Big Brother Yet?
The "Normal" is Now Under Threat
It’s understandable to assume that "this isn’t about me": that the NSPM-7 and the Bondi Memo only target individuals holding radical views. What we need to consider is that these directives aren't targeting individual thoughts and beliefs, what they're doing it trying to prevent doing anything about those beliefs.
Our strength, our sense of community, and our ability to participate in a democracy all depend on our ability to gather together with other people and respond to the injustices we see in the world.
The NSPM-7 and the Bondi memo are taking aim at one of our foundational rights: our right to assemble to exercise our freedoms.
In the last article, we explained how NSPM-7 and the Bondi Memo officially redefined political speech as potential "domestic terrorism." This isn’t about "terrorism", it’s about how your everyday beliefs and actions are being framed as "threats" by the state, and especially about being open about those beliefs and gathering together with others who share them.
Just recently the world witnessed the murder of a woman in Minneapolis, Renee Nicole Good. The same day, Kristi Noem declared that the Department of Homeland Security is investigating the event as domestic terrorism, she was referring to investigating Renee Good's actions that day.
How Your "Normal" Beliefs Are Being Targeted
Do any of the following resonate with you?
Belief: LGBTQ+ people deserve to exist and shouldn't be discriminated against
Redefinition: NSPM-7's language defines "extremism on gender" as a "threat"
Implication: If you support the Equality Act or share pride-related content, you could be framed as perpetuating extreme views on gender and against "traditional American views on family and morality".
Belief: Economic inequality in the US is out of control and we should do something about it
Redefinition: The NSPM-7 says that anti-capitalism is one of the "common threads" animating violent conduct, and entities that perpetuate this extremism embrace violence
Implication: If you carried a "Tax the Rich" sign at a peaceful protest, or have discussed how bad income inequality has become and that we should do something about it online, maybe the administration would consider you an extremist.
Belief: I have the right to observe and record ICE when they detain individuals in my community.
Redefinition: The NSPM-7 says that "extremism on migration" is an indicator of a "pattern of violent and terroristic activities".
Implication: If you start filming ICE while they are raiding your neighborhood, or shout that they should stop, the administration will support the use of lethal force against you and label you a "domestic terrorist"
This isn't about "extremists" really, it's about re-framing our desire for justice and equality, real American values, as extreme. At the least it causes you to pause and maybe not share your views, at the most it's "justification" for targeting and directly silencing people or groups.
The line between "reasonable political expression" and "terrorist activity" is now being determined by policies that make that distinction vague and subjective.
How This Connects to Your Daily Life
There's a chance you’ve already crossed the lines being drawn in the NSPM-7.
If you've ever:
- Shared an article about immigration reform on social media (framed as "anti-Americanism" or extremism on migration in NSPM-7)
- Said something critical about law enforcement in a private group chat
- Shared your support for LGBTQ+ rights online (framed as "extremism on gender" under NSPM-7)
The NSPM-7 is trying to draw a line from those discussions and beliefs to "entities...that foment political violence so that law enforcement can intervene in criminal conspiracies before they result in violent political acts" (from the NSPM-7).
The danger is that the administration is using this framework to target people whose beliefs don’t fit their vision of America. While the 1st amendment still stands, having these beliefs is still legal, but what the NSPM-7 says is that those beliefs, and talking about them with others, and organizing around them, is a signal that is indicative of domestic terrorism to the administration.
The administration is building a "comprehensive national strategy to investigate, prosecute, and disrupt entities and individuals engaged in acts of political violence", and they're saying that these beliefs are "common threads animating this violent conduct".
It's Important to Be Aware
At the end of the day, we need to be aware of the picture the administration is trying to paint. These aren't just words posted on Truth Social in the middle of the night, they're official directives from the Executive branch setting the approach that the administration is taking on investigations.
It is critical that we do not comply in advance
We have the freedom of speech in the US, we have the right to assemble and to petition our government, we have the right to observe and document the actions of law enforcement agents, we have the right (and responsibility) to elect leaders who represent us.
Understanding this administration's framework, and what it means for your political speech, is essential. It’s not about "fear", it’s about recognizing what we're up against and being ready to stand up to it.
How does Flock fit into all of this?
This, and the previous, article are setting the stage for an exploration into one of the newer tools that law enforcement is using that has the capability to track us as we go about our daily lives. Flock is a company that makes surveillance cameras that are being installed across the country and there are a large number of them deployed by municipalities in Kent County.
Flock devices are AI-powered cameras that capture and analyze images of all passing vehicles, storing details like your car's location, date, and time. They also capture your car's make, model, color, and identifying features such as dents, roof racks, and bumper stickers, often turning these into searchable data points.
In upcoming posts we'll talk about how this puts a powerful tool in the hands of an administration that seems to be prioritizing identifying and investigating people who speak out against its policies.
Want to continue the conversation?
Join the discussion about this and more on the Kent County Indivisible Discord