How NGOs in the US are pushing back against Trump’s authoritarian playbook

Social scientists and commentators have for years been expressing concerns about what they call the “authoritarian playbook”. To be clear, no such book exists. But would-be and actual dictators do tend to follow a common set of strategies to consolidate power.

Since the 2000s, populist leaders from Russia to Venezuela have used their countries’ own democratic systems to overturn democracy itself. One reason for their success may be the fact that supporters of democratic institutions do not seem to have a defensive playbook to match the authoritarians’ offensive one.

Institutions that support democracy, including many nonprofits and media outlets, have few examples to learn from. And in many countries, their responses have been weak and disorganized.

I am a sociologist who researchers how membership in nonprofits can affect someone’s democratic values and how nonprofits manage to operate in nondemocratic regimes. Because there are many signs that the US government is becoming increasingly autocratic, I’m now studying how US nonprofits are responding to a spate of attacks on their freedom to operate.

I’ve found that many of them have been surprisingly successful.

Nonprofits under fire

The second Trump administration has cut billions in funding for nonprofits focused on improving access to healthcare and childcare and providing food for low-income people. It’s also slashing aid to developing countries.

Nonprofits that previously had contracts to carry out US foreign aid priorities,...

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