Power to the People
Get out and protest tomorrow. Peacefully. Please.
Hello, friends,
Today's post is on the later side, because, like many of you, I'm burnt out by *waves hands* everything that's transpired over the past few days.
I've already written multiple versions of this post, and none of them seemed right, especially now that I’m still processing the unprecedented attack on California Sen. Alex Padilla for the crime of -- *checks notes* -- trying to ask DHS Secretary Kristi Noem a question.
At this point, I have a short and simple request for all of you reading this Substack post right now:
Please, get out and protest tomorrow, Saturday, June 14.
If you care one iota about our democracy, then you need to join us for the No Kings mass protest. Because this is the United States of America. We are not a country that bows down to a tyrant, a king, a dictator, or a pathetic orange-colored buffoon who never got enough love as a child.
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As soon as I heard that a United States senator was attacked by Department of Homeland Security thugs yesterday, only one thought crossed my mind: What else has to happen for people to wake up and start speaking out? The assault on Sen. Padilla is your 5,678th reminder that authoritarianism doesn’t happen all at once. It happens so slowly that you don’t realize your country is being destroyed from within. The difference between us and, say, ordinary Germans 80 years ago is that we have history on our side. We already know what happens when we don’t speak up. Now is the time to act — before it’s too late.
I think the real problem here is that too many Americans still have the “Oh, what happened in Nazi Germany can never happen here” mentality. That attitude is far more dangerous than anything the government is doing to its citizens and residents. Because you know who holds the true power of the United States? The people. (Remember the Constitution? “We the people”?) The less people know what’s going on behind the scenes, the easier it is for the administration to take over, bit by bit.
Unfortunately, I think many people have gotten so complacent that they don’t want to believe what’s unfolding before their eyes.
They’re also too scared to speak out publicly, even though they feel as strongly as the rest of us do.
Friends, I know you’re terrified — like I said last week, I’m scared too — but the only way we can save our country is if everyone steps up their game.
This week alone, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson called for California Gov. Gavin Newsom to be "tarred and feathered." The president of the United States supported the idea of having Newsom arrested (without grounds). A California senator was violently wrestled to the ground and handcuffed for trying to obtain information. We stopped being normal a long time ago, but the fact that so many people continue to go through life acting like this IS normal, well, I don't know what to say to you anymore. I fear that fascism won't destroy us, but apathy will. Ignorance. Cluelessness. Acceptance. That is what will be the nail in our collective coffins.
It's beyond clear to me that a significant number of Americans have never visited a concentration camp, the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C., or the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam.
Quick story: I visited the Anne Frank House in 1998. Jewish teenager Anne hid from the Nazis for two years in that building (with seven other people), before she and her family were arrested in 1944 and sent to multiple concentration camps (Anne Frank died in Bergen-Belsen in 1945). But when I went to the museum, the rooms were empty. The only sign of life was the pictures and posters that Anne had hung in her room, like any typical teen of the time. I have never before (or after) felt such a haunted chill throughout my body. It's inexplicable how sick I felt inside. There were literal ghosts in that museum because too many stood by and let terrible things happen to innocent people.
That kind of feeling never leaves your soul.
I fear that history will repeat itself if more people don’t stand up to the current regime.
I'll say it every week if I have to: Silence is complicity. And complicity hurts people. Keeping your feelings about the Trump administration either privately or among your inner circle serves no one, either. Please, find a protest near you on Saturday. The very idea that the president of the United States is throwing himself a military birthday parade that will cost taxpayers $45 million just boggles the mind. Never in my nearly 50 years have I ever seen anything so Kim Jong-un-y. (Here’s hoping the weather reports stay steady and there will be rain on Donald Trump’s parade.)
Head over to NoKings.org for information on local protests, which includes vital tips on protesting peacefully.
Also, be sure to check out this post by career public defender
about staying safe while protesting:
This is critical: We need everyone on the streets tomorrow, but more importantly, remember to protest peacefully. Donald Trump is a man who loves a fight, and the best birthday present any of us can give him is to protest with anger and violence. That’s all he needs to send in more National Guard troops (even though a federal judge already declared that the National Guard needs to be turned back over to California, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals temporarily blocked the judge’s order).
We need to be smarter and more mature than the president and the members of his administration.
I will be protesting tomorrow — with my MOTHER! (This hits me in all the feels, knowing we’ll be exercising our First Amendment rights together.)
If you’re attending a protest as well — and feel comfortable sharing — I’d love it if you let me know in the comments! There’s safety and strength in numbers. Now is the time to make our voices heard!
I’ll leave you with one final thought from my favorite journalist,
,(who will be reporting from tomorrow’s protests, so definitely make sure you’re subscribed to his Substack!), because it sums up our collective power perfectly:Oh, and don’t forget to add John Lennon’s 1971 gem to your protest playlist!
Stay safe, stay peaceful, and, as always, I thank you for reading,
—Sarene
P.S. If you’re a regular reader of my work and wish to support my endeavors, please consider becoming a paid subscriber. Or, you can give a one-time donation by buying me a coffee.
P.P.S. New outlet (for me) alert! Check out my first-ever article for HuffPost!
It’s a great day for health equity advocacy! Find free templates on my page to send letters to health insurance companies and your representatives!!