The headlines scream of American democracy unraveling, with experts warning the impartiality of institutions, rule of law and civil rights are under threat. But sometimes, while walking through cities and neighborhoods across the country, I forgot it was happening.
It’s disorientating to see the difference between the news reports chronicling this remarkable moment in U.S. history and the normality of life on the ground. It seems most Americans are going about their days – heading to work, grabbing dinner, making weekend plans – as if nothing extraordinary is happening.
Thomas Friedman, a famed columnist with The New York Times, made a similar observation when speaking this month to me and other journalists from around the world.
He told us he was recently in Ukraine, where thousands of young protesters took to the streets to denounce two independent anticorruption agencies losing their authority. The mass protests led Ukrainian legislators to overturn their law after just one week.
He then motioned to the window at the Washington, D.C., office where we were seated. Outside this room, Americans weren’t mustering nearly the same outrage as Ukrainians under threat from Russian drone attack, he said.
A protest outside the Supreme Court of the United States.
As Friedman wrote in a recent column, “those who are the most activist boast that they tweeted against [Trump] or pressed the like button on a post from their favorite liberal influencer.”
His thoughts have helped crystallize what I’ve been feeling in the midst of my crisscross tour through the United States.
Yet the more I’ve reflected, the clearer it’s become that such outrage isn’t sustainable. For years now, U.S. President Donald Trump has governed with little regard for constitutional checks and balances. Protests come and go – including massive ones like the No Kings demonstrations – and yet Trump’s actions don’t seem to change.
The experience has been a reminder to me that a government shouldn’t be considered an extension of its people.
During this trip, many Americans have proven to be kind and welcoming. There’s a deep political polarization, to be sure, but it’s also true many find ways to coexist with those they disagree with.
As a Canadian, I’ve been thinking about the American people, its government and who should be held responsible. For example, many in Canada are shunning the United States over its tariff regime and Trump’s taunting. It’s changed vacation plans, buying patterns and business strategies. Many hope Trump will hear the pleas of the American people and businesses hurt by the Canadian boycott and lift the tariffs, but for now, regular Americans are paying the price for something they didn’t cause.
So while a government and its people are indeed not the same thing, they are instinctively linked. It’s all the more reason people should maybe protest if they feel power has gone astray.
