Resistance: Raising The Pressure
(Originally written on June 1, 2025 in preparation for No Kings Day protests on June 14th.)
No Kings Day!!
For those just tuning in, we are NOT protesting to change what the Trump administration is doing. That’s kind of hopeless and not what this is about. We are protesting to build awareness about what is happening to our country amongst people who are still tuned out. This way we get bigger and bigger with each protest through the year. Walt Whitman wrote, "The public is a thick-skinned beast, and you have to keep whacking away at its hide to let it know you're there."
At some point, if we are successful, we will be called to Washington, D.C. to really show some power, and to implement a general strike.
A general strike will shut down the airports, seaports, trains, public transit, many industries, and as many commercial operations as possible. Only then will the moneybags behind this administration realize that the way forward is a money-losing venture to them, and they will put pressure on the Banana Republicans in Congress to impeach, convict, and remove Trump from office. Did you see what the Tesla Takedown people did to Musk, and how the Tesla Board told him to drop his political work and run the company or they would find a new CEO? That’s the kind of power we are looking to flex. But on the entire Congress.
Here’s a really nice exposition of what that would look like: June 14th: Magnificent Resistance and Beyond (https://znetwork.org/znetarticle/june-14th-magnificent-resistance-and-beyond/) This is a good article to read if you want a sense of the possibilities here.
To make clear, this is a long-term (several months or more) effort. Everyone needs to be committed long term, and actively working to get more people involved and invested.
One good thing here is that Trump is doing much of our work for us. The more horrible things he and his people do, the more people are affected, the more people develop awareness. So we don’t need to convince people that Trump needs to be removed from office. Trump is doing that himself. We just need to bring those people with newfound awareness on board, give them an outlet for their disgust.
So that’s what we’re doing in a chaotically democratic, distributively organized, borderline comical, and dead serious way. The protests most frightful to the powers that be are the protests that are on the verge of going out of control. That’s us!
No Kings Day Context
Whoa, too much to say here.
The Original No Kings Day
The original No Kings Day was when they signed the Magna Carta on June 15, 1215. There wasn’t much in it for us regular folks. But for perhaps the first time in history, someone besides the king had some official power and rights! That was the chink in the armor that we just kept expanding and expanding to where we are today. (With still more expanding to be done!) Historically, oppressed minorities have led the expansions, but that’s a whole ’nother story. Suffice to say that No Kings Day goes back a while.
Flag Day
June 14 is Flag Day. Flag Day commemorates the adoption of the US flag in 1777. A lot to say here, but if you haven’t noticed, the flag has an outsize importance in the US that isn’t as pronounced in other places. The old “blood and soil” thing that provides a sense of national identity in many countries, doesn’t work so well here. We are too (wonderfully) diverse! US national identify is more of an idea of individual rights and continuously improving democracy. But it’s hard to rally around an idea. So the flag is it. Scholars will say a lot more, but I’m going to stop here.
US Army Birthday
June 14 is also the 250th anniversary of the creation of the US Army. I’ll spare you the history, but the Army had already planned demonstrations and displays on the National Mall to celebrate.
Trump’s Birthday
Trump has been wanting a proper authoritarian military parade since forever. The establishment managed to avoid it in his first term. But this time he told the Army he wanted one, and since they were celebrating anyway, and since it was his birthday, they need to do it this time. So there you are. (My personal hope is that we will birth our own “tank man” image as happened in China during the Tiananmen Square massacre.)
All this is to say, what a great day to protest!
How To Bring a Friend
James Baldwin once wrote
“There may not be as much humanity in the world as one would like to see. But there is some. There's more than one would think. In any case, if you break faith with what you know, that's a betrayal of many, many, many, many people. I may know six people, but that's enough.”
We need to get to “enough” on a national scale. If you are wondering what more you can do to thwart the rise of the fascists, you can bring more people to the protests. Besides, to quote Winnie the Pooh, "It's so much more friendly with two.”
You don’t need to strong arm people. Interested people are everywhere. Remember, Trump is doing that part of the work for us. People just don’t know what their options for action are. Here’s thumbnail guide to inviting people.
a) Anyone you talk to who is disgusted by Trump, has been impacted by something Trump is doing, is despairing of turning them back, or is complaining about what’s going on should be invited to come protest.
b) Each person and each relationship is different, but, in general, when someone mentions something horrible going on, discuss it compassionately, but instead of ending with the usual “oh well,” ask “What can we do about that?”
c) After discussing ideas or despair or helplessness, respond with a call to action: “I believe that the people have real power. And I think that one way we show that power - and grow that power - is with public protests. And I believe that going to protests over and over until our needs are met is one of our duties as citizens.”
d) Then deliver the invitation!
Things That Are Giving Me Hope Right Now
I am not going to be Pollyannish here. But there ARE battles being won, and we need to take heart.
a) Court Battles
Adam Bonica, a Poli Sci professor at Stanford, is keeping a scorecard in the courts. By his count, Trump lost 96% of federal district court decisions in May. This includes judges of all stripes, including judges that Trump himself appointed. This is an outrageous number by any measure! But, to put this in perspective, historically, the government actually wins the vast majority of the cases it participates in!
And the losing streak is not likely to end soon. Trump’s DOJ is hobbled by laughably incompetent leadership and adherence to arbitrary strictures from the White House meant only to ensure loyalty to Trump and to make certain that no one, that is NO ONE, shows Trump up as the liar he is. So the rank and file lawyers are hobbled as well.
This is not to minimize the damage being done. Courts are slow. Government institutions, individual people, and the fabric of our society are being hurt every day. And Trump keeps testing the extent to which he can disobey the courts by slow-walking actions and incompletely following orders. But so far, the courts have stopped many destructive and vindictive actions from becoming permanent.
b) Public Opinion
Everyone knows that Trump is underwater in the polls and that Banana Republican policies are deeply unpopular. But here’s an aircraft carrier of a long term trend now turning like a speedboat. After 50 years of right wing disinformation, the majority of the country has come to what I believe to be the correct conclusion that government isn’t doing enough for people. This is a good sign, not just for our current predicament, but for a post-Trump future (if there is one) where we can really take care of people and the planet, where Americans can finally ‘have nice things.'
