance on defensive resistance to building a more desirable future grounded in joy and shared humanity takes time, vision, and commitment. It is also the pathway to victory.

 

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