So a while ago I mentioned I wanted to provide some resources here for those who want to do their part in resisting the incoming Trump regime. I was thinking in terms of comprehensive resources guides and pages devoted to key issues.
But there are already people out there doing that. Rather than duplicating their efforts I think I want to try a different approach.
Plunging into activism can be daunting; it’s hard to even know where to start. So what I want to do is to highlight discrete things people can do to resist Trump EVERY DAY.
So on a regular basis (hopefully every day) I’ll be doing short posts intended to spur this kind of day-by-day activism, drawing on the work of others out there who are organizing activism and preparing resources for activists.
This will mean:
- Posts about discrete things you can do right now, quickly and easily, to resist Trump, like signing petitions or contacting a congressperson on a specific issue.
- Information on protests, nationally and locally.
- Posts on social media activism: Hashtags to post in. Memes to pass around on Twitter, good articles to post on Facebook, that sort of thing. Meme-making threads.
- Posts linking to useful resources for activists or for anyone concerned about Trump.
- Posts linking to useful resources and/or advice on how to take care of yourself as an activist and as a citizen in Trump’s America. Links to resources on dealing with harassment, ideas for self-care, and so on.
- Mini issues guides: Links to useful posts and articles on specific subjects, eg Trump’s conflicts of interest.
- Links to individual articles/posts/videos that are useful and inspiring.
- Social media recommendations: people to follow on Twitter, YouTube channels to subscribe to, good subreddits to look into (and yes there are some).
- Regular brainstorming threads.
I’m working on the first couple of posts right now, but I’m also looking for ideas — both for specific posts and more broadly on what sorts of posts might be most valuable for you all. So post your thoughts and suggestions!
Whew, got a list of things I’m doing or looking into.
* Join your local county democratic party and get involved – recruiting and communications are paramount.
* Look to any activist groups you support and find their local offices. Go to meetings. Get involved.
* Get your friends to go to those party/group meetings.
* Look for local political clubs and join them too.
* Take a position at a club or party or org and help run it.
* Network clubs and orgs, introduce people to each other. Build community.
* Get the clubs and orgs involved in charities and other good causes to further build community.
* Call your representatives DAILY to support them in opposing trump or critique them for not doing it. Remember many of them have web updates and newsletters.
* Don’t just go federal, call state and local officials about policy.
* If you go and call representatives, get friends on board. 5, 10, 20 calls on the same day makes a point.
* Make regular donations to organizations you support that oppose trump. Ten $5 donations a month is like 10 days of activity!
* Write newspapers reguarly about the issues.
* Investigate your city, county, and even state positions that you could take now or one day. Want better politics, go into it.
* Help out at the campaigns and offices of politicians you support.
* Consider other awareness-raising exercises. Posts on bulleten boards? Posters? Anti-trump flyers in strategic locations? Trump-opposing organization flyers left around strategically?
Hope this helps!
Can we get a Resist Trump Every Day parody music video (of Smoke Weed Every Day)?
I’ll just say it’d be good for morale.
@eientei95
Maybe if Dave has time he posts a daily/weekly “what did you do to resist Trump” post so everyone can share findings and ideas and experiences.
It probably isn’t much, but… a few years ago, I came up with a rallying song, for a story which I ended up never writing. More recently, I’ve been running it through my head over and over as a self-inflicted earworm, to drown out negative thoughts and lift my spirits. Which seems to work. I wondered if it might work for some other people as well, and so, if I should share it.
The problem is, though, that it’s more of a rhythm thing than a full song – some of the lines don’t actually have words yet, just a string of intense word-like noises, for lack of better description. I’d need to finish it, which could take awhile. And of the lines which do exist, one of them might be a little problematic: “Even if we must defeat the gods”. It’s not meant to mean “gods” in the religious sense, but as a metaphor for things which seem all-pervasive or unstoppable. Some people might read it as being anti-religion, though.
As someone who’s worked in progressive politics (persuasion and fundraising) for the last three-plus decades, can I put in a word about signing petitions?
