Resistance and Risk
How to fight authoritarian regimes
Different degrees of action
There are different degrees of action. Some, and possibly all, carry a certain amount of risk under authoritarian rule. The guarding of our basic integrity is the first degree of action, and even such an inner act can put one at some risk of retaliation. It is something we must learn to live with.
This guide lists a few forms of resistance action and grades each one with a personal risk level from 0 to 10. 0 is no risk at all, and 10 means a personal sacrifice that includes losing one’s liberty and possibly one’s life depending on the severity of the regime. The risk goes from personal distress to retaliatory actions from the regime. Often, the effectiveness of the action increases as the risk level increases.
It should be understood that any violent act of resistance or sabotage carries a risk of 10, and also sets back the resistance in a way that renders it not only ineffective, but it can destroy any of the positive work done in opposition to the regime.
Guarding Integrity
Living in an authoritarian regime changes the very base of our being. Its arrival suppresses the idea of neutrality. You are either with them or against them, and the choice is originally not yours.
Those in power will define the enemy, and it can be a segment of population (Jews, or “migrants”, or black people, or gay people, or trans people or whomever they designate) or simply whoever disagrees with them or laughs at them. In reality, no one is safe, not even those who declare their loyalty to the rulers, because the rulers are fickle.
It is time to remember the famous words of Pastor Martin Niemöller:
“First they came for the Communists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Communist
Then they came for the Socialists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Socialist
Then they came for the trade unionists
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a trade unionist
Then they came for the Jews
And I did not speak out
Because I was not a Jew
Then they came for me
And there was no one left
To speak out for me”
The authoritarian regime places each constituent in a category. If we feel we are safe, we need to remember that anyone punished for who they are or what they think, is really ourselves.
So the first order of business is developing and reinforcing a sense of conscience outside of the categories set up by the regime. This is not easy, especially for those of us placed in any of the accepted categories, but it requires inner vigilance, awareness (or “wokeness” as it is sometimes called in a derogatory way!), and clarity of purpose. It implies cultivating a sense of community with friends and maintaining against all odds a belief in the basic goodness of people, and the right of all to live with dignity, and making sure not to “obey in advance”.
This also implies a consciousness of how we handle our personal relationships. When the ruling class is suffused in hate, let’s remember to be loving, respectful and forgiving.
“Really, we all believe in love, we are just afraid to practice it” Ira Sandperl, A Little Kinder.
Risk Level: 1
Language
The extremist right wing has distorted the language in order to skew the thinking process of reasonable people. For example, the common use of the term “pro-life” to mean “anti-choice” has given some kind of moral platform to those wanting to take away a woman’s right to choose.
Calling extremists “conservatives” has also become accepted by the general public, and mainstream media. There are most likely many other examples. George Lakoff has been a steady champion of not letting the right wing form our common language.
In recent times, during the election campaign, we heard the word ‘’fascism’’ spoken many times. Now that the extremists have won, the term might disappear completely from the public discourse, unless we hang on to it.
Fascism, as defined during the tenure of Benito Mussolini in Italy, is a conglomerate of oligarchy and authoritarian government. It is not an exaggerated word, it is an accurate word. Let us not lose it, even though most of those who fought for freedom against fascism during World War II have now left us, and the term might end up being turned by those in power into a positive word.
Language matters, and the way we use it matters as a form of resistance.
Risk Level: 1
Learning Sessions
Small informal gatherings of friends, neighbors and other interested people can be a preliminary step to all other actions. They could involve a maximum of 20 attendants, if in person. A good pattern for these sessions could be 5 minutes of silence in the beginning, then discussion of relevant articles or books, current events, and ideas for action. They should help reinforce our sense of integrity, which might motivate some of us to action.
Reading about M.K Gandhi’s fight for Indian independence can be a good start. Gandhi’s methods were pragmatic, extremely focused on the means more than the goals, and proved successful, even though he took the ultimate risk, and was betrayed. But this doesn’t take away the value of his approach, based on integrity and inner strength, and away from personal attacks and hate.
