“The president governs by fear,
but what happens if people are no longer afraid?”
(William A. Galston, The Wall Street Journal, April 9, 2025)
On April 6, 2025, the New York Times Editorial Board wrote the following: “In his attack on law firms, universities and other American institutions, President Trump is relying on an illusion. The illusion that institutions are powerless to fight back and that they face a choice between principle and survival…” Later in that article, the Editorial Board noted the importance of solidarity in responding to Trump. The foregoing editorial opinion reminded me of some bully-related lessons I learned earlier in life.
During the first week of 7th grade, when walking to school from my home, I had to cross a bridge at the beginning of which stood the bully Cephus – a hefty tenth grader known for his street brawling and having had encounters with the juvenile court system. When I approached him, he demanded, “Give me your lunch money, or else!” Traumatized by what might be my fate if “or else” took place, I immediately gave him the few coins I had in my pocket. Later at noon, unable to purchase lunch and passing time outside of the student cafeteria, I chatted with George and Herbie who too had been bullied and given Cephus their lunch money.
While other students ate lunch, George, Herbie and I agreed that, henceforth, we would walk to school together and, in our not fully understood “little NATO” fashion, if Cephus attempted to bully one of us, then we would all fight Cephus. The very next day we were encountered by Cephus who was basking in his illusion that we were powerless and that we were still daunted by the prowess we presumed he had. With a smirk on his face, Cephus demanded, “Give me your money, or else!” Immediately, the three of us started kicking and punching Cephus who, much to our surprise, said, “Ok, ok, stop. You guys are good by me!”
Following the above encounter with Cephus, in our youthful parlance, George, Herbie and I discussed [1] the effectiveness of our newly developed coalition; [2] how we were empowered by overcoming our real and imagined fears of Cephus; and [3] once we respected and defended our unified selves, how quickly Cephus was the one who had become traumatized. Thereafter, because we recognized the strength of our coalition as well as had the realization that our growing self-respect demanded self-defense, we never capitulated to a demand from Cephus or any other school bully.
Later in college, as a social activist, I learned that through things such as marches, boycotts, court cases, at times taking non-negotiable postures, and being willing to be jailed while protesting, the “moral arc of the universe” could be made to bend towards justice. Hence, I and dedicated pursuers of equity and social justice were very disappointed when, by eliminating its DEI programs, the University of Michigan (UM) capitulated to the bully President Trump. Our angst was magnified by the fact that the 2003 “Grutter v. Bollinger” Supreme Court case {the Michigan Case} launched “diversity” as a social justice enabling concept when it was ruled that “The use of an applicant's race as one factor in an admissions policy of a public educational institution does not violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment if the policy is narrowly tailored to the compelling interest of promoting a diverse student body, and if it uses a holistic process to evaluate each applicant, as opposed to a quota system…” (See Grutter v. Bollinger | 539 U.S. 306 (2003) | Justia U.S. Supreme Court Center).
The UM decision to capitulate was also problematic because of the fact that the UM had, among other things, a $19.2 billion endowment from which it could draw resources to fight back against the bully’s threat of cutting federal funds. (See, U-M’s endowment generated 8.93% return rate in FY ’24 | The University Record). As former President Barack Obama recently put the matter, “If you are a university, you may have to figure out, are we in fact doing things right? Have we in fact violated our own values, our own code, violated the law in some fashion: If not, and you’re just being intimidated, well, you should be able to say, that’s why we got this big endowment.” (See, https://barackobama.medium.com/conversation-at-hamilton-college-0c44228ac0bd).
Yet the UM, Columbia, Ohio State, Penn and other major institutions “rolled over” without a whimper, leaving one to wonder about the extent to which these institutions really believed in DEI or were instead engaged in “go along to get along” performances they deemed appropriate prior to the recent election of Trump. Indeed, they gave in so quickly that one is left to wonder if some institutions are in fact complicit regarding the effort to destroy DEI. In any event, before too much more DEI ground is lost, now is the time for institutions of higher education to have the courage of their stated convictions, to summon all of their resources to combat bullies such as the current autocratic President and his posse.
As in the case of me and my two friends who took a stand against Cephus, coalition building is essential for successfully addressing the bully in the White House. In the immediate instance, there should be a coalition made up of all persons who have been and continue to be adversely impacted because of their age, social class, sex, culture, disability, ethnicity, gender, race, religion, sexual orientation, or nationality. This new national “Rainbow DEI Coalition” should be “kicking and punching” with massive public protests, major boycotts, critical lawsuits, ongoing acts of civil disobedience, and critical votes that result in a “Blue Tsunami.”
There would be a positive catalytic reaction if the “Rainbow DEI Coalition” were to join with the “Hands Off Coalition” which, during the first weekend of April 2025, had “Tens of thousands of protesters mustered in cities and towns across the country on Saturday to sound off against the Trump administration's cuts to the federal government and its policies. Carrying homemade posters and chanting "Hands Off," the protesters came out to the more than 1,200 rallies nationwide despite rain in many cities, according to organizers…” (Huge crowds gather in 'Hands Off' rallies nationwide in protest of Trump administration - ABC News).
If additional rationale is needed for not capitulating to the current bully’s “or else” attack on DEI, then consider what just transpired with some of his sycophants: [1] “The biggest technology companies and their chief executives donated millions to President Trump’s inauguration, hosted black-tie dinners in his honor, and allowed him to announce and take credit for new multibillion-dollar manufacturing projects…” but [2] “Since the inauguration, the combined market value of Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta and Microsoft has fallen 22 percent... And the tech-heavy Nasdaq index is down 21 percent…” (See, New York Times, “Tech C.E.O.s Spent Millions Courting Trump. It Has Yet to Pay Off,” April 8, 2025). In addition to those negative outcomes for supporters, consider those who voted for Trump but now [1] find themselves among those cut by the “DOGE Chain Saw;” [2] have gotten caught in the Social Security chaos; or [3] watched their 401(K) decline significantly.
As we move to confront the autocratic bully who seems to be in hot pursuit of a dystopian society, do keep in mind Nobel Peace Prize recipient Maria Ressa’s statements regarding resistance: “It won’t be easy. You’ll feel like giving up, burying your head in the sand, but if you do that, you’re helping assure the destruction of our world, the manipulation of your children, the destruction of their values, and the ravaging of our earth.” (How to Stand up to a Dictator: The Fight for our Future, 2022).
Jack L. Daniel
Co-founder, Freed Panther Society
Contributor, Pittsburgh Urban Media
Author, Negotiating a Historically White University While Black
April 9, 2025