Join the Revolution
I never thought this little newsletter sent to 1,800 friends would dip into politics. But, as we all know by now, this isn’t politics – it’s a coup by a dictator. We’re starting a revolution. And this doesn’t have to be just a group of my friends; it can be a small part of a growing movement that resists the tyranny and the destruction of our country.
I went to Washington on January 20th to protest the inauguration. The protestors could only legally assemble far away from the capitol. A few hundred of us gathered for talks at MLK Park and then marched down to Dupont Circle. The main issue at that time was the fate of the Palestinians. On the way back to the train station, I came up to the fenced off and heavily guarded area around the capitol. It was somewhat surreal…empty, but with groups of Proud Boys and other red-hats roving around the city they had just conquered. One group outside the fence was using a bullhorn to shout down a lone woman standing in front of them carrying a sign for transgender rights. She just stood there like the lone man in front of the tanks in Tiananmen Square. I came home trying my best to battle a feeling of hopelessness.
On March 14th, I went to Washington again for a protest and returned home with some confidence that we can defeat this dictator. In less than two months in office, Trump has alienated almost every demographic in the country (and internationally), and this rally reflected that. There were folks from NIH who saw the devastation of funding cuts. There were government workers who had just been fired. Veterans were there, many in uniform, who are offended by Trump calling them suckers and losers when they fought for our freedom. Seniors were there worried about Medicare. We heard a moving talk from one of the capitol police who got assaulted during the insurrection on January 6th. He was protecting Congress – the same people who refuse to protect us now. There were many more issues at this rally and several thousand protesters. And we were on the National Mall right in front of the capitol. A lone Trump supporter ventured into the crowd with a red hat and large flag. He was chased out of the rally by a mob of angry protesters. Unlike the Proud Boys armed with guns, our mob was armed with facts and anger that this guy’s vote helped bring down democracy. I returned from this event feeling more energized but still realizing the uphill battle.
In my years in start-up companies, I’ve been through several periods where optimism was overshadowed by the hill you had to climb. Many times as I went down to the subway on my way to work in Philly, I’d see a homeless person on the steps with his possessions scattered around and a half-eaten sandwich on the floor. On particularly stressful days, mostly when I had no idea how I was going to keep the company alive, I would turn to him and under my breath say “save me a seat.” I feel like that’s the attitude of many of us right now as we get boxed into a new world devoid of the freedoms we had just months ago. Many of us wonder if (or when) our research funding will dry up. Or maybe it already has. Some wonder if they’ll have a job. Older folks like me wonder if social security will keep coming. We see a graduate student “disappear” because he spoke out against the carnage of the Palestinians and we wonder who’s next. Columbia can’t support this man’s rights or they will lose millions in funding. Penn’s funding is dangled in front of them because of a transgender athlete, and a doctor from Brown is deported because she is a suspected terrorist due to photos on her phone. Most of us see through this charade and know the terrorists are not in the populace but rather in Washington, but we are too scared to be who we need to be right now.
So what do we do? The answer to that changes by the day, but there are two things I believe are effective at this point (and I’d love to hear your suggestions).
The first is to resist every move they make towards an oligarchy. We can’t remain in our ever-decreasing comfort zone and expect things to change. But as the protests in DC get larger (which they will), Trump will designate protesters as terrorists and targets and it may not be safe. I recommend thinking globally but acting locally. Get to know your local representatives and make sure they get the message. Pick one or two causes important to you (research funding, vaccines, education, etc.) and focus on them. Local interim elections are usually poorly attended. Follow them and gather your like-minded friends to make sure anti-oligarch candidates get elected. These elections are generally under the radar of the Musk money, but they add up to a lot of elected officials who can help the cause. Advise your students on visas to lay low so they don’t “disappear,” as is happening now. Join https://indivisible.org/ or other groups to find peaceful rallies near you. Get your news from independent sources. Start a quiet revolution. Remember, there are more of us than there are on his side.
Another thing we can do is educate people. As clinicians, everyone who comes into a hospital is a potential student. Tell them how funding has made medicine in the U.S. some of the best in the world and that they are benefiting from it. Without that funding we will not make progress. As most of us know, good rehab after a TBI is key to a good outcome, but access to long-term rehab is limited to those who can afford it. Tell TBI families the government could afford to pay for this rehab if billionaires paid their fair share of taxes. And remind them not to listen to the government propaganda on vaccines;educate them as to their effectiveness. We need to counter the brainwashing from X and Fox News…one brain at a time.
I’d love to hear your thoughts on how you are dealing with the downfall of democracy, funding cuts, and what you think we can do to bring some normalcy back to our lives.
Join the revolution!
