You watch as President Biden, President-elect Harris and the military reassert control. The military wages a fierce internal battle to maintain unit discipline. You feel they’ll succeed — Trump doesn’t have enough levers of control. But you worry about the long-term cost and what happens after.
You find research from groups who have already articulated how we can combat extremism: reducing hate speech on social media, teaching a fuller understanding of U.S. history and its race- and gender-based violence, removing money from politics, changing the Electoral College, imposing greater penalties on people who undermine the election process, and so on. You join groups who are rallying around these changes as part of a wide-ranging bill proposed in the wake of recent threats to democracy.
When the riots are finally quieted on the street, the “Anti-Insurrection Act” is hard for even a reluctant Congress to avoid. Though the bill is watered down severely, major pieces are passed by Congress, shocked by the situation that has unfolded again.
The transition of power happens. On January 20, 2025, President Harris is inaugurated to fulfill a four-year term. The country weathers this tense period. You know there’s much work ahead, but you feel proud for your role in helping your country avoid a coup and building an alternative.
THE END.
You survived the transfer of power. But creating a deep democracy is a much bigger task ahead. Researcher Stephen Zunes has identified four things we need to stop a coup: widespread opposition, nonviolent discipline (to avoid giving the wanna-be autocrat excuses for more violence), alliance building, and refusal to recognize the coup plotters as legitimate.
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