Because with very, very, very few exceptions, online petitions/pledges/surveys/etc. are nothing more than a way for people to delude themselves into thinking they’re making a real difference — while giving away their data to organizations and companies that sell and trade it.
Unfortunately, this is the case across the political spectrum. So unless you’re talking about a petition focused on a very particular goal, and where timely public pressure can realistically affect the outcome, then signing it will probably just help to make you a better fundraising target.
Does anyone have ideas for what we can do overseas to #Resist?
@Judas Peckerwood
I figured as much. What about petitions done with physical signatures? Or is it only effective if it’s for an initiative?
Suggestion for thing to do: volunteer for a get out the vote campaign. Even this early, it can help.
Donate to, volunteer with, or join organizations that have already been helping groups and causes that the Trump administration will make life more difficult for.
George Takei: “Welcome to the Resistance”:
http://www.advocate.com/commentary/2016/12/21/george-takeiwelcome-resistance?utm_content=inf_10_2867_2&tse_id=INF_aa1dc550c7b311e6a6f47fa9b65b9e54
Robert Reich’s FB page: https://www.facebook.com/RBReich/
And…the culture of resistance:
Not My president (song):https://soundcloud.com/user-670434033/not-my-president-demo
I myself am working on songs and verse. There’s a song called “We Can Do Better Than This” that’s turning out quite good.
What an EXCELLENT idea David. A kind of Anti-Trump A Day Keeps The Disaster Away calendar. I’m IN.
If you are a moderate Republican, (or if you know any, encourage them)to join their local party and try to take it back from the extremists. We need reasonable conservatives in government.
Mike Moore’s 5 point plan for 2017 looks as though it might suit some of you.
http://www.msnbc.com/the-last-word/watch/michael-moore-s-5-point-plan-for-2017-and-donald-trump-840016963621
A minor one for dealing with Christmas lunch, since I know I’m not the only one with alt right relatives to shut up: I’ll be telling my uncle that for every racist slur, pro-genocide comment, Breitbart farticle or Trump mention, I’ll be donating $10 to CARE‘s refugee crisis appeal in his name. Win-win!
(I might’ve gotten this idea from somebody else here ages ago, but I honestly can’t remember, sorry.)
For those of us in other countries, we can replace ‘Trump’ with ‘local white nationalist politician’. *ponders upcoming Conservative Party of Canada leadership vote*
@ SFHC I hope you have enough money. 😉
Haven’t had a chance to try this yet:
http://imgur.com/w5pOt2k
Pretty much every kind of skill can be used in a movement like, even if it doesn’t directly relates to activism. Example : I’m a bartender. That’s about as useless as you can get… except it’s not. If you own a bar, you set the rules. Kick & keep annoying idiots out. Try to set up a safe space. Encourage discussion. Work with other activists, make arrangements with them so they can use your place to gather, etc. If you don’t own a bar, find one where you can work that does just that.
That goes for pretty much everything else.
Just my 2 cents.
(and now you see why I’m unemployed)
That’s probably the grossest Trump filter I’ve seen from you yet, David. Eugh. The dude looks like a microscopic streptococcus colony. Gross.
As for daily resistance, I’d like to talk about mental hygiene and how to avoid accepting things.
There’s going to be huge pressure to accept, from all corners. We’re already seeing it. The “winners” of the election are howling for us to just shut up and take it already, and are deeply offended that we can’t accept these results. The insults and accusations of the right are obvious, they’re everywhere, and they’re constant – and they won’t go away until we’ve disappeared.
We know this, we expect this, but at the same time there are a number of moderate, middle-ground and slightly-left sources that are saying that we should accept, move on, it’s only four years, etc. These are the voices that will actually erode our will to resist normalizing. There’s chaff in the wheat they’re grinding, and it’ll grind our teeth to nubs if we eat too much. This is not to say that we should retreat from these sources – you just have to get good at identifying the chaff so that you can pick it out.
As for our own group, polarization is problematic for clear thought. There will be a strong urge to oppose everything, even when something true or good comes around. We could do a lot of harm like this, and paint ourselves the villains. Not to the right wing- we’re already the villains to them, and there’s nothing we can do to change that – but to the sympathetic middle ground of people who are deeply worried but are afraid of confrontation. Clear-thinking is important, and it’s very hard to maintain clear thought in a hostile environment.
