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In late October 2024, the landscape was completely distinct. Before the national election, reflective citizens could recognize America's serious imperfections – its inequities and disparity – yet they could still identify it as America. A free society. A place where legal governance carried weight. A nation guided by a honorable and decent official, notwithstanding his older age and growing weakness.

Nowadays, as October 2025 ends, countless Americans hardly identify the land we inhabit. Individuals believed to be undocumented migrants are rounded up and forced into transport, sometimes denied due process. The eastern section of the presidential residence – is being torn down to build a lavish ballroom. The leader is targeting his opponents or perceived antagonists and insisting legal authorities transfer an enormous amount of public funds. Armed military personnel are deployed into American cities under fabricated reasons. The military command, rebranded the Defense Ministry, has practically freed itself of routine media oversight during its expenditure of possibly reaching nearly $1tn from citizen taxes. Institutions, attorney offices, news companies are yielding due to presidential intimidation, and wealthy elites are handled as aristocracy.

“America, only a few months ahead of its 250^th birthday as the world’s leading democracy, has crossed the edge into authoritarianism and fascism,” an American historian, wrote this past summer. “Ultimately, swifter than I imagined possible, it did happen here.”

Each day begins amid recent atrocities. It is difficult to grasp – and painful to realize – how severely declined our nation is, and the speed at which it unfolded.

However, it is known that the leader was legitimately chosen. Even after his profoundly alarming previous administration and following the warnings linked to the knowledge of Project 2025 – despite Trump himself stated openly he planned to be a dictator only on the first day – sufficient voters elected him instead of Kamala Harris.

Frightening as the present situation may be, it's more daunting to realize that we are just several months under this leadership. How will another 36 months of this deterioration find us? And suppose that timeframe turns into something even longer, as there is not anyone to limit this ruler from opting that additional tenure is essential, possibly for national security reasons?

Admittedly, there is still hope. There are congressional elections the coming year which might establish an alternate governmental control, should Democrats recapture one or both houses of parliament. There are public servants who are striving to impose a degree of oversight, such as representatives currently launching an investigation into the attempted cash appropriation from legal authorities.

And a national vote three years from now could begin us down the road to healing exactly as the prior selection placed us on this unfortunate course.

There are millions of Americans marching in urban areas of their cities, like they performed in the past days during anti-authority protests.

Robert Reich, stated lately that “the slumbering force of the nation is rising”, exactly as before after the Communist witch-hunt era during the fifties or during the Vietnam war protests or in the seventies crisis.

On those occasions, the listing ship eventually was righted.

The author states he recognizes the indicators of that revival and sees it happening at present. As support, he references the widespread marches, the widespread, cross-party resistance to a television host's removal and the almost universal refusal by journalists to agree to military mandates they solely cover what is sanctioned.

“The slumbering entity consistently stays inactive until certain corruption turns extremely harmful, an specific act so contemptuous toward public welfare, certain violence so loud, that the giant has no choice but to awaken.”

It’s an optimistic take, and I appreciate the author's seasoned opinion. Possibly he may prove to be right.

Meanwhile, the major inquiries remain: will the nation ever recover? Can it reclaim its position in the world and its commitment to legal principles?

Or do we need to admit that the 250-year-old experiment succeeded temporarily, and then – swiftly, totally – ended?

My negative thoughts indicates that the second option is accurate; that all may indeed be lost. My positive feelings, though, convinces me that we need to strive, through all methods we can.

In my case, as an observer of the press, that’s about pushing media professionals to live up, more completely, to their duty of scrutinizing authority. For others, it may be working on political races, or planning demonstrations, or discovering methods to protect electoral access.

Not even one year prior, we were in an alternate reality. A year from now? Or in several years? The truth is, we cannot predict. The only option is to strive to not give up.

What’s Giving Me Hope Now

The engagement I experience in the classroom with young journalists, who are both visionary and grounded, {always