Good Things Are Still Possible

Mohsen Mahdawi is free after his supporters refused to give up the fight.

Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images

It is too late, now, to save every person in this country who will need saving in the coming years. The Trump administration, the far right — they have amassed so much power, and they will use it to do so many horrific things.

But do not for one instant conclude that fighting them is futile.

Mohsen Mahdawi, the Palestinian Columbia student who was detained outside of his scheduled interview for U.S. citizenship, was released today by order of a Vermont judge. Look at this:

This outcome, in a vacuum where no one speaks up and no one is outside the courthouse, is incredibly unlikely. That is the environment that fascists want to create: one in which the wheels of state bureaucracy are insulated from the will of the public. That was not the case in Vermont, and now a man is free.

In his ruling, U.S. District Judge Geoffrey W. Crawford wrote:

Mr. Mahdawi’s release is also in the public interest. His continued detention would likely have a chilling effect on protected speech, which is squarely against the public interest. And continueing to detain him would not benefit the public in any way, as Mr. Mahdawi appears not to be either a flight risk or a danger to the community. Finally, Mr. Mahdawi’s release will benefit his community, which appears to deeply cherish and value him. The court therefore declines to stay its order pending appeal and instead requires Mr. Mahdawi’s immediate release.

There is a reason, of course, that the Trump administration has sought to make cases like Mahdawi’s and Mahmoud Khalil’s play out in states like Louisiana, and not Vermont or New York, respectively, as there is less likelihood of getting a judge like Crawford outside of, say, Vermont or New York. But without constant public outcry, without the voice of the public, it becomes that much easier for Trump administration’s influence to wear on public servants like Crawford. Without images like this of Mahdawi’s release, it’s easy to start believing that no one will ever walk free from the administration’s prisons. We know that that is not true. We know that good outcomes are possible. We know that fighting works. In the coming months and years, we are going to take a lot of losses. There will be many battles we cannot win. But if you’re looking for a reason to keep fighting them, it’s right here.

We have to be realistic. We have to be cautious. We have to be pragmatic and determined and focused. But just as Mahdawi said, we don’t have to be afraid.