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submitted 4 months ago by ByteOnBikes@slrpnk.net to c/world@lemmy.world

One of the men goes for her phone. The other grabs at her hands. Ozturk screams. Shock and fear ripple through her voice. Two masked women join them, tugging at her backpack, peeling the straps from her shoulders. “I’m going somewhere, I need to call someone,” she pleads. “We’re the police. Relax,” one of the men says in response.

They surround her. Then, one by one, they pull their neck gaiters up to cover their faces. “You don’t look like police,” a voice off screen says. “Why are you hiding your faces?” The questions continue, but the figures don’t respond. Instead, they cuff Ozturk, cross the street, and put her in an unmarked SUV. She is gone.

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[-] Englishgrinn@lemmy.ca 419 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago)

For the record, and I know I'm not the first to say it, this woman committed NO crime. She didn't overstay a visa, she didn't protest illegally. She wrote something the administration didn't like.

For that, she was arrested by 8 masked officers in the middle of the street, in broad daylight. She was thrown in the back on an unmarked SUV. She's received no legal representation. No trial. Not even charges, because again, she committed no crime.

Americans, you realize you're watching the death of your rights and the rule of law, right? You have no illusions about the fact that you are defenseless? There is no longer any guardrail between you and an El Salvadoran prison camp. In something that reminds me very much of Stalin, an accusation is now a conviction.

[-] MountainVeil@lemm.ee 97 points 4 months ago

Defenseless is a good word, it seems like we're all just waiting for a savior to show up and rescue us. It doesn't help that a large amount of Americans see protest as pointless right now. What it feels like is the bystander effect on a national level.

The worst part is how many people either support or just brush it off.

[-] keen@lemmy.world 68 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago)

After all that trashing of Russians and why they do not fight against their government, the world gets to see that Americans are basically the same: so many fall for the dumbest possible propaganda and the rest is either afraid or apathetic.

[-] Kalysta@lemm.ee 4 points 4 months ago

There have been weekly protests of this shit across the country since the asshole was elected. It’s not helping. And even the “opposition party” is capitulating to the bullshit. What else are we supposed to do?

[-] Krono@lemmy.today 1 points 4 months ago

Americans see protest as pointless right now.

Americans have seen a generation of peaceful protests that were crushed and villified. Anti-WTO, Anti-Iraq War, Occupy Wall Street, George Floyd, etc; all failed to achieve any of their stated goals.

And now that the fascists have taken control, peaceful protest is even less effective. For peaceful protest to succeed your opponent must have empathy, and fascists have none.

The last protest movement that accomplished something substantial was the civil rights movement. It was not peaceful, it was militant. I think we need a modern Black Panther Party.

[-] floofloof@lemmy.ca 1 points 4 months ago

For peaceful protests to succeed they must attract more people to the cause and gather momentum. Protests now would be useful for bringing people together and emboldening people to resist what's going on. They are a step in building a movement. To say "protests alone don't change things" misses this point.

[-] Saleh@feddit.org 0 points 4 months ago

Exactly, you need armed protest.

[-] floofloof@lemmy.ca 46 points 4 months ago

She also had her visa revoked so can no longer legally stay in the USA to complete her studies, or enter again. This was because she wrote an op-ed disapproving of Israel's genocide.

[-] Aux@feddit.uk 43 points 4 months ago

Remember "Better be Russian than a democrat" guys? Well, now they're Russian!

[-] DarkFuture@lemmy.world 30 points 4 months ago

You have no illusions about the fact that you are defenseless?

We have guns. Lots of guns.

Everyone needs to arm themselves and train.

[-] Oderus@lemmy.world 13 points 4 months ago

Your guns don't compare to the guns the government use. Nor do you have the numbers to resist even if equally armed. If the 1/3 of voters that didn't vote, actually voted for for Harris, you wouldn't be in this mess but there you are.

[-] MetalMachine@feddit.nl 26 points 4 months ago

Yeah well, ask the Afghans or Vietnamese. Turns out you don't need to have the same fire power to drag your opponent through the mud.

[-] djsoren19 9 points 4 months ago

The Vietnamese had some of the greatest strategic minds in their history leading the fight against the Americans.

So far, it doesn't seem like there's a single leader for a resistance in the U.S., and certainly none as skilled in tactics.

