Thomas Zimmer10h ago

Forget all the “Protests don’t matter” and “No Kings is just silly” nonsense.

Protests matter. Societal resistance has been hardening. It’s a massive problem for the MAGA regime.

And “No Kings” is crucial as part of an effort to dispel the idea that “real America” stands behind Trump.

https://steady.page/en/democracyamericana/posts/a40ac673-b42b-4108-9756-feeae62ca5e8

America As No-Longer-Democracy and Not-Yet-Dictatorship

Where does the country stand after the largest day of protest in U.S. history? Putting “No Kings” in perspective

Steady
Show threadThomas Zimmer10h ago
The No Kings protests in the fall of 2025 did not change anything in any immediate, tangible way. It was a highly symbolic affair. But that doesn’t relegate the protests to the status of an ephemeral blip. I believe they mattered for three main reasons:
Show threadThomas Zimmer10h ago
First of all, the Trumpists’ key assertion is that they represent “real America,” that the November election was a referendum that installed Trump as the tribune of “the people.” Anything that helps to dispel such notions – especially in the minds of mainstream elites – matters.
Show threadThomas Zimmer10h ago
Secondly, a broad coalition is needed to defeat Trumpist authoritarianism. In thousands of places, Americans are coming together with their neighbors in a communal effort that creates a shared experience beyond strategic or ideological disagreement. That matters.
Show threadThomas Zimmer10h ago
Finally, the No Kings protests can be part of an effort to, as cringe as that may sound, reclaim patriotism from the Right. Too long have rightwingers been allowed to drape their grievances in the nation’s collective symbols and present themselves as the guardians of the national mythos.
Show threadThomas Zimmer10h ago
This is where the slogan “No Kings,” in all its simplicity, is effective. It is a reference to a founding myth – but mobilized in defense of democratic self-government, as an affirmation of democratic aspirations, even if America has certainly never fully lived up to them yet.
Show threadThomas Zimmer10h ago
This is also how the (perceived) “normie” character of the No Kings protests becomes an asset. Too long have rightwingers been allowed to present themselves as “real Americans” and deride everyone who dares to dissent as “abnormal.”
Show threadThomas Zimmer10h ago
But all (small-d) democrats in America must dispute this claim of “real American” normalcy and replace the repressive norm of white Christian patriarchal dominance with a promise that the expected norm is an acceptance of pluralism and diversity in all spheres of life.
Show threadThomas Zimmer10h ago
The chasm between the traditional Republican assertion of representing “normal” America and the assortment of extremists, fraudsters, and weirdos in positions of influence and power has become brutally stark. It is time to pounce.
Show threadThomas Zimmer

Will it work? I don’t know. But it is certainly better than preemptively conceding ground to the Right’s claims that they deserve disproportionate power as representatives of “the people.”

It is time for (small-d) democrats to assert their right to define what “real America” should be going forward.

1:14pmIvory for iOS
Show threadcognitively accessible math9h ago
@tzimmer_history Yes, even while purity testers mock doing protests without boycotts. Oh, what if they go to Target for supplies?
More important is "no, the normal people are saying this is wrong."
Show threadcognitively accessible math9h ago
@tzimmer_history We can also talk about the shopping choices at teh protest....
Show threadAnne Ominous7h ago

@tzimmer_history

i'd say 'good idea,' but most democrats seem to represent corporations

i dont think Chuck Schumer has any right to make assertions about America. he thinks his fictional Bailey family are important. the john oliver segment on him really just crushed any hope i have that dems can meet this moment.

i love my Rep, Delia Ramirez. but my 2 dem senators? lol -- Durbin?? Duckworth? they might as well be Israeli lapdogs

meanwhile, Newsom out here shittin on trans folks. SMFH