The unconstitutional and illegal deployment of the National Guard to enforce civilian law is a clear & present danger to our democracy. Check out our new explainer on what you need to know if the military gets deployed to your city. www.movementlawlab.org/nationalguard #Memphis #NewOrleans #Chicago

Can a president declare martial law on their own? No. The Constitution & federal law do not give the president that power. Even when martial law has been declared in US, its use has been deeply contested. @brennancenter.org explains why the legal limits matter:

The Trump regime has repeatedly threatened to deploy the National Guard. But what does that mean for your community? Know your rights. We break down the key legal questions on the Posse Comitatus Act and the Insurrection Act. #NationalGuard #KYR #TrumpRegime

1/ The U.S. has withdrawn from the UN’s Universal Periodic Review. The US is now on course to be the first country to not deliver a report to the UPR and will become the first nation to refuse to submit a report on their human rights record. What this means:

“When a democracy is designed with this capacity for authoritarianism you’re never more than one election away from its reappearance. That’s not an accident, that’s a design flaw.” We must defend democracy & resist the Trump regime now. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...

📖 this resource from @movementlawlab.bsky.social on what you need to know if the national guard is deployed to your state by the Trump regime. #knowyourrights

“Trump’s attack on elections has only just begun…We must protect them at all costs. If we succeed, we will likely survive this dark period with democracy weakened but intact. If we fail, we may not have a democracy to come home to,” Marc Elias writes.

The United States’ move to authoritarianism will not be overnight, there will be no official announcement. We must recognize the signs & act accordingly to provide fierce pushback, following the lead of local organizers and social justice movements.

1/Fascism is a global story. Orbán in Hungary, Bukele in El Salvador, Putin in Russia, Meloni in Italy. They’ve demonstrated how to hollow out democracy step by step. So what’s the takeaway for the U.S.?

1/ The U.S. has withdrawn from the UN’s Universal Periodic Review. The US is now on course to be the first country to not deliver a report to the UPR and will become the first nation to refuse to submit a report on their human rights record. What this means:

Law is not neutral. Never has been and never will be. Trump’s sidelining of Congress and his twisting of legal theory to consolidate power under the unitary executive theory demonstrates just how critical it is for lawyers to move beyond the sidelines. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

The government is trying to criminalize dissent, plain and simple. Similar to Georgia and #StopCopCity movement, government officials are trying to use conspiracy charges to silent and chill social movements who have every right to exercise their constitutional rights. #authoritarianism

Attacks on the press are attacks on the public's right to know. DHS, LAPD, and other law enforcement must be held accountable for their brazen and repeated violations of the First Amendment.

NEW: The Trump administration has taken over conservative media to crackdown on liberal thought and speech — a move that would have been unthinkable in the past. The Orwellian “Thought Police” is no longer fiction, it’s our new reality, @marcelias.bsky.social writes.

while we knew this already, seeing it actually, finally, officially confirmed is, wow

Trump’s promise to “straighten out” cities like Chicago, Baltimore, or New Orleans echo authoritarian tactics worldwide. This moment is calling for movement lawyers to stand with organizers who know safety comes from dignity, housing, and care. www.wdsu.com/article/dona...

In Chicago,Black-led, immigrant rights’ and grassroot groups built mutual aid hubs, KYR trainings, and fortified sanctuary spaces. Lawyers should take note: authoritarianism is resisted through solidarity, not silence. That’s how we win.

The answer is yes, but we need every sector to come together to resist & be unwilling to cooperate with authoritarian demands. Our legal field must provide legal challenges AND come together en masse to protect civil society and social movements.

@freedcproject.bsky.social: "You have to be able to have dissent in the capital in order to curb authoritarianism. You have to be able to do that and because we are uniquely vulnerable, it is a danger to everyone in this country, and therefore everyone in the world...”

Trump’s plan to keep the military on standby to quash “civil unrest” signals his intent to use force on civil society if they dissent against his violations of rights and the Constitution. Lawyers and organizers are coming together to resist. abcnews.go.com/Politics/tru...

The doc release secured by @democracyforward.org on Trump's agreement with El Salvador reveals just how the Trump regime is exploiting bilateral agreements to expand the borders of the U.S. onto places where it can hide in the dark and avoid legal accountability.

The manufacturing of emergencies & the pretext of crime are signature hallmarks of a dictator. DC is a testing ground for establishing authoritarian rule, but it does not end here. Communities in Chicago & other cities are prepping to fight every step of the way.

Trump’s deployment of troops in cities across the US is not about safety, it’s about blurring the lines of where his power ends. We need to recognize The Authoritarian’s Playbook: normalize occupation, sideline democracy. The Trump regime is manufacturing crises to consolidate power.

“Countless people in the LA area have been grabbed, thrown to the ground, and handcuffed simply because of their looks, their accents, and the fact they make a living by doing manual labor. Today, the Court needlessly subjects countless more to these exact same indignities.” -Justice Sotomayor

Authoritarians use law to punish critics and consolidate power. The FBI’s raid on John Bolton’s home is not just about Trump’s personal feud with one individual. It shows how law enforcement is being weaponized to silence and intimidate the President’s opposition.

