Show Me Your Papers!

A 1938 German poster used throughout the country but especially in Austria after the Anschluss or the German annexation of Austria. It translates to “One People, One Nation, One Leader!” Last Saturday the United States Department of Labor posted a video that projected the slogans “One Homeland! One People! One Heritage! Remember Who You Are, American!“

A poster placed on “X” by the Department of Homeland Security. The caption read “Protect. Serve. Deport.” This is one of a series of such posters, all depicting white men in heroic and patriotic settings, as part of their “wartime recruitment” effort.

As events in Minnesota continue to spiral out of control, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents and Border Patrol (BP) agents are escalating their response to the peaceful demonstrations protesting the occupation of Minneapolis and St. Paul. Rather than de-escalating the situation and attempting to restore calm, they are using ever stronger tactics that are clearly meant to intimidate and abuse American citizens. There are believed to now be more than 3,000 federal agents in the area. That is more than the entire police departments of the two cities combined. Technically, there are two federal operations under way. One is Operation PARRIS (Post-Admission Refugee Reverification and Integrity Strengthening) aimed at eliminating refugee fraud — in other words, directed at the Somali population in the region. (One might ask why there is not an army of accountants deployed to the city vice ICE.) The other is Operation Metro Surge aimed at combatting “illegal immigration and crime.” As a result, many American citizens are increasingly being assaulted (choke holds, knees to the back or neck, cars broken into and the occupants drug across the ground, not to mention the unprovoked killing of Renee Nicole Good). Yesterday, Trump posted on social media at the end of a long screed aimed at the citizens of Minnesota and the denunciation of President Joe Biden, “FEAR NOT, GREAT PEOPLE OF MINNESOTA, THE DAY OF RECKONING & RETRIBUTION IS COMING!” (All caps in the original. Because, of course….) In fact, the post was meant to intimidate American citizens, not to calm their fears.

The 1930’s style posters I displayed above are only a fraction of those in use by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Labor. They have also taken famous paintings by Norman Rockwell, Thomas Kinkade, Morgan Weistling and other artists and used them, without permission, in posters with words and slogans not intended in the originals, despite protests and condemnation by the families and estates of the artists. It is pure propaganda promoting a vision of America that never existed except in the minds of those yearning for something they never experienced. The images and phrases clearly leave no room for the diverse society we now have in the United States. It subtly, or not so subtly, promotes a “pure” nation of white Christian nationalists with men clearly in charge. All “others” are not welcome. The message to those that protest the deportations and thug like tactics of federal agents is that such people are not true Americans and are in fact, enemies to be defeated, humiliated and brutalized — maybe even rounded up and imprisoned. It is no accident that Renee Good was immediately branded a “domestic terrorist.” There will be no investigation into the shooting by the Department of Justice (DOJ), only into the background of Renee Good and her widow who are accused of being part of a vast left-wing conspiracy to create an insurrection. As a result, at least six federal prosecutors in DOJ resigned in protest.

Wake up America! This is no accident or series of accidental events. This is a concerted effort to display the uninhibited power of the federal government to crush dissent. Support Trump and his policies or be trampled. In my view, the events in Minnesota are a dress rehearsal for ever greater repression leading up to the mid-term elections. Trump’s private para-military force on our streets is getting larger and larger everyday as they grow ever less inhibited in trying to intimidate all of us who do not support them. When they say that there will be no investigation of the shooting, when they pardon all of the January 6th insurrectionists, and they repeatedly tell the thugs in tactical gear that the administration “has their back” they are telling those agents that anything goes and that there will be no accountability. That should scare the bejesus out of all of us.

Recall that shortly after his second inauguration Trump posted on social media that “He who serves his Country does not violate any Law.” He also claimed that he would be a dictator, but “only for one day.” Last week in an interview with the New York Times he explained that he is not bound by international law or anything else. The only thing limiting his power is “my own mind.” Trump is asserting that he has unlimited authority which completely rejects the Constitution and our long political and legal traditions.

There is no law that requires U.S. citizens to always have some form of identification on them to prove that they are citizens. However, that is not stopping ICE and BP agents from demanding proof of citizenship. There are increasing numbers of videos and eyewitness accounts documenting that it is happening. If someone does not look “American” they are likely to be detained, questioned and told to provide proof of citizenship. If they do not have it in their possession at the time, they are arrested and taken away. It is happening with increasing frequency.

The “f word” has been overused in recent years — that is fascism. However, there are several examples in history that are eerily similar to what is happening in our country. Fascism is not some theoretical idea that academics debate. It is a specific political movement that prioritizes the nation over the individual and manifests through nationalism, militarism and the suppression of enemies of the state. Those enemies are particular ethnic groups, religious groups or opponents of the ruling regime. Fascism is a governing structure, it is more than just an idea. A self-declared small group of people claims ultimate authority to run the country. It disavows democratic norms and rejects equal rights under the law. Then the powerful leader fuses the power of the state with the power of big businesses and the military to run the country. The virtue of brute strength is idolized. It includes disdain for the role of women in positions of leadership and fears non-traditional sexual identities. By inventing enemies, declaring national emergencies or acting in the name of national security, their power is used to control the population. Elections are rigged and therefore of little meaning. The media is controlled to feed the population only the propaganda that serves those in power. Other “elites” — academics, journalists, opposition political parties, intellectuals and the rest — are used as targets to enrage the population by claiming that the average person has been tricked out of their share of the wealth and power by those elites.

“You’ll never take back our country with weakness, you have to show strength and you have to be strong.” “We fight like hell. And if you don’t fight like hell, you’re not going to have a country anymore.” From Trump’s speech to his supporters on 6 January 2021.

I do not think it is inevitable that we will fall into the depths of a fascist society, but the Trump regime is sure trying to get there. Increasingly, everyday people are pushing back. I think that pushback will only grow, but it is not going to be easy to unseat the regime in power. Most importantly, that pushback must be peaceful, calm, but unyielding. The Trump regime is looking for an opportunity to crack down even more and in more areas. As the DHS army grows, more cities will be targeted. Do not be fooled by the propaganda. Thank goodness for cell phones — a statement I did not think I would make — because the videos and pictures are the easiest and best way to counter the propaganda. Stay safe out there.

“The party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.” George Orwell in the novel 1984.