How “Anticipatory Obedience” Fuels Authoritarian Power

Masha Gessen’s latest New York Times piece, The Chilling Consequences of Going Along With Trump, is a sobering examination of how individuals and institutions preemptively submit to authoritarian power—often before it even demands compliance. Drawing from historical examples, personal experience, and the unsettling echoes of totalitarianism, Gessen warns of the dangers of what Yale historian Timothy Snyder calls "anticipatory obedience."

Key Takeaways:

🔹 Obedience Before Demand – Gessen explores how people rationalize surrendering power early, from major media companies to universities, without explicit coercion.
🔹 Echoes of Totalitarianism – The article compares Trump’s second term to life under Putin and even Soviet rule, where compliance became a survival strategy.
🔹 Five Justifications for Submission – From the responsibility-for-others argument to the zeitgeist excuse, Gessen lays out the various ways institutions justify their concessions.
🔹 A Dire Warning – History shows that those who enable authoritarian rule often become its victims later. The only true defense? Refusing to comply in advance.

Pull Quotes:

🗣 "Anticipatory obedience is a key building block of their power."
🗣 "Autocracies of the 21st century often don’t need mass terror; their subjects comply willingly."

Gessen’s message is clear: The time to resist is before power demands your submission.

📖 Read the full piece here: The Chilling Consequences of Going Along With Trump