– Columbia University, under direct threat to lose millions in federal grants that would jeopardize their students’ education and faculty’s research opportunities, caves in to the Trump administration’s demands to curtail freedom of speech on their campus. This is creating a chilling effect on campuses nationwide.

– The Trump administration signals their intent to designate legal immigrants with permanent residence status – one step short of citizenship – as threats to national security for speaking out against Trump policies, in violation of their First Amendment rights. If they’ll deport legal permanent residents, who doubts they have the hubris to target naturalized citizens next?

– The U.S. Department of Justice daily pushes the unhinged, unconstitutional Trump agenda, fully merging with the Trump Administration instead of maintaining independence. Were criminal wrongdoing in the White House to occur [or recur)], there is little to no remaining expectation the DOJ would authorize an investigation.

– The Republican majority controlling both houses of the U.S. Congress have become a rubber stamp for the executive branch, like in many dictatorships wearing the costume of democracy, abandoning their constitutional responsibility to provide checks and balances.

– The Trump administration, with the support of the Department of Justice and U.S. Congress, is calling for impeachment of judges [whom they slander with evidence-free accusations of partisan partiality] who do not rubber stamp their actions – including actions which appear to be illegal and unconstitutional.

In short, the Truskmump administration [as I like to call it] is doing what it promised: the opposite of Do No Harm. If the past two months have shown us anything, it is that there is more damage to come.

BUT WHAT CAN I DO?

Here’s what not to do.

As democratic principles are rescinded and its structures turned to rubble, We, the ordinary people of the United States of America, cannot – must not – be silent. Silence will be misrepresented as consent. If we want to reverse Trump’s momentum of destruction, there must be no doubt that we do not consent. We must vocally reject the administration’s ongoing orchestration of systemic harm.

Instead, we need to:

SPEAK OUT: Make phone calls. Have conversations where you express and explain your dismay. Speak at public meetings and town halls. Your lawmakers aren’t holding town halls? Organize your own.

ACT OUT: Not an activist? Guess what: previously, neither were the activists. This is your time. Our time. All of us.

WRITE OUT: Emails. Letters. Postcards. Blogs. Social media posts. Substack posts. Article submissions to The Observer. Speeches.

WALK OUT: Organize, support and/or participate in a walk-out when it makes sense. It can be for a day. It can be for five minutes. It can be powerful.

SING OUT: If you are a performer, include protest songs in your set, originals and classics. Offer to sing at demonstrations. Sign up to comment at a public meeting and sing your resistant heart out for the time allowed.

DRESS OUT: They don’t just make MAGA hats and t-shirts, you know. And buttons. And ties. And masks. And … use your imagination.

“ART OUT”: Whether you write poetry or stories, dance, crochet, paint, sculpt, draw, produce videos, records, or memes: do your Resistance thang. Need ideas? Visit createtoliberate.org. Not an artist? Support an artist. [Ask them how.]

Be visible. Be vocal. Be hopeful. Be determined.

Be anything but silent.