An ugly monster doesn’t just magically appear, it needs an invitation. Similarly, the footprints of an authoritarian regime become evident when deeply rooted democratic voices stand squashed under its wheels. Unsurprisingly, the first victim was a Palestinian activist who was suddenly erased from his residential space at a university by Department of Homeland Security agents. This expulsion wasn’t random, rather it was a well-planned move executed at the command of the White House.
Subsequently, a postdoc detainee experienced the same fate when he was intercepted by the authorities on his way home. His only crime seemed to be his marriage to a Palestinian-American woman and the accusation sprouted by a DHS spokesperson of propagating misleading information. The smear campaigns skillfully crafted in the online world made these inferential scapegoats an easy prey. All four had a single commonality – none of them were US citizens.
Let’s fast forward to March 17, when the Justice Department decided to amplify its undemocratic legacies by announcing a specialized task force. Equipped with FBI agents and data analysts, the task force’s remit stretches to investigate presumably treacherous activities by both citizens and non-citizens.
The cracking whip against individuals bravely expressing solidarity toward Palestine was not a mere coincidence, but an evidently calculating move. Like predatory bullies on a playground, the defenseless were opportunistically targeted, a clear violation of the promised freedom of expression. The complicit silence and active participation of nearly every political, educational, and cultural institution have only stoked these authoritarian fires.
As the persecution escalated, the door to the realm of authority found itself repeatedly ajar. The barbaric muting and the boorish lack of liberalism reflecting from the scourge of this movement have been unmissable. Against the backdrop of this muzzling, a remarkable unity among the classes was strangely evident in a country that incessantly talks about its deep divisions.
Titans from all walks of life blindly played their parts, bolstering their groups’ legitimacy while conveniently pushing the protesters under the bus. Almost universally, these repressive measures were at play. It wasn’t about democratic voices or reasonable opposition, it was solely dictated by a twisted perception of how the common folk views their puppeteers.
A clear weaponization of sentiments was at play, cleverly manipulated to enhance the power of few. Their expressions of remorse over previous actions were nothing but a farce, for the vindictiveness proceeded without restraint. Several months before information about abusive liaisons of high-ranking executives in the tech industry surfaced, they had blithely offered their services to militant groups. Paradoxically, they outrightly dismissed their own employees daring to exhibit support for Palestinians.
In an exceptional display of unenforced censorship, Congress took the ultimate strike by banning the lone major social media platform that did not gag the news flow from Palestine. Observing these series of events, it seems like we are living in a tutorial period where survival tactics under an authoritarian state are involuntarily being taught – silence, self-censorship, and absolute submission.
These sorry state of affairs have seen the substantial involvement of many organizations in bolstering this authoritarian trend. The unveiled corruption unveiled speaks volumes about the true intentions of these so-active bodies, leaving us in a quandary about the best route forward. Amidst these unethical circumstances and bereft of uncorrupted bodies, the true meaning of ‘the people’ remains elusive.
These uncertainties compel us to delve deeply into the very nature of our society, and to question our continuity on this path. The inherent query becomes impossible to evade: what indeed does the term ‘people’ signify? In a society spiralling towards an autocratic rule, does the term lose its democratic essence? Are we even asking the right questions?
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