Stacey Abrams on Trump Pushing Our Country into Authoritarianism & Being a Black Woman in Politics. Jimmy Kimmel Live
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2M16NVCtfXk
By Natalie Williams
A Summary:
Stacy Abrams explains the Ten Steps to Autocracy –
- Winning an election – the last one he will ever have.
- Expansion of Executive Powers; President decides that he wants more than he is supposed to have.
- Make Congress Complicit, weakening them.
- Neuter the Judiciary; for example, the Supreme Court gives him unfettered powers, and saying that they do not have the ability to stop things.
- Fire all of the people who know how to make government work; gutting the civil service. This has the effect of having people forget how things used to be properly run. For example – your social security checks stop coming, and the CDC does not report on diseases anymore. And, put in place loyalists who be directly responsive to the President in high places like the FBI; to go after your enemies, the Judiciary and the Department of Defense – to signal their evil plans, bidding
- Break how we communicate; by criticizing the media, and creating your own echo chamber of propaganda. Trump calls his social media “Truth Social”, but he lies.
- Blame someone for the broken government, and for the broken promises. For example; “DEI” [ Diversity, Equity and Inclusion]. Go after the vulnerable, the dispossessed, whatever community where you don’t think power should be.
- Eliminate anyone who could help them. Sue pro bono law firms, philanthropies who fund things they do not like, colleges and universities that could teach something they should know.
- Private Violence – to quiet dissent; bring in the Marines, National Guard, kidnapping people…
- Decide that there won’t be new elections because everyone is too afraid, too poor, broken or complicit.
Stacy Abrams gives credit to: Kim Shaffel; a professor at Princeton – who came up with the Framework; which she adapted. And, to the Robert F. Kennedy Foundation.
We can fight back. We have power, so protest. We have each other.
When they slash SNAP and other needed benefits; check on your neighbors…
Tell the truth, do not let the propaganda win. They tell a lie so often that it sounds like the truth. We tell the truth once, and if we do not get applause, we stop. We must continue to tell the truth to remind ourselves that we are entitled to the truth.
We have to believe in what democracy is.
We are not in this alone. The most effective thing they do is isolate us. Convincing us that we do not have common cause is harmful.
When we hold to our truth, believing that Democracy must deliver. That is when we fight back. That’s when we win.
They win when we are too numb, or too afraid to act.
Guest host Anthony Anderson asks for her to respond to the attacks – as Black Woman
Going back to Step 7 –
They go after communities that will go against them – Black women, Immigrants, The LGBTQ community. We see that transgender children are being scapegoated.
The Bible tells us to take care of the poor, the needy and the stranger – not to kidnap them.
As a Black Woman – I have a responsibility to speak up for everyone else because – they are coming for me first… And they are coming for me next.
Politics – We must hold on to what we deserve. There enough of us to change the outcome of elections, and the outcome of power.
In Texas, they slashed the National Weather Service; and now there are deaths.
We can change the outcome of elections, and the outcome of power.
