Will our Dissent Make a Difference?
With No Kings on the horizon, one question demands to be answered.
With No Kings on the horizon, one question demands to be answered: What difference does it make?
When our news feeds swell with videos of mothers ripped from their cars to be arrested on the curb of their children’s schools or of protesters dragged by their arms across the ground by agents, our throats cannot help but constrict.
Make no mistake—these are dark times. As Anne Frank wrote, “Terrible things are happening outside. At any time of night and day, poor helpless people are being dragged out of their homes.”
Yet, and I say this with all sincerity, we have reason to hope.
So, today, less than 96 hours from October 18, let us reflect, and answer the question, Has it and will it make a difference?
In doing so, I believe we will discover the hope necessary to weather what lies ahead.
THE RULER
In written works, as well as a short video produced by
, Erica Chenoweth outlines four keys they observed when studying successful nonviolent revolutions. They are:Numbers & momentum
Loyalty shifts in key pillars of support
Resilience and discipline in the face of oppression
Use of a variety of nonviolence methods
If these keys sound familiar, they have been shared in multiple videos, including my own article in early August.
The future is not written; however, I believe these keys can be a ruler against which we can measure our dissent. So, how does it measure up?
NUMBERS & MOMENTUM
Are our numbers growing? Yes, and they are evolving.
While the number of planned and advertised weekly protests has risen modestly since August, the number of pop-up actions have increased significantly.
In cities such as Chicago and Portland, protests in the thousands have sprung up in days. The mobilization around Prop 50 in California has also spread nationwide, drawing thousands of volunteers. And beyond the national headlines, hundreds of local groups have launched actions within hours or days in response to the presence of I.C.E. or other concerns within their community.
ABC’s cancellation of Jimmy Kimmel Live! demonstrates this point as well. Within days of Disney’s announcement, millions had canceled subscriptions and vacations. People contacted their local stations and, in turn, local advertisers. Protests popped-up at Disney Studios, ABC studios, and Disneyland. In less than one week, Sinclair and Nexstar had restored Kimmel’s show.
These are symptoms of a healthy movement. The actions in the first half of 2025 laid the foundation. Through them, our movement developed resistance muscle, built community, and recruited organizers, creating a more robust and better focused response.
Our movement is not perfect, and still evolving, but its momentum is hastening onward.
LOYALTY SHIFTS IN KEY PILLARS OF SUPPORT
Authoritarianism stands on the shoulders of power. Institutions like the military, education, faith, and the media are its legs. Without their compliance or support, the regime will tumble.
Early in 2025, institution after institution bent the knee. Media outlets, universities, and even democratic leadership caved.
As the summer faded and welcomed the fall, a tide began to turn. In August, Texas Democrats broke quorum, which spurred boldness in other states. Governor Gavin Newsom and Governor JB Pritzker stepped into the national stage. Mayors have also entered the ring. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass called the raid of MacArthur park “outrageous and un-American.” In recent weeks, Oregon’s leadership has followed suit.
The cracks are spreading.
From Texas State Representative Nicole Collier refusing to submit to her unlawful demands to George Stephanopoulos cutting to a commercial during a tense interview with Vice President Vance, pillar after pillar is cracking.
Religious leaders are standing on the front lines, taking pepper balls and rubber bullets to the head. They’ve been arrested defending a Black History Matter mural and for demanding justice for immigrants. Even Pope Francis rebuked the Trump administration, calling its treatment of immigrants inhumane.
Veterans have begun to stand. Across social media, thousands of active and retired service members have posted pictures of themselves in uniform captioned, “My Antifa uniform.” In September, Lt. Col. Anthony Aguilar and Capt. Josephine Guilbeau disrupted a Senate confirmation hearing to protest the genocide in Gaza. Lastly, Oregon National Guard Adjutant General Alan R. Gronewold recently stated that the Guard had two purposes. “One, to defend America, and two, to protect Oregonians. And so by serving in this mission, they will be protecting any protesters at the ICE facility.”
The pillars have not fallen, but the weight of injustice is causing them to shudder..
RESILIENCE & VARIETY
The final two keys I will take together.
In spite of increased violence against protesters, the people are holding fast to their commitment to nonviolence.
When I.C.E. lobbed chemical weapons into a neighborhood near a school, over 500 community members organized to ensure the safety of their children and families on school grounds. Over 100 schools are now staffed with volunteers ready to lend aid, offer information, and keep a watchful eye.
Words like “riots” and “violence” have been fired at protesters. Despite this incendiary rhetoric, our movement has not devolved into chaos. Fresh, creative, disruptive dissent is blossoming on city corners and country lanes.
In the Windy City, students have staged walk-outs and crowds of thousands have flooded the streets. The resistance in Illinois is refusing to devolve into violence. They are holding strong.
Across the country, Portland is demonstrating the variety within our dissent. From naked bike rides to inflatable costume brigades, their resistance is irreverent. It’s a case study in the strength of nonviolence through whimsy. It’s disrupting the narrative meant to stoke fear through humor.
Walk-outs, sit-ins, civil disobedience, I.C.E. documentation, mutual aid, and other forms of dissent are on the rise. When the administration blusters, the resistance pushes back with increasing speed and focus.
Though I have no crystal ball, the movement against authoritarianism is on the rise. The examples I have cited are the tip of the iceberg, depicting a mere fraction of the daily resistance every day people are waging.
We the people have power. And though there is much more to be done and though our numbers must grow, we are on the right path.
Press on. And, on Saturday, I will see you in the streets.
The next seven weeks are consequential and will require a united front to have maximum impact: No Kings 2 (Oct 18); The Fall of the Regime Mass Mobilization (beginning Nov 5); and Blackout the System, 2nd Wave (Nov 25-Dec 2). Let’s bring this Regime to its knees, together!
I’ve seen all these things happening, and they are hopeful signs of progress. No one can predict the future, but I choose to stand with determination to save our democracy. See you in the streets! Thanks for all you do.