Thread by @1JoshGreenberg

THREAD

THE ROLE OF THE PEOPLE IN RESISTING TYRANNY

In government, the people are the ultimate institution where power lies, serving as the backstop against tyranny when all other systems fail.

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When those in office refuse a peaceful transition of power, it is the duty of the people to ensure a proper transition.

When the checks and balances in the system of government fail to function properly, it is the duty of the people to restore the social order.

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When truth does not prevail and instead becomes perverted in the interest of oppression, it is the duty of the people to reestablish shared reality, community, and trust.

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No one else will step up to own these responsibilities—not the failed political leadership, not the broken media, not the purged bureaucracy, not the military, not Facebook or Twitter, not the international community.

That is why it is the duty of the people.

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This is the essence of what citizenship and civic responsibility mean.

Concretely, all of this means a mass civil resistance movement, using the methods employed by Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.—such as non-violent protest, boycotts, and strikes.

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It means using the power of truth to create justice. It means exercising an overwhelming show of moral force to overcome oppression.

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Tyranny does not disintegrate in silence. Fascistic movements do not disappear with inaction.

They must be defeated by truth—for truth is the greatest enemy of the oppressor.

That is why we must always speak truth to power.

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And that is why the most effective response to tyranny has been and always will be a mass non-violent movement by the people.

This was true four years ago, it was true six months ago, it is true today, and it will be true tomorrow.

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Each of us must accept the duty of civil resistance, recognizing our agency within the system of government and our power to change our fate. Our choices, actions, and inactions will be the difference between redemption and collapse for our nation.

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Defending freedom has always carried a grave cost. But it has also always been better to die fighting for freedom than to die at the hands of oppression.

Citizens have a choice to make about how much they value freedom. When freedom is not cherished, freedom is easily lost.

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In finality, the question for all of us is simple: What side of history will I be on? Will I be on the side of freedom and justice? Or will I be on the side of oppression?

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The history of conflict and atrocity is paved with culpable silence—for indifference is the most abundant resource that oppressors use to carry out their work of oppression.

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Be the one to change that history. Be the one to pave a future with moral truth—a future paved with justice and equality.

Speak out. Act. Stop it before it is too late.

13/END

For more discussion of the role of the people and of civil resistance in the political system, please see this thread.

PS1/

https://twitter.com/1JoshGreenberg/status/1295472525921718272

The present thread serves to provide the most central answer for those currently asking the question, “What can we do?” In addition, you may want to read this series of tweets where I consolidated recommended actions into a more comprehensive list.

PS2/

https://twitter.com/1JoshGreenberg/status/1326643427249942528

The action items in the list are somewhat tailored to the point in time at which that prior thread was written, but they can all be adapted and applied today.

PS3/

Also note, as those recommendations state, that as we progress to later stages of social conflict, the situation becomes more intractable. This is why early action is critical.

PS4/END

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