Part of this approach can be studying Aldous Huxley’s Ends and Means, currently out of print, but still can be found in used bookstores and online. But there are many other books and essays, older and contemporary ones.
Learning sessions carry a minimal amount of risk and are great morale boosters.
But the risk increases as their visibility increases.
Risk Level: 2
Donations/Support Politicians who Commit to Resistance
This goes without saying. Supporting politicians who seem to understand the current situation and are committed to resisting, if you can afford it, is an easy choice that should not carry much risk, at least in the beginning. Progressive Democrats now form the most effective opposition.
Leaders We Deserve, is a great organization that helps young progressives get elected to Congress.
Also, be attentive and donate to campaigns for Special Elections, if some members of Congress have either quit, or been chosen by the regime to serve in the Cabinet.
Call your Senators and Representatives to encourage them to get out of the “business as usual” level, and start being creative. Professor Snyder recommends creating a Shadow Government, who would give press conferences, debunk the lies and describe what the real solutions could be. They can also adopt “unprecedented” (the word is so overused and annoying) strategies, working with quora, using any loophole that can be found in the arcane rules of the Senate or the House.
Calling, more than email is recommended.
Usually, elected officials only care about constituents from their state and their district. Therefore, you are most in control (if at all) with your Congress members, be they from the regime party, or the opposition.
Risk Level: 1
Joining and Donating to Organizations
If you can afford to donate, it is important and quite safe to donate to organizations who work hard to compensate for authoritarian rule and to help stop cruel policies. Being on the side of democracy with a small “‘d”’, is not partisan work. It is often work based on the US Declaration of Independence text (a clear statement against tyranny) and the Constitution of the United States, where the government is claimed to be “‘by the people for the people”” under the idea that the politicians who govern us work for us, and not the other way around.
Such national organizations worth supporting are:
And there is always a local chapter of Indivisible.
Volunteering for organizations and spiritual communities that defend the “enemy within” and protect victims of the regime, fight poverty and homelessness are important. Organizations such as (in the SF Bay Area) Glide Memorial (San Francisco), Puente (San Mateo County), and other local similar organizations and non-denominational churches.
But there are many more, and at the local level, without forgetting supporting in the next election, candidates who will support the basic, if imperfect experiment in democracy of the United States of America.
With sufficient means, or the support of an organization, one can also file lawsuits and class action suits. This of course carries the financial risk of losing the suit and having to pay legal fees of even damages. It all depends on the judges.
Risk Level: 1
Demonstrations
Demonstrations are more effective under authoritarian rule than under traditional democratic government, but they can also be an excuse for repression. Even without risk, they are good for the souls of the demonstrators, and this is very important. They can sometimes achieve actual reversal of policies, such as what happened in 2017 when demonstrators rushed to airports to stop Trump’s “Muslim ban” in its tracks. Lawsuits were also filed and won, which finally ended the policy. But then, the country was not in full authoritarian mode.
When repression comes, we must drop any prejudice about the stigma of going to jail. “My prison is my palace” M.K.Gandhi used to say. And we must keep the demonstrations peaceful. Any violence or degradation of property completely dismantles the purpose of the demonstration, and only increases the risk of being beaten or arrested.
Of course, the risk is always present but can only get worse if the demonstrators deviate from being peaceful and respectful of others.
A peaceful, focused and well attended demonstration can change minds and loosen the grip of the regime on people’s minds.
Demonstrations will be needed in case of mass deportations, to make sure that what is happening is brought to light.
Risk Level: 4 or more depending on level of retaliation.
Social Media
In our times, the regime doesn’t come to power by force. It comes to power by utilizing the mechanisms of democracy and is usually elected. Social media has become a powerful carrier of propaganda, and can play a major role in misinformation, which leads to choosing a dictatorship over a system which might be struggling but maintains a modicum of democracy.
