The Authoritarian Regime Survival Guide

Editor's note: "The Authoritarian Regime Survival Guide" was written by Martin Mycielski, director of public affairs of the Open Dialogue Foundation in Brussels. First written as a series of improvised, spontaneous tweets, which reached 3 million views within one month in 2017, the "Guide" remains not only a guide for how to function under an authoritarian regime, but a powerful description and warning of how the lives of citizens — regardless of how they voted — change when freedom and democracy falter or fall. We encourage you to read and share it widely and often.

YEAR 1 Under Authoritarianism

What to Expect?

1. They will come to power with a campaign based on fear, scaremongering and distorting the truth. Nevertheless, their victory will be achieved through a democratic electoral process. But beware, as this will be their argument every time you question the legitimacy of their actions. They will claim a mandate from the People to change the system.

Remember – gaining power through a democratic system does not give them permission to cross legal boundaries and undermine said democracy.

2. They will divide and rule. Their strength lies in unity, in one voice and one ideology, and so should yours. They will call their supporters Patriots, the only “true Americans”. You will be labelled as traitors, enemies of the state, unpatriotic, the corrupt elite, the old regime trying to regain power. Their supporters will be the “People”, the “sovereign” who chose their leaders.

Don’t let them divide you – remember you’re one People, one Nation, with one common good.


3. They will subjugate state media, turning them into a propaganda tube. Then, through convoluted laws and threats they will attempt to control all mainstream media and limit press freedom. They will ban critical press from their briefings, calling them “liars”, “fake news”. They will brand those media as “unpatriotic”, acting against the People (see point 2).

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