Authoritarianism

Lessons On Fighting For The Climate Under Authoritarianism

October 22, 2024 Alessandra Bergamin, Waging Nonviolence. Strategize! Authoritarianism, climate crisis, Climate Justice, The Philippines

In 2013, in the devastating wake of Typhoon Haiyan, Yeb Saño began a two-week hunger fast. Saño, then a diplomat and the head of the Philippines delegation at the U.N. climate talks in Poland, had watched as one of the most powerful tropical storms in history obliterated his hometown of Tacloban. Just a few days after the typhoon, a weeping Saño declared to the delegates in Warsaw that he would not eat again until meaningful climate progress was made. But the fast, which Saño now also calls a hunger strike, was not just a political move.

The Slide Into Authoritarianism

August 28, 2024 John Kiriakou, Consortium News. Educate! Authoritarianism, Journalism, Press Freedom, Richard Medhurst, State Repression

All of us who care about civil liberties, civil rights, human rights and freedom of the press have had a front-row seat lately to a slide toward what can only be described as authoritarianism. The governments of the U.S., U.K. and even Canada have been working hard, sometimes in a coordinated fashion, to silence dissenting voices. The governments’ tactics have been heavy-handed, to say the least. Most recently, journalist Richard Medhurst was arrested last week by British authorities. Richard, who is one of the loudest and most important voices in support of human rights for Palestinians, was arrested at Heathrow Airport. Detaining a journalist is not terribly unusual in the U.K., unfortunately.

Anti-Trump Anxiety Ignores History

June 23, 2024 Nat Parry, Consortium News. Educate! Authoritarianism, Democrats, Elections, Fascism, Joe Biden, Liberals, Trump, US Imperialism

With President Joe Biden’s poll numbers tanking, American liberals are doubling down on what they apparently consider the best hope for his re-election: a strategy that relies heavily on whipping up fears of a dictatorship led by Donald Trump — warning that he would not only trample constitutional rights but likely imprison his political opponents. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) recently raised this specter on a podcast called “On with Kara Swisher,” openly fretting that President Trump would throw her in jail if he wins the November election. “I mean, it sounds nuts,” she said, “but I wouldn’t be surprised if this guy threw me in jail.”

Ariel Henry: An Itinerant Ex-Prime Minister Without A Country

March 8, 2024 Kim Ives, Orinoco Tribune. Resist! Ariel Henry, Authoritarianism, Haiti, Puerto Rico, Social Movements

Since arriving in New York from Nairobi, Kenya on Sat., Mar. 2, former de facto Prime Minister Ariel Henry has been trying to get back to Haiti. But Haiti does not want him. He spent several days in Manhattan, but no commercial flights could fly him and his large entourage to Haiti because the Port-au-Prince airport was closed after gunfire hit an Avolon charter jet bound for Cuba on Thu., Feb. 29. (No one was injured, and the damage was minimal.) Over the weekend, Henry asked Washington to provide him with a military plane and soldiers to accompany him back to Haiti.

How The Right Hijack Class Analysis

August 12, 2023 Ekaterina Cabylis, Orinoco Tribune. Strategize! Authoritarianism, Extreme Right, Fascist, Immigrants, Injustice, misinformation, Neoliberalism, Populism, Working Class, Xenophobia

The alt-right sometimes uses sneaky methods to promote their ideas without directly showing their extremist views. For example, people like Jordan Peterson may talk about controversial topics in a way that sounds academic and respectable. They might use coded language to appeal to certain groups without openly expressing extreme beliefs. They focus on divisive issues like gender pronouns and political correctness to get attention and draw people in. Some of them might act like they are being attacked or silenced, so they seem like defenders of free speech. They may also talk to or associate with groups linked to the alt-right, even if they don’t openly support extremist ideas.

Tunisians Protest Authoritarian Moves By President Kais Saied

March 24, 2022 People's Dispatch. Resist! Authoritarianism, Elections, Mass Action, Tunisia

This past weekend, protests calling for the resignation of President Kais Saied were organized in Tunisia’s capital Tunis. Protesters also rejected the online consultation poll started by the current interim government in January to invite public suggestions and amendments after the president announced the holding of a referendum in July to replace the current constitution with a new one. General elections governed by the new constitution are scheduled later in December. On Saturday March 19, a major left opposition party, the Workers’ Party of Tunisia organized a rally on Habib Bourguiba street in central Tunis in defiance of the decision of the governor to ban protest actions on the street. They also condemned President Saied’s moves to consolidate authoritarian, individual rule.

September 7th: The Greatest Crime

September 8, 2021 Marcelo Zero, Brasil Wire. Educate! Authoritarianism, Brazil, Fascism, Jair Bolsonaro

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro just appropriated Brazil’s September 7, Independence Day holiday for his own political purposes. If he had appropriated Rio’s Cristo Redentor statue or Petrobras state petroleum company, the crime would have been less egregious. September 7th is supposed to be a great civic festival that includes all Brazilians, regardless of party colors or ideological preferences. But this year, it will will be an exclusive manifestation of the bolsonaristas in support of their “Myth” and, even worse, in defiance of or even attacking democratic institutions. There are a lot of warnings about avoiding the riots, but the big riot has already happened without a single person taking to the streets. By appropriating Independence Day, Bolsonaro just broke the Constitution, the law, tradition and the rules of pluralist democracy.

‘We Will Defend Democracy In Ecuador’

November 30, 2020 Progressive International. Educate! Authoritarianism, Democracy, Ecuador, Elections

In countries like Ecuador, Bolivia, Colombia, and Chile, popular movements have risen to express their discontent and demand a new economic model — only to be met with street violence, government repression, and coup d’etats. In Ecuador, the rise of authoritarianism can be seen in the actions against the electoral opposition. In August — less than 24 hours after the National Electoral Council (CNE) officially called elections — the governing forces attempted illegally and unconstitutionally to eliminate the Movimiento Fuerza Compromiso Social, list 5 that had sheltered the political force of the Citizen Revolution.

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