How We Survive the Next Four Years
Donald Trump looking even more orange than usual.
We officially live in the timeline that has Donald Trump as the 47th President of the United States.
I’m scared. You’re scared. Hell, Joe Biden himself is “greatly concerned,” warning the nation about oligarchy and the consolidation of power. These are frightening times. Here’s how we're gonna get through it, guided by those who have been here before us. You can also watch the video essay version of this article at the bottom.
1. Remember: This isn’t new.
“You think your pain and your heartbreak are unprecedented in the history of the world, but then you read. It was books that taught me that the things that tormented me most were the very things that connected me with all the people who were alive, who had ever been alive.”
—James Baldwin
This is not the first time the world has been a bad place, and that brings me comfort because it means we don't have to figure this out on our own. Fascism has made many appearances throughout history. Germany, Spain, Chile, Japan, Portugal—they've all been here, and they've all defeated their fascist regimes. If it’s been done before, it can be done again. That doesn’t mean it’s going to be quick nor easy, but it means it’s possible. Further, knowing that others have been down this road additionally motivates me to see it through because I know that every time the human race has done this dance, we’ve emerged a little more just, a little more egalitarian, a little more perfect.
2. Ground yourself in community.
“One of the most vital ways we sustain ourselves is by building communities of resistance, places where we know we are not alone.”
—bell hooks
Now is the time to meaningfully invest in your relationships. Text messages? Not enough. Voice notes are barely cutting it. You need genuine in-the-moment interaction. Talk on the phone. Hang out in person. If you can’t afford to go out, host people at your place. If you can’t afford to feed people, tell them to BYO snacks. If you don’t have friends, make some. Tiktok’s shutting down? Use that new free time to hit up the library and join a class or volunteer with a nearby org and make a friend.
Our devices isolate us, and the 24/7 news cycle makes us feel small and helpless. When you feel helpless, you freeze and you recede—you do nothing. That’s what they want. Community will remind you that you're alive and that you have power. It will remind you that love exists, that people are good, and that this world has things worth fighting for.
3. Rest when you need to.
“Anyone who’s interested in making change in the world also has to learn how to take care of herself, himself, theirselves.”
—Angela Davis
A key tool of fascism is inundation and distraction—create so much noise that people don’t have the time or energy to focus on anything, and they check out. Don't let them do it to you. It’s going to sound counterintuitive but the way you avoid checking out forever is by checking out selectively.
Rest is essential. Joy is essential. Constant engagement without breaks leads to burnout, which weakens both individual resilience and the broader movement. That's what they want. To avoid it, you need to rest. Lean into the community we discussed. Watch YouTube videos. Read books that you didn’t order from Amazon. When you rest, you have time to heal; you have time to process; you have time to innovate; time to regroup. Focus on your family, focus on yourself, focus on the things you think are worth fighting for—so when you're recharged and you come back to the fight, you know why you're doing it.
4. Divest.
“Fascism should more appropriately be called Corporatism because it is a merger of state and corporate power.”
—Benito Mussolini
Because fascism isn’t new, that means we have a wealth of history and data explaining why it happens. The math for fascism is very simple: Governments and corporations become greedy and want to keep more wealth for themselves. They can only raise prices so high though, so they start hoarding wealth in more covert ways; wage theft, shrinkflation, cheaper materials. These all contribute to wage disparities and economic inequality. Economic inequality fuels polarization. Why? Because when people can’t pay their bills even though they’re busting their ass, they want to know why. But the 1% will never admit that they’re stealing from you, so they pick a scapegoat. They’ll blame Jews, Black people, gay people, women. They’ll blame progressive policies and then, they’ll manipulate your memories of the past to convince you that it’s true. “Remember how much easier life was before this group was treated humanely? Sounds like everything went wrong once they got rights.”
This is how people become polarized—they are fed fat lies rolled in crumbs of truth.
Our brains are masters of efficiency and by default, your brain is always going to choose the easiest truth. It will always be easier, especially in a country based on racism, to point the finger at a group of people and hate them, rather than realize that an entire system is corrupt, the dream you were sold is a lie, and your entire country needs to be rebuilt from the ground up. People don’t want to have existential crises—they just want to pay their bills.
What does this have to do with divesting? At the end of the day, the 1% wants your money. They want it before you’ve cashed your check and after. You can give them less before; negotiate that raise, ask for more when you get hired. But we have got to stop giving it to them after. The venn diagram of our government and Fortune 500 companies is rapidly becoming a circle. Elon Musk is in the White House. Mark Zuckerberg is wiping his hands of content moderation. These companies power our government but we power these companies. Give them less.
If you can make it instead of buying it, do so. If you can get away with only buying one instead of four, do so. Money talks, and we have proof of this. In Q1 2022, Netflix reported that they lost 200,000 subscribers. It was the first time they’d reported a subscriber loss in over a decade. Even with less subscribers, they did not report a revenue loss. They still had 7.87 billion dollars in revenue. It didn’t matter. Their stock dropped 35%. Why? Because all the one percent cares about is money; keeping their money, growing their money, gaining more money over time.
Divesting from capitalism and corporatism is a way we make a difference. They want power and they want money. Rob them of both. Render them irrelevant. They price gouge and shrinkflate and thieve wages because they can get away with it. By starving them of dollars and attention, we tell them very clearly that we won’t stand for it anymore.
5. Don’t let it happen.
“The world will not be destroyed by evil people but by good people who do nothing to stop it. Hopefully there will always be good people courageous enough to take on the bad guys, this is the only way humanity can hope for salvation.”
—Bangambiki Habyarimana
You’ve heard it before: “It can’t happen here.” But it can. And it is. The way we stop it is not by burying our head in the hand and praying for a miracle—it’s by saying “we won’t let it happen here.”
Figure out what your resistance looks like. It can be small – if your child’s school is teaching that slavery was a choice, teach your children the truth. Do not accept “alternative facts,” do not accept revisionist history. Preserve the truth in all forms, be that independent art or independent news outlets. Get involved with local organizations that offer mutual aid to targeted groups because there will be more groups targeted in the coming years.
Resistance can be larger. It can be protest, it can be boycotts, it can be civil disobedience. If you’re afraid to protest, it can be making and delivering lunch to those who aren’t or offering childcare to organizers. There are many ways to contribute to a community and a cause.
"When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross.”
—Sinclair Lewis
Make no mistake; though we carry hope, we know this will be hard. There will be suppression and state-sanctioned violence. They’re going to paint oppression as freedom by co-opting and bastardizing the very work that has helped so many. We’ve already seen it with the twisting of liberal language, such as the misuse of the word “woke” and labeling the repeal of Title IX as a move for “equality.” People will suffer. But this doesn’t have to be the end. We can and will get through this. We’ve done it before.
Imani Vaughn-Jones
Atlanta-based writer, producer, and actress. Firm believer in active love and the Oxford comma. The world is your oyster — grab some hot sauce.