New York – Millions of us see the scheduled inauguration of Donald Trump with fear and disgust.
Under the slogan “Make America Great Again”, Trump has viciously attacked Mexicans and Muslims, threatening to register and deport millions. He incites fear and hate. Already Trump’s supporters are whipped into a frenzy and the hate crimes inflicted against Muslims soar in our communities.And then there are the lists! The personal information on hundreds of thousands of immigrants on NYC ID that were supposed to be destroyed by December 31 now ordered to be saved last week as a result of efforts by two Trump supporting legislators on Staten Island. Or the personal info given for DACA, and more – information about us that many of us thought was safe, now all could get into the hands of Trump. All this hangs like a guillotine over our heads as we recall that Hitler too needed his lists – of Jews, of Gypsies, of immigrants, to be rounded up.
And it keeps coming – now his threats to use nuclear weapons and threaten more around the world.
We can’t wait and hope or think that “Know Your Rights” sessions will be enough. Trump has made clear he intends to carry out his fascist program and “legal protections”/rights mean nothing to him and the crew of open fascists, white-supremacist, Muslim haters and war criminals he has brought together for a fascist regime. We have to act now BEFORE this regime officially takes power, isolates and crushes opposition, and moves forcefully to implement its fascist program.
Despite what some say, it is NOT too late! The anger of millions can be transformed into massive resistance to stop this, but only if we act together NOW. Every day matters right now. There is a Plan to prevent the illegitimate and dangerous Trump / Pence regime from coming to power – it depends on many organizations and ordinary people like you getting involved and doing things we have never done before. Including right now:
Join the 2,000 plus people, including people prominent in the arts, science, religion, education, and other spheres who have signed the Call for a Month of Resistance.
Read, Sign as an individual, but also pull your organization to sign on, and spread the Call to Action everywhere, translate it (already in English and Spanish) into Bangla, Arabic, French and Urdu as part of mobilizing the hundreds of thousands of immigrants . A fundraising campaign is now underway to get this Call published in the New York Times and other major media on January 2 or 3.
Come out on New Year’s Eve and say NO to Trump/Pence.
The eyes of the world will be focused on NYC on New Year’s Eve. Immigrants, Muslims and many, many others need to be out there, starting out at Columbus Circle at 8 pm in a festival of “NO!” NO Trump! NO Fascist USA! NO Fascist 2017! NO Muslim registries! NO gathering/preserving personal information on immigrants for round-ups. And more.
Come with your signs and banners, from all of our organizations, and in all the languages we speak, including Spanish, Arabic, Bangla and French – and say together to the eyes of the world – In the name of humanity, all around the world, we say NO to a Fascist America. Starting out at Columbus Circle at 8 pm – let there be a festival of “NO!” NO Trump! NO Fascist USA! NO Fascist 2017! NO Muslim registries! NO gathering/preserving personal information on immigrants for round-ups. And more.
And from there:
January 3 through January 7.Organize decentralized demonstrations and actions around the city and around the county. – Drawing in new forces, different organizations and groupings working together – let’s make clear that we refuse to live in a fascist America and we aim to STOP Trump. For example, organize protests at the court hearing on Staten Island – demanding that the NYC id personal information ALL be destroyed NOW! NO lists of immigrants to target for deportations! NO round-up of immigrants and Muslims! Make plans and proposals. Let’s spread them.
Week of January 16 – 19.Student walk-outs and actions at high schools.
Come to DC starting Martin Luther King Day weekend January 14-16… and don’t leave – culminating on January 20. Millions and millions must pour into the streets, day after day, refusing to leave. In DC and across the country. Be part of mobilizing such a massive and sustained political outpouring that the whole political landscape is dramatically transformed, with every faction within the established power structure forced to respond to our demand — all this could well lead to a situation in which this fascist regime is actually prevented from ruling.
Join me in making this call to Muslims and immigrants and others, join in making this happen. Let’s bring together our ideas, our determination, our creativity and PREVENT this nightmare of a fascist America before it starts.
And then let’s build from there – from hundreds, to thousands, to millions to STOP this fascist Trump/Pence regime before it starts.
– Mazeda A. Uddin
Founder of South Asian Fund for Education, Scholarship and Training (SAFEST)
safest15@gmail.com
646-318-4617
