When revealed to the public over a year ago, the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 appeared more than enough to prevent Donald Trump from retaking the Oval Office. The right-wing wish list announced a litany of rights violations and power consolidation in the executive branch like a farcical imitation of U.S.-backed military juntas.
Beyond this, Democrats attempted to further secure victory through court action aimed at stifling third parties on the ballot in several states, including Georgia—where even if all third-party votes went to Harris, she still would have lost. President Obama insisted in ad after ad that “America is better than this.” Harris claimed that America wants to “turn the page and move forward.” Senility after senility spilled from the smoldering orange face; indictment after indictment broke over his crunchy toupée. Yet none of this was enough to prevent 2016 from reoccurring. Now what?
Now, even more so than in 2016 or 2020, it should appear obvious to anyone interested in learning from our collective mistakes that electoral politics cannot be our only course for positive political change. The eternal “liberal panacea” to vote blue will not save us, only getting organized will. Reproductive rights, LGBTQ+ rights and environmental rights, cannot remain bargaining chips in an endless party duopoly. Many of the same battlegrounds have remained unmoved or regressed (Roe v. Wade overturned; attacks on the Voting Rights Act of 1965; the Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity).
In light of this, three pillars of street politics in the vein of Black Lives Matter, Stop Cop City, Free Palestine and mutual aid organizations present-future must remain our base of future hope and action.
Community and Care: Build community wherever you are. The only way to fight back against power imposed from above comes from power united below. A key takeaway of 1984, according to Noam Chomsky (see Understanding Power), is the state’s perennial strategy of marginalizing the public it governs through isolate and conquer. A great swath of American men feel chronically lonely and isolated, breeding male insecurity and unhealthy online radicalization. Mass male insecurity only becomes more entrenched should others point out its lack of perspective; radical love is the only force that stands a chance at breaking it.
Resist isolation and its manifestations—loneliness, echo chambers, scapegoating, hatred. In the words of bell hooks, “Love is a revolutionary act of justice that requires tender labor,” and Cornel West, “Justice is what love looks like in public.”
Grassroots Networks: Work to build skills, organizations and networks in service to greater inter-worker solidarity, egalitarianism and mutual aid. Equip yourself with skills that will come in handy in the present and the world to come. Try personal or communal gardening.
As health care and rights falter in the system, we must respond in creative ways to take up slack. Mutual aid networks can expand to provide resources beyond food, in the same spirit as the Black Panthers’ survival programs providing free medical clinics and alternative emergency services. Learn first aid, learn your rights, but whatever you learn, experience and share alongside others. Familiarize yourself with the grassroots history you’ve inherited. This overlaps with the next pillar, which is a perennially important emphasis on…
Education: As public education funding continues to be siphoned into private hands, we must educate one another across class, racial and party lines. Black Panther Chairman Fred Hampton emphasized the foundation of education to any fight for justice, a dimension of movement building crucial to forging the “rainbow coalition” of Black, Puerto Rican and poor white communities in 1969 Chicago. Revolutionaries from the Spanish anti-fascists of the 1930s to Carlos Marighella in the ‘60s recognized the necessity of connecting urban and rural sectors through education.
In 2024, to combat the mass misinformation of a profoundly propagandized and postmodern Trumpland (and American mass media, for that matter; see Chomsky’s Manufacturing Consent and Michael Parenti’s Inventing Reality), education through face-to-face dialogue over and above online interaction remains our long but paramount battle. Why face-to-face? Because minds change far more in person than online. As Chomsky points out, “[d]uring the Arab Spring, in the early days of the Tahrir Square demonstrations… President Mubarak made the decision to shut down the internet to block the activism through social media. What was the effect? Activism increased because people returned to what really matters, which is face-to-face contact.”
Widespread disaffection with institutions comes naturally when wealth disparity continues to grow between the 99.99% and the 0.01%. However, cult-of-personality conspiracist populism that working class (and many middle- and upper-class) whites have responded with won’t work. Again, men across race, age and class have voted for the illusory “strongman.”
The fundamental problem remains: Both choices—a supposed political outsider or business-as-usual neoliberal talking head—represent an increase in climate impact, border militarization, unconditional military support for Israel, and the wealth in private hands at the expense of the public. “Strong economy,” the resounding right-wing euphemism, means an increase in GDP, not a rise in lower-middle class income or standard of living.
In Athens, several organizations are dedicated to political dialogue and work hacking at the root of authoritarianism and its myriad branches. Electoral politics federal to local (the Athens-Clarke County Commission will be a shade redder come January, again) may marginalize the public, but there’s a political home for you here: Athens Against Cop City, Lemonaid, Athens Against Apartheid, GA Students for Justice in Palestine, Lefty Jews of Athens, Athens Anti-Discrimination Movement, UGA’s Young Democratic Socialists of America.
Furthermore, a series of upcoming events can help engage those interested in positive change and community. Lefty Jews of Athens hosts monthly Shabbat dinners, many open to the broader community. Lemonaid preps and distributes food to unhoused Athenians every Sunday afternoon. On Nov. 24, Athens Against Apartheid has a political discussion on the crisis in Sudan.
Trump’s boomerang has given us a day or four years of mourning. It’s also provided us with a launching pad for collective reflection, education and action beyond the cramped parameters of electoral politics. Change comes from the bottom up, rarely top down; the U.S. labor and civil rights movements are proof. Mariame Kaba and Kelly Hayes put it best in their seminal work last year: Let this radicalize you rather than lead to despair.
Like what you just read? Support Flagpole by making a donation today. Every dollar you give helps fund our ongoing mission to provide Athens with quality, independent journalism.
