I did not hear that No Kings Day was happening again until after the fact. But when I did, my eyes instinctively rolled. Not even the artistry and creativity of the witty signs could impress me. I was actually disgusted, seeing the smiles in the footage and posts from the day. Don’t get me started on the inflatable costumes. I was quickly assured of the performative nature of this day.
I could not help but notice the stark contrast between the exuberant display of dissatisfaction with our government and the silent daily terror of those at risk of ICE forced disappearances. From my home state of Massachusetts and its many towns and cities with large immigrant populations, I receive many stories of ICE’s forced disappearances that constantly terrorize vulnerable communities. Here on the opposite coast, being in Claremont, I am exposed to similar ICE kidnappings in the Southern California area. Since ICE does not restrict its nation-wide forced disappearances to Saturday to accommodate the working schedules of vulnerable communities, the festive and unsustained nature of No Kings Day confuses me.
Trump, his colleagues and ICE work around the clock to kidnap immigrants who contribute to our nation. In contrast, it seems many cannot be bothered to “resist” this administration in their daily lives and, when they do, must paradoxically protest in a performative manner that is ineffective. Protest without action is merely an expression of dissatisfaction, but Americans are deluded into believing that it is effective resistance to violent authoritarian governments. This delusion has encouraged a complacency to not take true action, this enables daily attacks not just on vulnerable populations but on the American people.
The mass showcase of cardboard signs that accuse Trump of being a king and, by corollary, un-American has shown to be ineffective. Trump does not care about your art show and performance at the Saturday matinee. These cardboard signs do not impede Trump from exercising authoritarianism. If anything, it encourages him to continue because he knows that his only opposition will be you and your friends holding up cardboard on Saturday afternoons. Trump is not oblivious to public outcry. He knows he is angering many, and he has made it clear that he does not care.
In addition to his apparent disregard for the public, Trump makes it clear that he is indifferent to our laws. Ignoring public outcry, Trump also blatantly ignores the Constitution. He permits ICE agents to racially profile in searches for undocumented immigrants, threatens the free press by financially manipulating news sources to assist in his unlawful expansion of power — ultimately molding this country to his image.
With the Supreme Court’s continued and unprecedented permissiveness in Trump’s dismissal of the law, it’s safe to assume that more expansions of power are on the way. Trump sees this country and its people as disposable tools to amass unlawful power, yet we are not doing anything other than gathering and shouting in the streets to defend against this insurrection.
Peaceful protest should be reserved for peaceful governments: those that respect the law and recognize their duty to the public. The constant physical harm and kidnapping being committed is a violent practice that does not deserve peaceful protest treatment. Trump’s martial law in cities like Los Angeles, Portland, Memphis, Chicago and even the capital, demands that we do more than make cardboard signs. I am not suggesting a violent revolution by any means, but in order to stop this administration’s authoritarianism we must organize to enact radical community care and carry out consequences for Trump’s enablers.
For example, we need to directly protect vulnerable populations from this authoritarianism by impeding ICE activity. Scheduling mass protest days does not achieve this. However, true effective action can be simple: Help your neighbors get their children to school, or bring them groceries. Join local rapid response networks to report local ICE presence and kidnappings. It may seem minuscule, but the success of ICE’s racial profiling relies on visibility, which we can reduce through these actions. ICE agents engage in such alarming transparency because the government will do anything to cover up its authoritarian actions, so sharing the names of those taken can spread information about ICE’s victims — allowing us to mobilize and fight for their return.
We cannot just say that we do not tolerate this disregard for human rights. We need to take action to maintain dignity for our neighbors whose human rights are slowly being stripped away.
If you do not know of anyone to help, you can punish companies that are complacent in or supportive of Trump’s administration with boycotts. Hurting the pockets of corporations that fund Trump through donations and tax contributions can disable his agenda in a way that our expressions of anger cannot.
We need to diminish the morale and financial success of politicians, National Guard members and ICE agents. Use the vitriol of Republican politicians showcased at town halls, the videos of resistant people during ICE kidnappings and the local Los Angeles demonstrations this summer to inspire actions that show nothing will be worth enabling Trump’s authoritarianism. Get these officials out of office, make the National Guard members work half-heartedly and compel ICE agents to quit their jobs.
No Kings Day shows Trump that the only pushback he will get is a big art show every so often. Cardboard signs will not scare Trump’s authoritarian administration. Local and real action will.
Jason Murillo PO ‘28 is from Worcester, Massachusetts, and, no, you don’t say it like the sauce, and, no, it is not anywhere near Boston.
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