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Theresa O’Connor / Treasa Ní Chonchúir

Late January link roundup

How To Do Something For ICE-Occupied Minneapolis, by Riese.

We Are All We Have, by Dan Sinker.

Your Leaders Were Lying. Now The People Are Driving, by Spencer Ackerman and edited by Sam Thielman. See also From Rapid Response to Revolutionary Social Change: The Potential of the Rapid Response Networks.

Via Lindsay: The revolution did not arrive with speeches, pamphlets, or a carefully moderated Zoom call about optics. It arrived in a cardboard box full of clearance-bin dildos, under purple neon light.

State Terror Has Arrived, by M. Gessen, via Kottke.

Also via Kottke: The People Struggle Against Tyranny, by Thomas Zimmer.

Yes, It’s Fascism, by Jonathan Rauch, via Gruber.

Minnesota Proved MAGA Wrong, by Adam Serwer.

7 House Democrats Vote With GOP to Give ICE More Money Despite Deadly Invasions of US Cities, by Jessica Corbett.


A sand-colored collection of buildings stands in the desert. One of the buildings is domed.
Aji Spa, Arizona, January 2026

Why Some People See Collapse Earlier Than Others, by Adrian Lambert, via Kottke.

How Republicans Killed American Democracy, by Katelyn Burns.

Without birthright citizenship, what is stopping the administration from declaring that trans people are no longer citizens of the state? It’s happened to other minorities in other countries. Could I then be deported to some Arab or Central Asian state with squishy laws around legalized slavery? That is what is already happening to many migrants who’ve been snatched off the streets by ICE.

— Katelyn Burns

Alex Tabarrok asks: Should You Resign?

The Jack Smith hearing shows what was lost in the fracturing of American media, by Philip Bump.

Also by Philip: Some things you should know about Fulton County, Georgia.

Those Who Try to Erase History Will Fail, by Clint Smith, via Kottke.


Using words, not to make a point, but to avoid making a point while creating the illusion of having made one, is the true sin.

— Gruber (emphasis his)

Kehoe, Kelsey A., and Levitt, Heidi M. Correcting myths underlying anti-trans legislation: Qualitative meta-analysis on transgender identity development. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 72(6) (2025): 748–764. https://doi.org/10.1037/cou0000827

Horton, Cal, and Pearce, Ruth. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Rights of Trans Children in Scotland. The International Journal of Children’s Rights 33.4 (2025): 859-889. https://doi.org/10.1163/15718182-33040004

Trump Pressures International Orgs To Disavow Trans Care, Social Transition Globally “At Any Age” With Funding Ban, by Erin Reed.

Also by Erin: Kansas Advancing Anti-Trans Bill Allowing Bounty Hunters To Patrol Private Business Bathrooms.

s. baum on various threats or setbacks in the last week:

Federal Agency Tosses Harassment Handbook Following Fight Over Trans Protections, by Dan Tracer: On Thursday, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) voted 2 to 1 to rescind its 2024 anti harassment guidance, a nearly 200-page document that employers had relied on to understand what unlawful harassment looks like in real-world situations. That guidance included examples covering race, sex, religion, age, disability, sexual orientation, and gender identity.

This Is the History of Anti-Trans Bigotry Amy Coney Barrett Doesn’t Want to Talk About, by Madiba K. Dennie.

Amid ICE Surge, Trump Admin Targets Minnesota Over Trans Student Athletes, by Kate Sosin.

What the Anti-Trans Movement Doesn’t Understand About Women’s Sports, by Jackie Johnston.


A tree stands in the desert.
Tree, Wild Horse Pass Interpretive Trail, Arizona, January 2026

Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen reexamine Eric Carle’s The Very Hungry Caterpillar, via Virginia.

The Forgotten Designer Who Created America’s First National Parks Posters, by Sarah Cascone, via Eric Bailey.

Soup, by Kristian Muñiz, also via Eric.


Also via Eric: privacy is a value we can lose, by Ava.

Speaking of which, is Data Privacy Day! Please consider supporting one of the many organizations who have dedicated themselves to protecting and ensuring your privacy: CDT, EFF, EPIC, Fight for the Future.


New Moon Letter 1: On Counterculture, by John Higgs, via Matt Muir.

Backseat Software, by Mike Swanson, via Jeremy.