“We cannot play ostrich. Democracy just cannot flourish amid fear. Liberty cannot bloom amid hate. Justice cannot take root amid rage. America must get to work. In the chill climate in which we live, we must go against the prevailing wind. We must dissent from the indifference. We must dissent from the apathy. We must dissent from the fear, the hatred and the mistrust. We must dissent from a nation that has buried its head in the sand, waiting in vain for the needs of its poor, its elderly, and its sick to disappear and just blow away. We must dissent from a government that has left its young without jobs, education or hope. We must dissent from the poverty of vision and the absence of moral leadership. We must dissent because America can do better, because America has no choice but to do better.”
— Justice Thurgood Marshall

The Dissent Docket

Headlines from the front lines of dissent

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Dissent Dispatch

defiant views in a Time of Crisis

Dissent Dispatch
Steven T. Wax
Waxing Confidential: First They Came For…
Steven T. Wax

In 2004, I was assigned by the federal court, along with one of my senior assistants, to represent Portland Attorney Brandon Mayfield. He had been arrested on a material witness warrant when he was mistakenly connected by the FBI and US Attorney for Oregon to the March 2004 train bombings in Madrid, Spain. After a furious two weeks of investigation and legal motions, and after the FBI’s assertions about a fingerprint match were debunked, Mr. Mayfield was released.

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Steven T. Wax
Steven T. Wax
Waxing Confidential: What is happening here?
Steven T. Wax

“It Can’t Happen Here,” Sinclair Lewis’ novel that posited an authoritarian takeover of the United States through the electoral process was published in 1936. More recently, a number of scholars have identified steps in what they call the Authoritarian Playbook. These include undermining the rule of law and faith in the electoral process, chilling and punishing dissent, pitting “real Americans” against, “the other,” attacking educational institutions, attacking and co-opting the media, and attacking the legal profession.

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Steven T. Wax

  • “The president of the United States has essentially declared war on the rule of law in America.” ​

    Michael Luttig, former federal judge

  • "To this day, the Government has cited no basis in law for Abrego Garcia’s warrantless arrest, his removal to El Salvador, or his confinement in a Salvadoran prison."

    Justice Sonia Sotomayor

  • "Trump’s latest remarks reveal a vision for America that is as dangerous as it is cruel. Rooted in fear, division, and an effort to dehumanize millions of immigrants."

    Murad Awawdeh, President and CEO, New York Immigration Coalition

  • “These executive orders...threaten the rights of people across the United States and around the world, particularly the rights of already marginalized and vulnerable populations who are disproportionately people of color.”

    Tirana Hassan, Executive Director, Human Rights Watch

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