So, mental hygiene in this sort of acidic environment.
– Words are magic, use them carefully. Specifically, I suggest what Keith Olbermann suggests, and to never use the term “President” for Trump. The Term “President” carries with it a huge cognitive payload of positive things which will start to leech into your concept of Trump if the two are closely associated. He’s not a President. He’s just a squatter in the White House.
– Practice small oppositions when you are able. When someone calls him President, remind them that he lost the popular vote by an enormous margin, and that he won only by a technicality. Even if you don’t have the opportunity to do this in person and to their face, at the very least, go through the conversation in your head. Strengthen the neurons connecting “Trump is President” to “Hell No!”
– Practice small oppositions in the form of charity or good work towards people who are directly affected by Trump’s actions or policies. This is the positive compliment to the above. The above suggestion is about reinforcing negative associations, this one’s about forming positive ones. SFHC’s suggestion is great for this. If you have the time, helping someone in-person is better, and forms much stronger connections. If you see someone speaking out against Trump while waiting in line at the coffee shop, buy them a coffee. Make that connection. Let’em know that they aren’t alone in their opinion, and it’ll help reassure you that you aren’t alone in yours.
– Avoid going to bed angry if you can. Not always easy, obviously. The charity or good work from above is a good way to dissolve angry feelings. Your brain is adjusting itself while you’re sleeping; you don’t want it to be swimming in stress hormones (moreso than usual at least) while it’s doing so.
There are plenty more but I’m rambling and haven’t had my coffee yet, so I’m all grouchy and I’m sure i’m coming off as a pedantic jerk. Mea culpa. But those are some things I can think of for maintaining better mental hygiene as you resist.
International charities and advocacy groups: I second CARE.
Another good group is All Out, which supports LGBTQ rights internationally. I throw small amounts of money at them each year, but I don’t always keep up with updates, since they send a lot of email. Anyway, they do crucial and life-saving work.
@SFHC – You gave me an idea! My family isn’t likely to say anything pro-Trump, but anti-gay BS is another matter… So I could just replace CARE with All Out in this case.
@Fishy Goat – Definitely. And for Canadians, also keep pressure on the Trudeau government to denounce hate rhetoric and get better at indigenous rights and environmental protections.
(We really need to come up with something to prevent Leitch from winning the CPC, too. Serious stuff.)
@Scildfreja
The words that came to my mind were Orange Submarine, on account of it looking sorta like coral, but yours is probably more accurate (and fitting).
Huh, and I just realized the obvious : keep mocking him !
His ego is his worst weakness. He can’t stand mockery, but at the same time he leaves himself open to it at all time by spewing the most inane shit. And he shows his colors when he reacts to mockery. Enough of that and maybe, just maybe, some more people are eventually gonna realize just how much of an embarassment he is.
@Scildfreja I’m not a member of any federal party at the moment…. *winkwinknudgenudge*
@ Scildfreja:
I strongly disagree! Your suggestions are all excellent ideas.
I dont have a drivers licence and I’ve tried to get one two times. Itll be a while before I can go for one.
I feel so powerless. I have no significant online presence either. I’m autistic and can’t support myself right now, so I feel a strong pressure to watch what I say around my Trump supporting family.
And naturally, I also don’t have much money to donate either.
I just have no idea what I can do, if anything. and it’s driving me crazy with guilt and frustration. i feel like I might as well melt into the wall and disappear.
My parents can’t even seem to grasp how voting for Republicans hurts me as a lesbian. or they do but they’re just knee deep in denial.
Hello Victoria,
Just a random idea I have: You could mentally support other activisits? Be a shoulder for ppl fighting Trump to cry on or rant on. Or just make a database of their favourite kind of comfort meme? Maybe cats? or dogs? Or laughing armadillos? Or pictures of really pretty shoes? And then every now and again you can send them something, so their spirits are kept high.
all best, LGB