How to Fight Fascism: Activate
Part 2 of how to resist the threats of democratic destruction
Resistance to resistance
What does resistance even mean? I’ve been pondering two very different definitions of the word.
Resistance as defined by Steven Pressfield in his book The War of Art, is the internal force inside all of us that prevents us from doing the creative work we’re meant to do. But in its most recognized context, resistance refers to actions and strategies employed to resist oppressive powers or systems. These two definitions obviously talk about different things, but I keep thinking about how there’s this distinct internal force that seems to prevent lots of people from engaging in political resistance. A ubiquitous resistance to resistance of sorts.
The latter resistance can include more than political activism, but this moment calls for all Americans to engage in some form of political resistance. Fighting oppressive regimes like the current administration requires taking actions of resistance. So why is there resistance to resistance?
Steven Pressfield’s ‘resistance’ is an invisible force that is fueled by fear and is motivated by maintaining the status quo. Ironically, the oppressive systems we seek to resist are driven by these same inputs.
A few weeks ago, I attended an introductory meeting for Democratic Socialists of America, or DSA. It was an in-person meeting that felt like being back in the classroom; we had breakout and large-group discussions to define the core terms central to the mission of DSA: capitalism, socialism, democracy. The discussion of democracy stood out to me most. Someone reflected on how vanishingly few aspects of our lives are truly democratic, and how foreign the concept of living a truly democratic lifestyle has become. Today I’d argue the majority of Americans exercise democracy in the narrowest sense, showing up to the voting polls every 4 years to vote for president, maybe even also donating to their favorite candidate. We take for granted that most of what governs our daily lives has been decided without our input - we didn’t vote for landlords to exist, we don’t vote on who becomes CEO of the company we work at. It’s amazing how we accept, often without thought, how little say the majority has in our so-called democratic society. Why is that?
One-dimensional man
A theorist I studied for one of my sociology classes in college popped in my head in pursuit of the answer. His theory stuck in the corners of my brain for years because of how aptly it seemed to describe contemporary America. Herbert Marcuse’s breakout theory from the 1960s for why it has become hard to resist the status quo is laid out in his book “One-Dimensional Man.” His perspective is especially worth revisiting now, in this moment of fascist foreplay, because it was directly informed by his experience as a revolutionary who escaped Nazi Germany and came to the US - which he observed to have authoritarian proclivities, too.
Marcuse posited that modern industrial societies such as the US have become plagued by a one-dimensionality: a repression of alternative, critical thought due to the co-option of our politics, corporations, media, and technology to all enforce the same hegemonic messaging that reinforces a consumeristic, late-capitalistic society. A cursory taking stock of who owns the major news media outlets and social media companies, and the algorithmic mechanisms by which they run ($), affirms that this one-dimensionality has occurred. Marcuse considers these to be new forms of control, using not force, but subtle indoctrination to diminish society’s capacity to imagine alternative societal structures.
Part of his argument for why capacity to resist suffers in this society is because, well, a lot of us are comfortable. And it’s easier than ever to distract ourselves and stay put in our comfort. To further entrench our diminished ability to imagine alternatives, we can bury ourselves (and our precious limited time) in the lavish distraction of Tiktoks, reels, youtube videos, or if long-form media is more our cup of tea, the constant stream of shiny new movies and shows on Netflix, Amazon, HBO, Hulu, Disney+, Peacock, Apple TV, Max, Fubo, Paramount+ with no end, if we want to. The improved standard of living among the working class (the comfortable middle class emerged after WW2), made workers less likely to revolt. And the proliferation of ‘false needs’ meant that people of all income levels could have ‘nice’ things - our own TV, appliances, smart phone, trendy fast-fashion, etc. It feels like freedom because look how many things we have the freedom to consume! Plus free Amazon delivery for dirt-cheap (re: unethically made) gadgets? Perhaps these illusions of freedom make it a bit easier to overlook and acquiesce our lack of affordable health insurance, our loss of privacy and ownership of our own personal data, our silenced voice in our workplace, and the fact that there are so few viable alternative lifestyles if we want to participate fully in society.
I see similarities in this intoxicating lull of comfort and Steven Pressfield’s resistance. We have to overcome that invisible force of status-quo in order to resist.
Other invisible barriers
The other reasons why one might have resistance to resistance include information overwhelm and paralysis, not knowing where to start, and pessimism - believing that no strategy or action of resistance is going to result in meaningful change, so what’s the point?
In a society in which billionaires and corporations successfully throw their monetary weight to influence just about every big decision that’s made for the collective, people have forgotten the power of numbers. Societal pessimism can be transformed into realistic optimism when you realize that the numerical strength of the masses, when aligned to a shared goal, can overcome any other force. It’s not impossible. Every successful social movement in history has done this.
