Authoritarian Red Flags

Here in the US our system of democracy being stolen, day by day, piece by piece using a tried and true, very specific set of strategies and tactics that we call Authoritarian Red Flags.

Across time and across the globe these strategies have been used authoritarian leaders to dismantle democratic systems of government. The most well known example is Hitler in Nazi Germany but there are others from that time period including Mussolini (Italy) and Franco (Spain). More recent examples include Putin (Russia), Orban (Hungary), Erdogan (Turkey) and Chavez and Maduro (Venezuela).

As much of the rest of the world watches in horror many outside the US question why Americans have been relatively passive to this point. The creators of the DSTS.US project believe that a major reason for American's inaction is because the vast majority of the population has no lived experience with authoritarian behavior. Nor have they been educated to recognize the red flags of authoritarian leadership.

Much like an abusive relationship, if an individual has no knowledge of or previous experience with the Red Flags (warning signs) of Authoritarian behavior they often struggle to describe or explain their feelings of unease and discomfort while simultaneously questioning whether their feelings are "legitimate" or if they are "over reacting."

When people are educated to recognize the Authoritarian Red Flags they are better able to recognize and understand the danger and resist the authoritarian leader's efforts to control not just the government and broader society but individual's constitutionally guaranteed rights and freedoms.

Spread Disinformation

Many politicians lie, but authoritarians propagate and amplify falsehoods deliberately, consistently and constantly. The objective is to muddy the waters so that it becomes difficult for individuals to believe that anything is true.

Scapegoat Vulnerable Communities

Many authoritarians attack vulnerable groups intentionally, sowing division and attempting to turn the many against the few

Stoke Polarization and Violence

Authoritarians fan the flames of polarization, encourage stochastic terrorism (the constant and consistent threat of violence towards opponents) and increase fear generally. Most autocrats deliberately look the other way from political violence.

Claim and Seize Power

Authoritarian leaders often use self-proclaimed "emergencies" to claim and seize power that belongs to other government entities or institutions.

Quash Dissent

In the Unites States the First Amendment of the Constitution offers extremely strong protections for the right and ability to voice opinions and protest, including against the government. Authoritarian leaders seek to silence those sources of dissent and opposition.

Politicize Independent Institutions

All democracies have functions that operate independently from partisan political actors, from media, universities, law firms and central banking. Authoritarians attack and seek to capture those institutions

Corrupt Elections

In the 21st-century authoritarians generally maintain the facade of elections while tilting the rules against their opponents, suppressing votes, and biasing or even attempting to overturn the results of free and fair elections.