Historian Timothy Snyder has succinctly yet vigorously broken down in twenty short lessons the detailed steps we must take to resist the abuse of power by those claiming to be the majority voice. This is not merely in regard to the current political tone, but historically includes the misuse of authority to keep and marginalize …
The lessons that can be learned from our past struggles for democracy are unending, but consider this pocket-sized book a concentrated primer. Holocaust scholar Snyder’s 20 prescriptions bring into focus a better understanding of inequality, offer warnings against fascist ideologies and patterns, and create priorities for resistance: Investigate. Listen for dangerous words. Be calm when the …
Perhaps you read Snyder’s bracing pamphlet, On Tyranny (or the Facebook post it was based on)—from its title, I had imagined this new, much larger book as an expansion of those ideas, but, while it’s written in the same level-headed-but-urgent tone (which Snyder’s voice for the audiobook perfectly represents), it’s doing something related but different, focusing less …
