So What Can I Do?
It's easy to feel helpless. But you can take action. Here's how.
The three weeks or so of the second Trump administration have been the longest 6 years of my, and I would guess many other folks’, lives. The flurry of illiberal, hurtful, cruel, and petty acts from this administration has been seemingly non-stop. I have not been happy to have that old friend from 2017-2021 return; the fear upon awakening to determine what fresh new hell Dear Leader has bestowed upon us today? I have gone through despair and depression, but now I am pretty firmly in anger. And resolve. These people think they can just run roughshod over our country, but we can’t, and won’t, let them. Pardon my French, but fuck that, and fuck them.
Note: Obviously the following suggestions are only a very small subset of actions that can be taken. I encourage folks to find what works for them.
Here are four areas where you can make a difference1, no matter how small:
1. Learn
Many of the attacks that this administration is attempting to carry out are based on the general lack of knowledge of how the political system works. Unfortunately, this is also exploited by certain “resistance grifters” on the left. Both sides attempt to either inflame things that are perfectly normal courses of action during a transition, or they try to hide those that are not, in both cases under a blanket of general ignorance as to how the processes are carried out. Take some time to make sure you understand the basics of how our country, and its politics, operate. Or are supposed to.
“Authoritarian” is a term that we are hearing more and more these days, but many people may not understand exactly what it means. Educate yourself on the terms being constantly used, sometimes inaccurately. Learn the differences between Authoritarianism and Autocracy. Understand for yourself exactly what defines Fascism. Words matter, so make sure you are using your words correctly.
Learn how the daily actions of the GOP and MAGA are trying to control the country. If you are going to fight against Project 2025, you should probably read it, or at least skim it for the main points. 2 Read The Authoritarian Playbook, even though it will probably upset you. Understanding what the other side is up to is important, for many reasons.
Learn who your representatives are, from your US Senator and Governor down to local (county, city) officials. Reach out to them to let them know that you, as a constituent, are paying attention to what they are doing. This should be done whether you live in a Blue or Red state, even if you feel like your reps suck. They work for you, after all. Or at least they are supposed to.
Find and tune in to local news, whether on tv, local newspapers or websites. Look to see how national policies are affecting your community, and look for areas to get involved.
Support your local library. Use it as a place to go to get away from electronic news and decompress.
2. Recognize
We are currently moving from an Information Economy to an Attention Economy. Getting, and holding, people’s attention is the end game. After all, if you are reading this, you aren’t watching the news or viewing a TikTok video. I have your attention, and if I can keep it, I can feed you my truth while shielding your from my opponent’s version. See how that works?
I highly recommend removing or seriously curtailing your social media usage, particularly through apps that have “bent the knee” to the current regime or are active participants in the shift towards autocracy/oligarchy. Yes, I realize that we have become dependent on these apps to “stay close” to friends and family. Ask yourself this though… if you were to leave Facebook3 tomorrow, just how many of your friends list would you truly lose contact with? If Facebook is the only place where you are a part of their life, then you may not be that close, ya know? Meta products (Facebook, Instagram), Musk’s X/Twitter, and TikTok have all moved significantly in the state propaganda direction. And despite their claims, they have access to everything you do on their platforms. Delete that shit.
Depending on your activities, I would strongly suggest getting onto a truly secure messaging app. I recommend Signal, as it is intuitive and provides end-to-end encryption. You should also consider turning on disappearing messages. Never use SMS/RCS text messaging for sensitive info, and while WhatsApp provides end-to-end encryption, it’s a Meta product.
“Watch their hands, not their mouths” - As you follow the daily developments, make sure you separate things that Trump or the administration are saying from the things that they are actually doing. A significant part of their strategy is to constantly bombard you to try to get you to cave and give up. Don’t freak out about every bit of lunacy to come out of Presidents Musk and Trump.
Don’t expect any Republican to do the right thing. Disappointment lies down that path. They will all make noises about being concerned or some such, but at the end of the day they will fall in line. That’s what they do, and expecting them to do anything else will only lead to frustration. The GOP congress has abdicated its role as a co-equal4 branch of government, its duty to Advise and Consent the President’s appointments, and its power over the purse, handing control of the nation’s finances to Musk/Trump. This desertion of duty to the Constitution has put the entire onus of stopping the Administration’s illiberal acts on the Judicial, and that process is slow.
Perhaps the hardest thing to understand is just how many Americans seem to be apathetic or don’t seem to grasp the severity of what’s going on. Try not to judge them for this, because you have no way of knowing what’s in another person’s heart, nor what their circumstances are. They may be too busy trying to make ends meet to be involved, they may not have the mental health capacity to take on this burden, there are myriad reasons for their lack of action. Don’t judge. Most Americans are looking out for themselves, and until the changes taking place have direct negative effects on them, they may not participate. Try not to dwell on this. Hell, I often wish I could be apathetic. It would make my daily life a bit more relaxed.
3. Connect
Contact your representatives. All of them. Call them, email them, fill out contact forms on their website. As mentioned before, remind them that they work for you, even if you did not vote for them. Obviously some will be more receptive than others, depending on where you live, but participate in the process. I am fortunate to live in a deep blue state, but I have sent physical mail to both Senators and have emailed my Rep and all of my state officials. Be firm, but professional, even if your reps are MAGA.
Find like-minded people in your community. Look into organizations like Indivisible and MoveOn5 to find local groups.
Explore various pro-Democracy organizations online. I have found many resources, including the basis of this piece, over at Protect Democracy. They have an excellent free newsletter, If You Can Keep It. There are a LOT of sites out there, so be judicious in where you spend your time. Beware grifters as well, that is not behavior exclusive to GOP/MAGA types.
Explore Substack for many excellent writers and groups. Some that I wholeheartedly recommend include:
Letters From An American - Heather Cox Richardson shares daily reflections on the state of our American Experiment.
Open Letters - Anne Applebaum, author of Autocracy, Inc and Twilight of Democracy
The Bulwark - A group of Never Trump Republicans, along with some Dems they have picked up along the way, provides a ton of daily content including articles, podcasts, YouTube videos, and more. I am a paid subscriber there.
4. Take Care
Staying up-to-date with all this bullshit is hard. Take care of yourself. Unplug every once in a while. Set aside time, whether daily, weekly, whatever, to put your phone down, turn off the tv, and enjoy the world around you. This is a marathon, and unfortunately the mess will be here for a while.
Don’t dwell on the day to day madness but be aware of it. They are counting on beating us into submission, memory holing the past, and gaslighting us. Don’t let them.
Find small inspirations daily. Look at people like Phyllis Fong, the 22 year veteran and Inspector General at the USDA. After Trump baselessly and illegally fired 17 Inspectors General, Fong was the only one to report to her office the following Monday, where she was then removed by security. Props to her for her courage.
Try to strike a balance between understanding the seriousness of the situation we are in without instilling an attitude of hopelessness.
And, as always, Take Care and Stay Strong
Many of these suggestions come from an excellent guide over at Protect Democracy.
Just set aside enough time to mentally decompress afterwards. And probably take a shower.
Or TwiX, Insta, or whatever your SM of choice is.
In all actuality, Congress has far more Constitutionally enumerated powers than the Executive or Judicial.
Just a caveat… In my experience MoveOn, while meaning well, tends to spam the hell out of my phone with text messages. YMMV