Act Locally: A Guide to Post-Election Political Action for Athens
When revealed to the public over a year ago, the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 appeared more than enough to prevent Donald Trump from retaking the Oval Office. The right-wing wish list announced a litany of rights violations and power consolidation in the executive branch like a farcical imitation of U.S.-backed military juntas.
Beyond this, Democrats attempted to further secure victory through court action aimed at stifling third parties on the ballot in several states, including Georgia—where even if all third-party votes went to Harris, she still would have lost. President Obama insisted in ad after ad that “America is better than this.” Harris claimed that America wants to “turn the page and move forward.” Senility after senility spilled from the smoldering orange face; indictment after indictment broke over his crunchy toupée. Yet none of this was enough to prevent 2016 from reoccurring. Now what?
Now, even more so than in 2016 or 2020, it should appear obvious to anyone interested in learning from our collective mistakes that electoral politics cannot be our only course for positive political change. The eternal “liberal panacea” to vote blue will not save us, only getting organized will. Reproductive rights, LGBTQ+ rights and environmental rights, cannot remain bargaining chips in an endless party duopoly. Many of the same battlegrounds have remained unmoved or regressed (Roe v. Wade overturned; attacks on the Voting Rights Act of 1965; the Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity).
In light of this, three pillars of street politics in the vein of Black Lives Matter, Stop Cop City, Free Palestine and mutual aid organizations present-future must remain our base of future hope and action.
Community and Care: Build community wherever you are. The only way to fight back against power imposed from above comes from power united below. A key takeaway of 1984, according to Noam Chomsky (see Understanding Power), is the state’s perennial strategy of marginalizing the public it governs through isolate and conquer. A great swath of American men feel chronically lonely and isolated, breeding male insecurity and unhealthy online radicalization. Mass male insecurity only becomes more entrenched should others point out its lack of perspective; radical love is the only force that stands a chance at breaking it.
Resist isolation and its manifestations—loneliness, echo chambers, scapegoating, hatred. In the words of bell hooks, “Love is a revolutionary act of justice that requires tender labor,” and Cornel West, “Justice is what love looks like in public.”
Grassroots Networks: Work to build skills, organizations and networks in service to greater inter-worker solidarity, egalitarianism and mutual aid. Equip yourself with skills that will come in handy in the present and the world to come. Try personal or communal gardening.
As health care and rights falter in the system, we must respond in creative ways to take up slack. Mutual aid networks can expand to provide resources beyond food, in the same spirit as the Black Panthers’ survival programs providing free medical clinics and alternative emergency services. Learn first aid, learn your rights, but whatever you learn, experience and share alongside others. Familiarize yourself with the grassroots history you’ve inherited. This overlaps with the next pillar, which is a perennially important emphasis on…
Education: As public education funding continues to be siphoned into private hands, we must educate one another across class, racial and party lines. Black Panther Chairman Fred Hampton emphasized the foundation of education to any fight for justice, a dimension of movement building crucial to forging the “rainbow coalition” of Black, Puerto Rican and poor white communities in 1969 Chicago. Revolutionaries from the Spanish anti-fascists of the 1930s to Carlos Marighella in the ‘60s recognized the necessity of connecting urban and rural sectors through education.
In 2024, to combat the mass misinformation of a profoundly propagandized and postmodern Trumpland (and American mass media, for that matter; see Chomsky’s Manufacturing Consent and Michael Parenti’s Inventing Reality), education through face-to-face dialogue over and above online interaction remains our long but paramount battle. Why face-to-face? Because minds change far more in person than online. As Chomsky points out, “[d]uring the Arab Spring, in the early days of the Tahrir Square demonstrations… President Mubarak made the decision to shut down the internet to block the activism through social media. What was the effect? Activism increased because people returned to what really matters, which is face-to-face contact.”
Widespread disaffection with institutions comes naturally when wealth disparity continues to grow between the 99.99% and the 0.01%. However, cult-of-personality conspiracist populism that working class (and many middle- and upper-class) whites have responded with won’t work. Again, men across race, age and class have voted for the illusory “strongman.”
The fundamental problem remains: Both choices—a supposed political outsider or business-as-usual neoliberal talking head—represent an increase in climate impact, border militarization, unconditional military support for Israel, and the wealth in private hands at the expense of the public. “Strong economy,” the resounding right-wing euphemism, means an increase in GDP, not a rise in lower-middle class income or standard of living.
In Athens, several organizations are dedicated to political dialogue and work hacking at the root of authoritarianism and its myriad branches. Electoral politics federal to local (the Athens-Clarke County Commission will be a shade redder come January, again) may marginalize the public, but there’s a political home for you here: Athens Against Cop City, Lemonaid, Athens Against Apartheid, GA Students for Justice in Palestine, Lefty Jews of Athens, Athens Anti-Discrimination Movement, UGA’s Young Democratic Socialists of America.
Furthermore, a series of upcoming events can help engage those interested in positive change and community. Lefty Jews of Athens hosts monthly Shabbat dinners, many open to the broader community. Lemonaid preps and distributes food to unhoused Athenians every Sunday afternoon. On Nov. 24, Athens Against Apartheid has a political discussion on the crisis in Sudan.
Trump’s boomerang has given us a day or four years of mourning. It’s also provided us with a launching pad for collective reflection, education and action beyond the cramped parameters of electoral politics. Change comes from the bottom up, rarely top down; the U.S. labor and civil rights movements are proof. Mariame Kaba and Kelly Hayes put it best in their seminal work last year: Let this radicalize you rather than lead to despair.
Like what you just read? Support Flagpole by making a donation today. Every dollar you give helps fund our ongoing mission to provide Athens with quality, independent journalism.
Trump and Totalitarianism Triumph in 2024
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