No one is saying this. This is Trump priming communities for what’s to come. These last 8 months have shown us what he’s willing to do to usurp the power of local govt and its People. The dictatorial power grab in D.C. is our call to start organizing all sectors against his authoritarian takeover.

We must vehemently oppose federal occupation anywhere, including New Orleans. Trump says the governor wants troops on the ground there, but the people do not.

Community is showing up for each other in D.C. From mutual aid groups to folks conducting ICE watches, folks are doing what it takes to keep each other as safe as possible under the federal government’s violent takeover. Shoutout to groups like @dcmigrantmutualaid.org @freedcproject.bsky.social ✊

We have a Digital Security and Doxxing Prevention Checklist for anyone concerned about digital security and doxxing, whether you're a journalist concerned for yourself or a source, or you're someone organizing in your community to keep your neighbors safe. Also available in Spanish:

Trump said he will direct federal troops into Chicago and Baltimore. The local leaders don't want it. The people living there don't want it. Aspiring dictator Trump is the only person who wants this military takeover. This isn't about safety - it's about control.

"There is no legal, factual or moral justification for President Trump to deploy any military troops or National Guard units here in Chicago." - Joey Mogul, with MLL at yesterday's press conference with @vetsaboutface.bsky.social

The legal profession is at a crossroads. Trump’s power grab has ICE stopping delivery drivers in DC. This is repression, not safety. Lawyers must stand with movements fighting for true democracy. Read our 10 best practices: movementlawlab.org/10best

BREAKING: A federal judge blocks the Trump administration from using military troops in immigration raids or law enforcement operations in California, ruling the President's deployment of National Guard troops in Los Angeles earlier this year violated a federal law.

"I think Americans have sort of wrongly thought that there would be a light-switch moment where sort of everything before that is democracy and everything after that is authoritarianism."

After judges from across the political spectrum found that Trump administration policies were likely illegal or unconstitutional, the Supreme Court has frequently reinstated those policies without any explanation.

🚨Now in D.C. 🚨 “Hey hey, ho ho, millionaires have got to go!”

"Authoritarianism does not operate outside law; it manipulates law until legality and illegality are indistinguishable."

This admin’s brazen efforts to go after legal advocates defending the civil rights & human dignity of the immigrant community is an affront to democracy and a vicious attack on our entire legal community. We must and will not be intimidated into abandoning our commitment to what is right and just.

Journalists writing about Trump's plans to send the National Guard to cities in blue states have to think carefully about how to frame it. The federal government (including the National Guard) call it an anti-crime narrative. But it increasingly feels like that's a pretext for military occupation.

Trump’s ever increasing military presence on U.S. streets allows him to be prepped and ready to deploy the National Guard to quash dissent at a moment’s notice. These latest EOs are a warning sign for all civil society of a regime that is willing to crack down on the rights of its people. 🚨

As the @aclu-dc.bsky.social rightfully points out, what is happening in DC is “an authoritarian maneuver to expand executive power at the expense of local democracy.” Families are heading into a new school year, fearful to step out and into their neighborhood– this is the opposite of safety.

Trump’s dictator power grab in DC is hurting families and hurting the entire DC community. ICE agents are moving through the city asking people for papers, harassing food delivery drivers who are out trying to make a living for themselves and their families. This isn’t safety, it’s a takeover.

The Trump administration's takeover of policing in Washington, D.C., and the deployment of thousands of National Guard troops has led to harassment, illegal street searches and racial discrimination, says activist Keya Chatterjee. https://www.democracynow.org/2025/8/20/dc_takeover

Trump has already declared more emergencies than any president in a single term. This manufacturing of emergencies is him testing his ability to expand – and normalize his abuse of authoritarian power.

"Because civil society organizations exist outside government, we rely on them to fight official abuses of power. That, of course, is exactly why they make such a fine target for the president," former DoJ official Vanita Gupta. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/27/opinion/trump-executive-order.html

For our friends across the country asking how you can help, this one's for you. 🧵 freedcproject.org/allies

We're hiring a Dir. of Global Programs! Are you a well-honed internationalist with an understanding of how shifting global conditions impact the advocacy landscape in the U.S. and transnationally? Do you have significant experience supporting both U.S.-based & transnational movement-led campaigns?

BREAKING: Civil society organizations from around the world urge the United Nations & Organization of American States to stop a secret U.S.-El Salvador prison pact that locks migrants in CECOT, one of the world’s harshest mega-prisons. We were one of the signatories.  (1/6)

The deadline to apply is approaching. Don’t wait until it’s too late to apply for How to Fight! 📌 Applications close April 30. If you’re ready to sharpen your skills and strengthen your impact, now is the time. 🔗 Apply now: www.movementlawlab.org/campaign-strategy

How to Fight: Winning Campaigns in Times of Crisis is a campaign training course to help legal advocates and organizers do more than just support movements. It teaches you how to strategize, anticipate opposition, & strengthen the fight for real victories. www.movementlawlab.org/campaign-strategy