Monday, President Trump announced his second nominee to the United States Supreme Court. Barring his not being confirmed, he will give the court a fairly decisive right-wing majority.
This may mark the end of a decades-long effort by conservative forces in the United States to begin rolling back the progressive gains of much of the last half of the 20th Century; women's rights, especially abortion rights, gay rights, workers rights, and even many of the gains made by the Civil Rights movement, will all likely be under gradual attack.
Any gains that are made by progressives will likely face legal roadblocks. Efforts to secure a livable minimum wage, universal public healthcare, and many of the other legislation that would follow any "Blue Wave" would also be stymied by the courts.
One solution that may need to be looked at, that is being revived a bit by some more radical aspects of the progressive community is "Mutual Aid". The basic idea of people helping each other.
When most people hear this idea, they think of providing material support. Providing food to folks laid off from work, clothes for the homeless. In the years to come this may take on new dimensions; providing financial aid or transport for women needing to travel for an abortion for instance. But what might better be called "mutual assistance" may be only one part of "Mutual Aid".
A second component may be "mutual education". People teaching others skills they may need to survive in a reactionary America; being able to grow and prepare herbs to induce labor, being aware of ones rights when confronted by the police or ICE, or being able to keep electronic communications secure. The idea of "Each one, teach one" may be crucial for Americans, especially in communities of color.
A final component may be some degree of mutual defense. Charlottesville and Portland, as well as the near-daily video of some racist feeling empowered harassing a refugee, or a person whose skin is too dark. show how many Americans see Trump's election as a licence to bully. Taking a video is nice, but being able to take them down may be even better. I could even see this defense being armed, even using firearms.
These are not new ideas; the Black Panthers and perhaps, to an extent, "Occupy". Groups like Food Not Bombs may implement one or more components of this broader definition of "Mutual Aid".
The issue may be getting the folks who see sharing and liking posts on social media as doing enough to realize that they may need to actually get into the streets and into the affected communities.