Ordinary Rebels, Extraordinary Impact
Ben Cable (Originally Published on Substack Sep 29, 2025)
I want to start your week off with high notes. Democracy isn’t just defended in marble halls or courtrooms. It lives and breathes in the bodies of ordinary people, teachers with hand-painted signs, candidates bloodied but unbowed, grandmothers on the courthouse steps, and a journalist in Ankara who turned her own veil into a weapon of resistance. These are not headlines from the establishment press, they are front-line acts of defiance in the face of creeping authoritarianism.
Here are five sparks of democracy in the last two months.
1) ICE BOUNCES A CANDIDATE—SHE BOUNCES BACK
At Broadview, IL, federal agents fired pepper balls and gas into a crowd and slammed 26-year-old congressional candidate Kat Abughazaleh to the pavement during a peaceful protest outside an ICE detention center.
“This is what authoritarianism looks like, shutting down protest with violence. But we won’t stop showing up.” – Kat Abughazaleh
Agents’ chemicals even drifted into nearby neighborhoods, according to local news reports. Chicago and Evanston elected officials joined in condemning the crackdown as a violation of free speech.
Why it matters: A candidate risking bodily harm to defend the right to protest is democracy with teeth, not a hashtag.
2) FIGHT THE TRUMP TAKEOVER—NEIGHBORS, NOT KINGMAKERS
August saw anchor rallies across 34 states under the banner “Fight the Trump Takeover.” These weren’t slick political conventions, they were kitchen-table democracy in the streets.
“We teach kids truth, not tyranny.” – Austin schoolteacher, rally sign
“Gerrymandering steals our voice before we even cast a ballot.” – Texas marcher
From capitols to small-town squares, the message was clear: democracy isn’t a spectator sport.
Why it matters: Anti-authoritarian resistance isn’t abstract; it’s neighbors standing in sunlight, and it scales.
3) GOOD TROUBLE LIVES ON—JOHN LEWIS’S GHOST HAUNTS AUTOCRATS
On July 17, 1,600+ actions across the U.S. honored John Lewis’s call to “make good trouble.”
“John Lewis bled on this bridge so we could vote. We’re here to keep his promise alive.” – Atlanta protester
“This isn’t nostalgia, it’s training for the fights we’re in now.” – Student activist, Seattle
From courthouse steps to church basements, citizens turned history into action.
Why it matters: Democracy survives when civics moves from textbooks to sidewalks.
4) NO KINGS DAY—THE FIVE-MILLION-PERSON CIVICS LESSON
June 14 brought millions into the streets across 2,000+ communities, a defiant rejection of coronation politics.
“We fought a revolution once. We’ll do it again if we must.” – Portland protester
“I brought my grandkids because they need to know presidents aren’t kings.” – Kansas City grandmother
This was no Washington-only spectacle, it was a fifty-state roll call against would-be monarchs.
Why it matters: When the country shows up everywhere at once, would-be kings remember who’s boss.
5) I THROW MY HIJAB AT YOUR POWER—ONE WOMAN, ONE LINE IN THE SAND
In Ankara, Berrin Sönmez, journalist, historian, practicing Muslim, removed her hijab after a state sermon edged toward compulsory veiling. She had promised: if the state tried to force it, she would take it off.
“If they force it, I will take it off. I will not wear it as a tool of their power.” – Berrin Sönmez
“One body, one choice, my resistance is my democracy.”
“They want to police our bodies. I choose to police my own.”
Her words ricocheted across Turkish and European media, igniting debate about conscience, religion, and the secular state.
Why it matters: Authoritarians police bodies first; democrats reclaim them.
What You Can Do Now
- Show up. Join a local protest or democracy teach-in; no act is too small. You can also Find an October 18th Protest Near You.
- Speak up. Share these stories widely; amplify ordinary rebels.
- Back it up. Support organizations fighting gerrymandering, voter suppression, and authoritarian creep.
- Call out power. Write your reps, your paper, your school board. Find Your Rep Here. Make it uncomfortable to stay silent.
Democracy dies in darkness, yes. But more importantly: it lives when ordinary people turn on the lights.
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