There has been much talk about not obeying in advance in the face of fascist executive orders, and much (rightful) condemnation of corporations and organizations (and elected lawmakers…) who have the power to disobey instead rolling over meekly. Creator “Landon Talks,” who provides hilarious education on the peculiarities of Southern lingo and social norms often notes that the whole thing is a politeness contest. It certainly feels like that’s what’s happening when you see folks in Congress shrug their shoulders and confirm goon after goon instead of stealing bills or breaking out in a traditional chant. Instead of doing something to say: this is not business as usual and we won’t act like it is.
For the rest of us, those with less power, the calculation can feel more murky. I’m feeling a tension between self-censoring and being strategically covert. The terrain is shifting rapidly and freedoms that have been more or less guaranteed are tilting heavily to the “less guaranteed” end of the meter. There is a line to ride between not obeying in advance and being naïvely conspicuous. But when you don’t know where the line is, where you go from taking a stand to painting a target on your back, it’s easy to want to pull back. And when I reach this point on the hamster wheel, a voice screams: that’s exactly what they want.
When FOSTA passed in 2018, its intentional vagueness (and unconstitutional retroactive application) caused a lot of websites to shut down, increase censorship, or stop producing content and spreading information. It’s what’s called a chilling effect: scare people into censoring themselves. Boom. The work of authoritarians halfway done. As of the first mandated report on the law in 2021, it had resulted in one lonely prosecution of trafficking. However, it was very successful at inflicting financial harm and increasing precarious and dangerous conditions for sex workers.
The part that I keep circling back to is that they will continue to redraw the line as it suits them. This was highlighted starkly in this week’s raid of The Educational Bookshop in Jerusalem and the arrest of its owners for “incitement.” While we haven’t yet had military raids on bookstores in the U.S., this is the direction we are headed. Suppressing knowledge is #1 in the faschy playbook. If you are someone who is indignant over the hypocrisy—I see you, you’re right, and—you’re wasting your energy. We are well past the point of attempting to reason with or shame authoritarians. You’ll be sitting alone at that debate table while they continue smashing.
So shall we not sell books? Shall we not spread knowledge? HELL NO. Yesterday was the Jewish holiday of Tu B’Shvat: the new year of the trees. It marks the stirring of the sap beginning to rise in the trees. The topside world has been sparse and bare: dark branches encased in ice, dormant bushes playing dead, seeds sleeping under the snow. Underneath the earth though, it is a cacophony of connection: roots thrust into soft earth, worms form the soil into vast highways, the contracting and heaving of freezes and thaws brings long ago buried seeds to the surface.
Each year we discover more and more about the expansive network of roots and mycelium that allows forests to convey information, to protect, to provide, to survive. This vital knowledge is disseminated out of view, its transmission mysterious and silent. The trees transform it accordingly: producing buds, leaves, blossoms, fruit—the results that are visible to us, that give us hints about what has been talked about in the dark. That give us hope in the irrepressible cycle of life and death.
So, here is an invitation: imagine yourself a tree. Roots anchoring down, seeking knowledge, connecting with others doing the same. Creating networks to share information, warn of danger, store up resources in case of drought or fire. Silent and safe, buried deep. The connections invisible, but the topside manifestations lush and lovely. Let us become beacons of possibility while we protect our sources of strength. I believe this is how we ride the line.
Tomorrow (2/15) is the final day to enter the raffle to support Fedaa! Some wonderful artists have donated a lovely gift basket—buy your ticket(s) to get a chance to win!