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One year ago, the landscape was completely separate. Ahead of the American presidential vote, thoughtful residents could admit the nation's serious imperfections – its unfairness and imbalance – yet they could still identify it as the United States. A democratic nation. A land where constitutional order meant something. A state headed by a honorable and upright official, despite his older age and increasing frailty.

Nowadays, as October 2025 ends, many of us barely recognize the land we live in. Individuals alleged as undocumented migrants are collected and forced into vehicles, sometimes refused legal rights. The East Wing of the presidential residence – is being torn down to build a lavish dance hall. The president is harassing his opponents or alleged foes and requesting legal authorities surrender an enormous amount of taxpayer money. Soldiers with weapons are being sent to US urban areas on false pretexts. The defense headquarters, rebranded the Defense Ministry, has – in effect – rid itself of day-to-day journalistic scrutiny while it uses possibly reaching close to a trillion USD in public funds. Colleges, attorney offices, journalism organizations are yielding due to presidential intimidation, and billionaires are treated like nobility.

“America, only a few months ahead of its quarter-millennium anniversary as the globe's top democratic nation, has tipped over the edge into autocracy and extremism,” a noted author, wrote recently. “In the end, more quickly than I imagined possible, it transpired in America.”

Each day begins to new horrors. It is difficult to grasp – and painful to realize – how deeply lost we have become, and how quickly it has happened.

Yet, it is known that the president was legitimately chosen. Despite his deeply disturbing first term and following the cautions associated with the knowledge of Project 2025 – following Trump himself declared plainly he intended to rule as a tyrant solely at the start – a majority of citizens selected him instead of the other candidate.

While alarming as today's circumstances are, it's more frightening to realize that we are just nine months into this administration. Where will three more years of this downfall find us? And if the three years becomes something even longer, because there is no one to restrain this ruler from opting that a third term is necessary, possibly for security concerns?

Certainly, there is still hope. We will have legislative votes next year that may bring a different political equilibrium, in case Democrats recapture the Senate or House of Congress. We have elected officials who are attempting to impose a degree of oversight, like lawmakers that are launching an investigation concerning the try to cash appropriation from legal authorities.

And a leadership election three years from now could begin our journey to healing exactly as the previous vote put us on this regrettable path.

There exist countless citizens demonstrating in the streets of their cities, as they did in the past days at democracy demonstrations.

Robert Reich, stated lately that “the dormant powerhouse of the nation is stirring”, exactly as before following the Red Scare during the fifties or during anti-war demonstrations or in the Watergate scandal.

On those occasions, the listing ship finally returned to balance.

The author states he knows the signs of that revival and notices it unfolding currently. For proof, he references the widespread marches, the extensive, bipartisan pushback to a television host's removal and the near-unanimous rejection by reporters to agree to government requirements they only publish authorized information.

“The dormant force perpetually exists inactive before certain corruption turns extremely harmful, a particular deed so offensive of the common good, specific cruelty so noisy, that the giant has no choice but to awaken.”

It’s an optimistic take, and I value his knowledgeable stance. Possibly he may prove to be right.

Meanwhile, the big questions remain: is the US able to return to normalcy? Can it retrieve its position internationally and its adherence to constitutional order?

Or do we need to admit that the 250-year-old experiment worked for a while, and then – abruptly, completely – collapsed?

My pessimistic brain suggests that the second option is accurate; that everything could be finished. My optimistic spirit, nevertheless, advises me that we need to strive, by any means available.

In my case, as a media critic, that’s about pushing media professionals to commit, more thoroughly, to their duty of holding power to account. For others, it could mean working on congressional campaigns, or coordinating protests, or discovering methods to defend ballot privileges.

Under twelve months back, we were in a very different place. Twelve months later? Or three years from now? The reality is, we don’t know. The only option is to strive to continue fighting.

What’s Giving Me Hope Now

The interaction I have in the classroom with young journalists, who are equally visionary and practical, {always