{"id":76593,"date":"2026-04-21T21:29:19","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T21:29:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/usa\/?p=76593"},"modified":"2026-04-21T21:29:54","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T21:29:54","slug":"how-slapps-uphold-authoritarianism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/usa\/how-slapps-uphold-authoritarianism\/","title":{"rendered":"How SLAPPs uphold authoritarianism"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"European
Greenpeace activists protest with the message \u2018Break Free From Tyrants\u2019 near the Munich Security Conference.
\u00a9 Sandra Singh \/ Greenpeace<\/div><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n

Trump\u2019s second term has proved to be both unpredictable and exactly the kind of authoritarian atrocity many warned about. Amid the government’s methodical dismantling of due process and a more aggressive approach to geopolitics, a disturbing pattern of bullying and intimidation has emerged as the central governing strategy.<\/p>\n\n

The tactics are varied but the intent is consistent \u2013 silence critics, punish dissent, and intimidate and threaten those who might challenge power. Trump and his allies deploy threats of prosecution, weaponized legal systems, harassment, economic and regulatory retaliation, and both physical and rhetorical violence. This approach cascades from the administration outward to emboldened corporations and their executives.<\/p>\n\n

Trump has a history<\/a> of weaponizing public institutions, legal abuse, and intimidation against opponents, and that trend has only grown worse during his second term. Some of Trump\u2019s closest and richest donors (like Elon Musk and Kelcy Warren) have used similar playbooks<\/a>. What\u2019s significant is that the administration has created an environment where such tactics go unpunished or are even rewarded. Trump\u2019s regime has set a tone for how corporations and powerful actors can behave, signaling to corporations that such behavior is not only acceptable but effective.<\/p>\n\n

One potent weapon in this arsenal is the SLAPP lawsuit \u2013 Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation. These abusive legal cases aim to silence free speech and chill the rights of individuals and organizations to criticize and question the powerful. Trump has continued his pattern of filing SLAPPs during his second term, notably against media outlets who report on his administration, such as the BBC<\/a>, the Wall Street Journal<\/a>, and the New York Times<\/a>. Common characteristics include exploiting power imbalance, meritless claims, excessive claims for damages, forum shopping, targeting public participation, harassment, and the intent to exhaust the target’s resources and silence constitutionally-protected speech.<\/p>\n\n

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