Resistance in the US has largely become synonymous with flash-point moments of high engagement. Think of 2020’s Black Lives Matter protests. June was the most salient month of large-scale resistance since the Civil Rights Movement. And then…the momentum tapered off. We have to shift from this pattern of flash-point resistance to long-term organizing and engagement.
But we have not been socialized to take proactive democratic actions like organizing our community, or engaging in long-term mutual aid or the sustained work of political advocacy. Instead, we’re used to voting and doing our annual work-sanctioned volunteer/community service days, and that’s about it. Because of that, incorporating long-term, meaningful active democratic participation into our lifestyle feels unrealistic - like we don’t have time or energy for it. And fair, that’s by design. Late capitalism works partially by tiring us out from our endless survival to-do’s so we use our precious little free time to forget our ills. Resisting an oppressive regime sounds like another chore and we don’t have room for more chores.
One way around that obstacle is to find the type of active resistance that brings you joy and refuels your tank. For many, protesting is the only readily available blueprint for how to resist. Some people are natural fits for this strategy, while others hate it and will only partake once there’s a critical mass and if sufficiently convinced that it’s needed. We don’t talk enough about all the other equally valuable ways to take action and resist.
It’s worth exploring the diverse realm of actions that count as political resistance.
Different ways to activate
Several have noted the importance of diverse resistance strategies in a social movement and taken the task of sorting the different roles. There are many ways to slice and dice the different resistance roles. Here are the categories I made, including some examples and subcategories.
Ring the alarm. Highlight the problems and raise awareness
Documenters (journalists, people sharing their testimonies). There is a lot of value in documenting what’s happening.
Contexualizers: people who explain what’s happening and why, giving context to the causes of the problem and the solutions
Feel. Engage people’s hearts and humanity to care about the issue, make meaning, & connect to the truth to get or stay involved
Artists. Art as resistance. Those who seek to oppress know the power of art, so they censor art that challenges the worldview they want to impose. Authoritarians want control over everything, and art is the hardest thing to control.
Storytellers
Inspire. Give meaning to the fight and help people see alternatives
Storytellers
Visionaries - illuminate and articulate the visions of other possible systems
Caregive. Help ensure everyone in your local community is safe and thriving
Mutual aid
Plan. Orchestrate actions and responses (events, strategize tactics & solutions, forecast & prepare for what’s coming).
Using the existing channels and pathways for change
Calling, texting, emailing your representatives
Litigators. Many orgs and entities are working to slow down this administration’s actions through litigation.
Policy makers and lobbyists
Organizers (of boycotts, protests, events, labor unions, etc)
Coordinators
Implementers of solutions
Scalers of solutions
Refuse & resist cooperation
Opt out of participating in oppressive structures you can afford to opt out of
Vote with your dollar, participate in economic boycotts
Rally/amplify. Engage people, gather them, rile them up.
Coalition builders
Noise makers
Influencers and those with a platform
Attend protests
No matter which role(s) you take on, make sure to do it out loud and in public. More on that in the next post.
Solitary actions
List of 30 specific actions any individual can take right now, across the spectrum of role categories.
Organized actions
Organized actions includes joining organizations and participating in groups. Deploying the power of the masses depends on being organized in collaborative groups. The importance of building a broad, inclusive coalition can’t be overstated.
It doesn’t have to be one or the other (solitary or organized actions); there’s power in both. In fact, we should all engage in some of both.
Where to start
Start here:
Reflect on the resistance role categories and think about which you most enjoy. Focus your energy on those things. When the alternative to resisting is as enticing and entertaining as the status quo is for many, it’s unrealistic to think any resistance action will hold your attention unless doing it is actually fun for you. People are motivated by different emotions (justice for some, excitement and fun for others, freedom, innovation, community, tranquility, safety, etc) - find the right one to tap into for you and take actions that provide you that emotional fulfillment. We need people doing all of these types of actions. Resisting oppression is a marathon, not a sprint, and doing things that aren’t aligned with your nature is not a reliably sustainable strategy. For the benefit of all, each of us should be doing what we’re best at, and what’s most aligned with our personality.
Join a group, whether that’s a labor union, mutual aid group, nonprofit, or political organization. Check out this color-coded database of pro-democracy groups you can learn about and join.
I recently heard a stupidly simple and incredibly helpful antidote to overwhelm. A concept Sharon McMahon uncovered in her book, The Small and the Mighty, “doing the next needed thing” is attributed to Virginia Randolph, an American education pioneer from the 1800s. Virginia Randolph proved that any person can make a difference by simply starting with your local community and what’s right in front of you, and just continuously doing the next needed thing. McMahon explains that it actually doesn’t matter so much which actions you choose, or how small they seem, as long as you are taking action.
Rest
In the legacy of Audrey Lorde who said: “Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare,” The Nap Ministry has built an entire framework around the resistive potential of rest.
Rest is also resistance. Don’t forget to balance resistive action with restful resistance.