[-] Saleh@feddit.org 7 points 4 months ago

Where do you expect the resistance leaders to come from?

From the state resistance leadership school, with the public resistance leadership grant? If you dont form a resistance you cannot create resistance leaders

[-] tocopherol@lemmy.dbzer0.com 13 points 4 months ago

What do you mean about numbers? The state and it's guards are always massively outnumbered by the people, it's just a question of organization.

[-] saimen@feddit.org 6 points 4 months ago

But how many people are willing to risk their life without immediate danger to themselves (yet)?

[-] MrsDoyle@sh.itjust.works 3 points 4 months ago

I suspect your government would love it if you started shooting. They'd declare martial law. Goodbye elections, hello police state.

[-] Saleh@feddit.org 9 points 4 months ago

They will do this either way.

There is no bargaining with these people. They will not not escalate from their side. By not escalating from your side you only encourage their escalation as they face no repercussions.

[-] MrsDoyle@sh.itjust.works 5 points 4 months ago

That's true actually - they are escalating pretty hard already.

As a long-term peacenik though, I hate the thought of gun battles on the streets. I wish you all the very best. I first visited the US in 1976 and have toured around a lot since then. My one single bad experience was Homeland Security when transiting through LAX. We're tourists not terrorists, jeez cool your jets! I can't imagine how bad ICE is.

[-] muusemuuse@lemm.ee 1 points 4 months ago* (last edited 4 months ago)

I had a decent amount I got back from taxes that I intentionally spent. I'm mentally ill. I'm off my meds because I cant risk withdrawl from going back on them only to have RFK take them away again. I'll lose my job. It doesnt pay enough for me to get by anyway. If I kept that money, I know I would have bought that gun. And I would have used it on myself.

I'm still not sure I did the right thing spending myself into this hole to keep a gun away. I know using it on my oppressors wouldnt likely succeed. I'm more likely to use it on myself.

I still dont know if it was the right thing to do to not buy the gun.

[-] InvertedParallax@lemm.ee 21 points 4 months ago

For the record, and I know I'm not the first to say it, this woman committed NO crime.

Ozturk

The state rests it's case.

[-] Dragonstaff@leminal.space 18 points 4 months ago

Yes.

America has always been more or less of a fascist state, and this is not new activity, although it is worse and more brazen in a lot of ways. Civil Rights for ethnic minorities has always been pretty iffy.

30% of the country loves this shit, and another large fraction doesn't even know it's going on. A lot of us are working to try to change things. The media is not covering all of the demonstrations, but we definitely need more people to get angry.

[-] Knock_Knock_Lemmy_In@lemmy.world 18 points 4 months ago

She wrote something the administration didn't like.

What was written?

[-] DarkFuture@lemmy.world 32 points 4 months ago

She expressed anti-Palestinian genocide sentiments.

In New America that gets you disappeared by masked thugs.

[-] Englishgrinn@lemmy.ca 26 points 4 months ago

A couple of op-eds for a Student newspaper criticizing Israel? I thought I saw the pieces linked earlier but I don't see them now. The article linked on this post says it supported a student divestment program and referenced the International Criminal Court calling attacks on Gaza a genocide.

Hardly spicy compared to your average social media post.

[-] saimen@feddit.org 9 points 4 months ago

Also, this is just the rehearsal until they go for political opponents with American citizenship.

[-] Flames5123@sh.itjust.works 6 points 4 months ago

What the fuck do we do? I’m in a hyperliberal city in one of the few blue states left. We are relatively safe for now. I make a comfortable amount of money that I use to support my wife and friends who sometimes may not have necessities. I cannot risk my job by taking every day off to protest. Protests also seem meaningless to go to for me in my city because they’re happening in a safer city.

I am donating to the ACLU every month, but idk what else we can be doing. What can we be doing?

[-] Saleh@feddit.org 4 points 4 months ago

Organize armed protests. Connect in your neighborhood, so if this shit goes down, and it will start going down in your neighborhood soon enough, people can show up, free the victim and bog down the attackers.

[-] Amonverite@lemmy.ca 2 points 4 months ago

Time for Canada to annex Pacific Coast states(at least) then we can live in a functioning democracy again.

[-] Flames5123@sh.itjust.works 1 points 4 months ago

Cascadia when?

this post was submitted on 27 Mar 2025
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