The Parade Is the Point. And the Silence Is Permission.
"If you want to see the future of a nation, pay attention to its parades."
— anonymous
The Parade Is the Point. And the Silence Is Permission.
Donald Trump infamously watched from the Oval Office as a violent mob he incited attacked the U.S. Capitol. He let it happen. For hours. While police officers were beaten, lawmakers fled for their lives, and the flag of insurrection replaced the flag of the Republic, he sat back—unmoved, entertained, in command.
That was the preview.
Now, in full view, he is staging the next act—a military parade on his birthday, designed to center himself as the victor, the savior, the untouchable. This is not a celebration of country. It is a coronation of ego. And the symbolism is no accident. The timing is no accident. The danger is no longer abstract.
To mistake this parade as mere theater is to ignore history.
Every dictator, every authoritarian movement, has used the same tools: public pageantry, military might, and the silencing of democratic dissent. What begins as spectacle always ends as suppression.
Trump has already waged war on every sector that upholds democratic freedom:
- Academia—mocked and dismantled
- Science—denied and politicized
- Media—relentlessly undermined and labeled the enemy
- Art and culture—dismissed, defunded, and feared
- Education and journalism—treated as threats, not assets to democracy
These are not spontaneous outbursts. They are deliberate strikes in a long campaign—a plan that has been in motion for over a decade. It began with the erosion of public trust in core institutions:
- Casting doubt on elections
- Sowing fear about the safety of the ballot box
- Discrediting the press
- Breaking the unwritten norms of civility, shared truth, and public service
These are the basic threads of a pluralistic and constitutional democracy. And they have been pulled, one by one, until the fabric itself is at risk of collapse.
His betrayal of Vice President Mike Pence—who refused to unlawfully overturn the election—is not just a political rift. It was a public warning: loyalty is demanded, not earned. Disagreement will be punished. That message has only grown louder, more threatening, more violent.
From Hungary to Haiti, Turkey to North Korea, we’ve seen this play out. The names change. The uniforms shift. But the tactics are the same. Consolidate power. Rewrite truth. Silence dissent. Parade the illusion of strength in place of freedom.
Let me be clear:
This is not about Donald Trump’s personality.
It’s not about red or blue. Left or right. This is about what happens when a single individual—regardless of party—begins to dismantle checks and balances, rewrite reality, and demand absolute loyalty.
To reduce this crisis to Trump alone is to miss the point entirely—and to repeat the fatal strategic error that has weakened our political imagination and fractured our civic trust.
This isn’t about a man.
It’s about a moment.
And the consequences of what we do—or fail to do—in it.
We are not watching history repeat itself—we are watching it rehearse, with clearer choreography and fewer guardrails than before.
So what now? We act. And we act together.
Trump’s first 100 days have shown us exactly how far he is willing to go—defying the courts, dismissing the rule of law, and prioritizing personal power over national well-being. That was the test. This parade is the next move.
We must not fund our own undoing.
We must ensure our tax dollars are not used to bankroll the dismantling of our most sacred democratic values.
Here’s what we can do—right now:
- Call your representatives. Demand they vote against any allocation of funds for this military display.
- Write letters. Use email, phone calls, and yes—postal mail—to flood their offices with visible, documented objection.
- March. Assemble at local and state capitols to demonstrate that this is not business as usual. This is a turning point.
- Unify. We've marched for Black lives, for women’s rights, for science and immigration. This moment demands no less—and perhaps even more.
- Speak out. Share this message. Name the danger. Don’t let this be normalized.
Because if we fail to act now, we will not be able to say we didn’t see it coming.
We will only be able to say we chose not to stop it.
History is watching. So are our children all across America.
The question is no longer whether Trump will go too far.
The question is whether we will go far enough to stop him.
What You Can Do Now
If this message resonates, don’t just close the tab. Share it. Act on it. Speak up. Please don't ignore or take this moment lightly.
- Forward this post to five people who care about democracy but might feel alone in their concern.
- Contact your representatives—yes, today. Tell them your tax dollars should not fund authoritarian theater.
- Subscribe to The Margins & The Mirror to stay informed, inspired, and connected to a wider civic conscience.
- If you can, support this work financially. Independent voices need community to stay loud and clear.
Because democracy doesn’t disappear in a headline.
It disappears in silence. In delay. In disbelief.
And we don’t have time for any of those.
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