The Anti-Trump Movement Is Organizing Itself
Published in Die Welt
(Germany) on 31 January 2017
by Alan Posener (link to original)
Trump's decree against the Muslims has led to his opponents showing their resolve on the streets. But the movement's actual challenge is not to deflect Trump's attacks.
After his election and before his inauguration, Donald Trump demanded a "total" entry ban for Muslims. Measured by his promises, his newest immigration decree can be seen as either a sublimation or as a trial balloon. The anti-Trump movement has decided to see it as a trial balloon and to fight it from the start.
Trump's decree is actually not even that harsh. It only applies to seven of 56 countries with a Muslim majority. It is noteworthy that neither Saudi Arabia nor Russia is affected, even though the attackers from 9/11 and from the Boston Marathon were originally from those countries.
At the Risk of Sounding Excessive
Instead, a group that has not produced a single attacker to date is being targeted: Syrian refugees.
Given the lack of communication between the agencies, which lead to precipitate and – as a federal judge found – illegal arrests, one gets the impression that there is a slob operating in the White House.
Certainly the liberal forces already underestimated Trump during the election campaign. They seem to not want to repeat that mistake. They are thus taking to the streets in their hundreds of thousands — even if the protest might look excessive, as if the president had already proclaimed the entry ban for all Muslims.
Trump's Followers Are Not Organized
Trump may call his followers a "movement." So far, this movement is lacking organization. However, the counter-movement is getting organized: States such as California, which show solidarity with “illegal” immigrants from Latin America; cities such as New York and Boston, the mayors of which took to the street to protest the entry decree; the Democratic Party; Hollywood, of course, and the liberal press; and above all the battle-hardened women's and civil rights groups.
Trump is, after all, attacking the cultural changes brought about by these groups since John F. Kennedy's presidency: America's change from a country dominated by white Protestants to a multicultural country, the advancement of women, the acceptance of sexual diversities and concern for the environment.
Demography is on their side. America is getting more colored, more feminine and younger — with or without Trump. However, the actual challenge for the movement is not to deflect Trump's attacks but to convince Trump's followers that they too can be at home in that America.
After his election and before his inauguration, Donald Trump demanded a "total" entry ban for Muslims. Measured by his promises, his newest immigration decree can be seen as either a sublimation or as a trial balloon. The anti-Trump movement has decided to see it as a trial balloon and to fight it from the start.
Trump's decree is actually not even that harsh. It only applies to seven of 56 countries with a Muslim majority. It is noteworthy that neither Saudi Arabia nor Russia is affected, even though the attackers from 9/11 and from the Boston Marathon were originally from those countries.
At the Risk of Sounding Excessive
Instead, a group that has not produced a single attacker to date is being targeted: Syrian refugees.
Given the lack of communication between the agencies, which lead to precipitate and – as a federal judge found – illegal arrests, one gets the impression that there is a slob operating in the White House.
Certainly the liberal forces already underestimated Trump during the election campaign. They seem to not want to repeat that mistake. They are thus taking to the streets in their hundreds of thousands — even if the protest might look excessive, as if the president had already proclaimed the entry ban for all Muslims.
Trump's Followers Are Not Organized
Trump may call his followers a "movement." So far, this movement is lacking organization. However, the counter-movement is getting organized: States such as California, which show solidarity with “illegal” immigrants from Latin America; cities such as New York and Boston, the mayors of which took to the street to protest the entry decree; the Democratic Party; Hollywood, of course, and the liberal press; and above all the battle-hardened women's and civil rights groups.
Trump is, after all, attacking the cultural changes brought about by these groups since John F. Kennedy's presidency: America's change from a country dominated by white Protestants to a multicultural country, the advancement of women, the acceptance of sexual diversities and concern for the environment.
Demography is on their side. America is getting more colored, more feminine and younger — with or without Trump. However, the actual challenge for the movement is not to deflect Trump's attacks but to convince Trump's followers that they too can be at home in that America.
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