This is a moment for network-building, not neutrality
As power concentrates and violence follows, our defense is each other
The work I do is focused on figuring out how to pass more wealth and power to more people, specifically, workers. For a while, narrowing the wealth gap felt possible. But after the past year under this federal administration, the wealth gap has widened so dramatically that it’s become absurd.
The United States is being run by a collection of Scrooge McDucks wearing MAGA hats. I imagine them bathing together in their gold coins as they send federally employed mercenaries out to kill and kidnap people. All this is to say: my ambition to redistribute power and wealth feels constrained right now, given the accelerating power of billionaires and the escalating attacks on civil rights.
Instead, the focus that feels most crucial in this moment is strengthening the knots in our social fabric—watching out for each other and building networks of care. We’re seeing this in Minneapolis: people organizing to ensure that they and their neighbors stay safe, sheltered, and resourced. We also have to combat the misinformation designed to fracture collective action, especially the narrative about the “violence of immigrants,” which conveniently distracts from the ways this administration is plundering the economy. Grace Blakeley describes this clearly:
“The migrant-blaming story has no end point—because it will never deliver the safety and prosperity people crave. Americans’ lives will keep getting worse and, in response, the state’s list of enemies will continue to expand. Like a medieval doctor trying to excise a disease he has misdiagnosed, Trump will keep slicing away at the American body politic until there is nothing left.”
So what do we do in this moment of violence, economic collapse, and fear? We acknowledge what’s happening and we act.
A friend posted over the weekend about the murder of Alex Pretti’s murder, and someone commented, imploring him to “keep politics off of LinkedIn.” It is critical that we are clear about this: the murder of people in the street for exercising their First Amendment rights is not “political.” It is a necessary naming of state violence—violence that threatens lives, civil rights, our economy, and even business interests.
Do not ignore what’s happening to get through your day. Speak about it. Bring it up in meetings. Acknowledge the pain with your neighbors and your coworkers. Don’t push it down, lift up the lives that have been taken and the fear spreading across the country.
Because here’s the deal: if we ignore what’s happening in Minneapolis, we will have less power and less collective support when they come for us. And they will, unless we treat this for what it is, a violation of our rights, and a country’s leadership sanctioning the murder of its own people.
As M. Gessen says on entering the logic of state terror:
“If we don’t talk back, if we alter our routes to avoid protests, if we are lucky enough to be white, straight, natural-born Americans — or, if we are not, but we lie low, stay quiet — we will be safe. Conversely, we can choose to speak up, to go to protests, to take a risk. Either way, we tell ourselves, if we can predict the consequences, we have agency. But that’s not how state terror works.”
What to Do
The information below is copied from Leona Waller’s 5 Things Every American Should Do article. I highly recommend that you read the full post.
1. Call your Senators (cost: 2-5 min)
Do it now, because this specific action is only applicable until January 30th. The House already passed the DHS funding bill, so we focus on the Senate now.
A landslide of calls to our lawmakers will register on the Richter scale. Lawmakers bow to Trump when they think that’s the only way of keeping their power. They need to be reminded that the people’s ability to cost them their seat at the table is greater.
So we’re going to call them EVERY DAY UNTIL JANUARY 30TH. Jamming phone lines has been shown to be an effective way to get our reps to pay attention. (If your senators’ inboxes are full, that’s a good sign! Call back the next day.)
Find the name and number of your senators simply by going to 5calls.org and putting in your zip code. You’ll be given a script.
2. Donate to legal funds that are supporting immigrants and ICE detainees (cost: whatever $ you can spare each month)
3. Divest from the companies that support ICE (cost: first-world convenience and comforts)
According to Ice Out of My Wallet and the Save America Movement, these are the brands we should be boycotting:
Home Depot - They literally allow ICE agents to patrol their stores and parking lots without warrants. Luckily, Lowe’s and Ace have everything anyway, minus the fascist aftertaste.
Target - They’ve rolled over to Trump’s racist nonsense and have set a standard for corporations going along with the right-wing playbook. If you need new sheets, go to Marshalls.
Hilton Hotels - They house ICE agents, and punish their branches that don’t. No prob, there are a million cheaper hotels.
Amazon - Their web services (AWS) is the digital backbone of ICE’s machinery. Yes. It is time to cancel Prime. It’s been time to cancel Prime, but now it’s actually time.
Whole Foods - They’re part of Amazon so they’re dead to us. Just get a Thrive Market subscription instead, its got the same stuff for cheaper.
4. Prepare for ICE coming to your neighborhood (cost: 2-6 hours)
Having a strong network of local whistleblowers can quite literally save people from being detained and deported, keep families together, and potentially save lives.
On your own, or even better with friends and neighbors, work your way through these slides, provided by Minneapolis Area Synod, and identify a group of community members who are ready to go.
5. Do a lit drop (cost: $10-20 and 1-2 hours)
People are upset, afraid, and yet, still busy with everyday life. Bring easy action to them.
Here’s a PDF version of Leona’s post. Print 100 copies of it, and then:
hand them out at your local grocery store
put them on cars
slip them under your neighbors’ doors.
And, most of all, take care of each other out there. Please post in the comments what you are doing, how you are feeling, and any other great resources for people who want to act now.