The Time for a Pro-Democracy Movement Is Now

The Democratic Party must stop functioning solely as a political party and instead step into its moment in history: to lead a pro-democracy movement capable of confronting this authoritarian threat.

When a sitting President deploys the National Guard against American citizens on our own streets — and then threatens to do the same in cities like Chicago — we must confront a grim and sobering truth: America is crossing the threshold into a police state.

This is not hyperbole. It is not politics as usual. This is the moment when democratic norms are being bulldozed in broad daylight by an autocratic movement hiding behind a red, white, and blue facade. The Republican Party of Lincoln is no more. In its place stands a cult of personality, loyal not to the Constitution, not to the rule of law, but to Donald J. Trump, a man whose every move is designed to consolidate personal power at the expense of our democracy.

What is required now is not just electoral strategy or campaign slogans. We need a resistance rooted in the deepest traditions of American patriotism — one that stands firm for liberty, justice, and the Constitution. The Democratic Party must stop functioning solely as a political party and instead step into its moment in history: to lead a pro-democracy movement capable of confronting this authoritarian threat.

Every elected Democrat — from city council members to Senators — must use their voice, platform, and office to urge the citizens they represent to take to the streets in peaceful protest. This is not about left or right. This is about right and wrong. The call now is for civic courage: to organize mass rallies, peaceful demonstrations, and national days of action in every city and town across this nation.

You can help make this happen by forwarding this to every elected official who represents you with your personal reasons for demanding they stand up now.

As citizens we must put party aside and build a pro democracy network of millions to sound the alarm and take action together I have been working with a small, rag-tag team to launch Sez Us to do just that. You can join at get.sez.us.

Urge everyone you know to reach out to artists, athletes, musicians, and entertainers. They must raise their voices — not just with symbolic gestures, but with the moral clarity and personal risk that defines real leadership. Their platforms can reach the hearts and minds of millions. Now is the time to use them — not tomorrow, not after the election, but now.

Reach out to church and religious leaders. Yes, the church must speak. In 1775, a church steeple in Boston signaled with lanterns the arrival of British troops — one if by land, two if by sea. Today, we need a third lantern, shining from every house of worship across this land — not to warn of a foreign invader, but of a domestic betrayal. The threat is not coming from abroad — it is coming from within, from a President and a party that now kneels in obedience to authoritarianism.

We face an autocratic movement. It will not be defeated by a party, or by the courts, or by a single new leader. It will only be defeated by us. Joining together in the millions in a visible pro democracy movement. You cannot lose faith in our own power to build it. Pass the work, sound the alarm. Send this on to everyone on your email list. To friends, family and yes co-workers. If nothing else, urge them to read this on our Substack.

We cannot lose faith in our power to rally others to our cause and our power to build the pro-democracy movement that will win this fight.

Millions of Americans are with us — spectators who will become patriots. It is up to us to reach them in time.

That time is now.

Stand Up America.

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