Defending and Advancing Our Democracy

From the beginning of the United States, our democracy has had a limited view of who counts as “the people,” and many people living in the United States are still fighting to be included in that vision.

People and communities continue to be excluded from fully participating in our political and economic systems, while being exploited as laborers and consumers. Our nation’s harmful history — codified in laws and embedded into our systems and culture — have especially impacted Indigenous nations and people, Black people and people of color, women, LGBTQ+ people, disabled people, poor people, and immigrants and refugees.

These long-established systems of exclusion and exploitation created the conditions for the fascism and authoritarianism we are experiencing today.

Based on our country's history, it is no surprise that Trump’s threats and actions to “take America back” have disrupted our direction towards a more inclusive democracy. Already in the first five weeks of his second presidency, the Trump Administration has aggressively attacked his current chosen targets: immigrants and refugees, Black and brown people, and transgender people.

There is a rhyme and reason to Trump’s dehumanization of certain groups of people. This is how he builds power. Fascist regimes have historically singled out groups — especially those who are easier to dehumanize because they have already been pushed to the margins of our societies — and targeted them with threats and violence. This draws followers who are attracted by the hate and cruelty, while silencing others who are frightened into obedience.

By many accounts, Trump’s strategy building power through hate — is working. Anti-immigrant, anti-Black, and anti-trans sentiments are spreading through politics and communities across the country. And while income and wealth inequality skyrocket to vile levels, many billionaires and corporations are clearly signaling their allegiance to Trump’s vision: power gripped in the fists of the most powerful and wealthy.

We are at a pivotal political moment when we must decide which vision for America we will choose.

As individuals — and as the ACLU of Oregon community — how do we effectively resist Trump’s vision of a federal government that is threatening, controlling, and exploitative? How do we keep fighting for a more inclusive country that empowers everyone to fully participate and truly thrive, not just survive?

Here are the principles guiding the ACLU of Oregon’s efforts to build a democracy where all people have fundamental freedoms, access to power to engage in our democratic processes, and have inherent dignity, autonomy, and are valued:

The following are examples of how individuals, organizations, and communities can engage in principled, strategic resistance against Trump’s fascism:

As historian Howard Zinn stated,

"Democracy depends on people speaking out and in times of great crisis on people creating a commotion."

We will continue sharing the ways our community can speak out and create a commotion.

Join the ACLU of Oregon community in defending and advancing our democracy.