The extremists created various social media platforms (TruthSocial, Parler, Telegram, and some areas of Discord).
It would be good to have a social media platform that does not carry hate, racism, sexism, and deformed Christian religion.
Like most everything, this involves money to set up a server, and most large web servers belong to oligarchs, such as Amazon Web Services, though they don’t seem at this point to censor the content. But it could always happen, since authoritarian regimes are usually supported by an oligarchy that benefits from it.
To stay or not to stay on X? It is a matter of personal choice. Some might choose to stay on it and maintain some reason and express views contrary to the ongoing extremist propaganda. Many journalists, historians and writers have moved to BlueSky (founded by Jack Dorsey, original founder of Twitter), which is currently tracking above Threads, which is a subsidiary of Meta/Facebook.
Substack has a lot of committed opinion writers such as Heather Cox Richardson, Noah Berlatsky, Aaron Rupar, Thom Hartmann and many others.
Risk Level: 1 - might involve being insulted or kicked out of certain social platforms. The risk might increase depending on visibility.
Press and Media
The press is under direct threat by authoritarian regimes, and might be the first to cave in. This includes newspapers, cable television (which is the main arm of propaganda). Hopefully journalism will stand up for freedom and justice, but the level of threat is very high, and might force many of them to remain neutral if not toe the line. Be very vigilant, read what you can stand reading, write letters and comments if you feel up for it. The risk for readers might be negligible, but the risk for journalists and reporters is very high. The upcoming regime has already filed multimillion lawsuits against some journalists (like Michael Schmidt of the New York Times, CBS and NBC news, and MSNBC anchors are under threat).
Podcasts and digital publications with investigative reporting like ProPublica should be supported, read and listened to when they have a podcast. There are many others, on social media (see above), and elsewhere. Subscriptions to traditional newspapers are also helpful, though in many jurisdictions they have been replaced by so-called “pink slime” fake newspapers carrying regime propaganda. Be observant and mindful.
The coming months after investiture will be decisive as to which podcasts and digital media will be on the side of the resistance. It will be interesting to see how traditional newspapers (now mostly in digital form) will behave.
Risk Level: 0 right now for viewers or subscribers, 8 or more for journalists.
Acts of Conscience
This is the most effective and most dangerous of all aspects of resistance. It engages our being, and can lead to years in prison, or even a death sentence. It implies breaking the edicts of the regime, and a firm sense of commitment to our conscience, sense of justice, and view of personal responsibility.
Examples would be doctors risking everything to perform lifesaving abortions in spite of the law, or law enforcement or military refusing to enforce mass deportations, and many other actions, based on the current edicts and how they hurt their victims.
Rosa Parks took a risk by seating where she was not allowed to sit, and her action led to implementation of Civil Rights laws.
M.K Gandhi and his followers broke the law and decided to make salt which was forbidden by the British government. The result was beatings, imprisonments, mass shootings, until the military refused to shoot. In the end, this action led to finally granting India its independence in 1947.
Acts of conscience are revolutionary, pragmatic, and can change everything. But those who undertake them must be brave, positive, and ready for anything. The risk level goes down with the number of people willing to act according to their conscience. However, often, one has to make a decision for themselves, hoping that others will follow.
Risk Level: 10
In Conclusion
This is a gathering of general ideas, and by no means an exhaustive list. Do your own research, feel free to comment, add other ways to resist, recommend anything that might work in not only resisting the regime, but reinforcing one’s sense of integrity and personal stability when facing the assault of propaganda, which will be brutal.
Stay watchful and conscious and do what you can!
“In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” — Dr Martin Luther King Jr
“We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented. The opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference.” — Elie Wiesel
“Violence produces only the results of violence and the attempt to impose reforms by violent methods is therefore doomed to failure” — Aldous Huxley
Excellent resources, Martine. So grateful you mentioned Gandhi’s work and the importance of non violent methods. Thank you!