Why now?

On April 15, The People United: A Memoir of Hope and Resistance During Trump’s First Term will be officially released into the world (see the website!). This is a memoir of my time founding and leading Indivisible Montgomery from 2016 to 2021. I’ve addressed why I wrote this book and what we can do in the second Trump term. One question I haven’t addressed: Why now?

More specifically, why, with the second Trump administration terrorizing American cities, deploying the National Guard against civilians, breaking international law with impunity, destroying the public health system, and finding new depths of corruption, amid other horrors, would I want to publish an account of resistance from an arguably less dire time? Seems quaint.

But the current moment is a consequence of the moments that came before it. The flagrant abuses of the second Trump administration are outgrowths of the abuses of the first administration. Similarly, the current resistance to Trump and the GOP agenda has its roots in the resistance to the first Trump administration. To understand the energy behind the No Kings protests or the popular resistance to ICE and CBP, one need only look a few years into the past.

Take, for instance, the federal invasion of Minneapolis-St. Paul. The people of the Twin Cities came together quickly because the underlying infrastructure for community-based resistance already existed. Much like Indivisible Montgomery, Indivisible Twin Cities has been around since the first Trump administration. This group, and others like it, consist of a nucleus of engaged community members who understand the small, consistent actions necessary for effective resistance and the flexible organizational structure that supports those actions. When ICE and CBP came to Minneapolis-St. Paul, the local resistance groups were prepared to take action and provide training to the thousands of others who wanted to get involved. The seeds for effective resistance were planted years ago.

I’m no longer leading Indivisible Montgomery, but I still am connected to the resistance. Putting The People United into the world now is a way to continue my resistance and celebrate the work of the people, past and present, who resist Trump. Importantly, the book conveys a sense of hope. That building our communities and working together can be an effective bulwark against authoritarianism. And The People United is a reminder that, even in dark times, we are stronger together.