In the first months of his administration, President Donald Trump repeatedly threatened due process, a fundamental principle enshrined in the U.S. Constitution. His attacks have spanned from the arbitrary use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport legal residents, to the unlawful detention of students.

For years due process has protected us from such unfair, unlawful and unequal treatment. But what is due process? Why do we all have a stake in defending it?

It’s in the Constitution that the government shall not “deprive any person of life, liberty, or property without due process of law.” This legal guarantee takes two forms: procedural due process and substantive due process.

• Procedural due process means that the government is required to follow a set of procedures when it attempts to deprive someone of their life, liberty, or property. This means that the government must tell you what’s happening, quickly provide you an opportunity to be heard in court, and provide you with a neutral decision-maker (i.e. a court of law).
• Substantive due process means that the government must give a compelling reason before infringing upon certain fundamental rights, no matter what process is followed.

In practice, procedural due process means that the government must give people a chance to defend themselves in a fair hearing before infringing on their rights. It is not merely a formality or an amorphous part of the law. It is a cornerstone of American justice. Our country was founded on the idea that the government cannot take away your rights and liberties arbitrarily and that everyone has a right to defend themselves in court.

Not legally. The Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments explicitly state that no person shall be deprived of life, liberty, or property without due process of law under any circumstance.

The government is required to respect due process before it can take actions that affect a person's life, liberty, or property. This includes:

• Informing you of what is happening, such as why you’ve been arrested
• Providing you with a chance to challenge any accusations made against you
• Providing you with a fair and impartial jury of your peers should you go to trial

These rules are written in the Constitution and apply to everyone – regardless of origin, political beliefs, financial status or criminal status.

At a high level, due process is the foundation of our legal system. We are not a monarchy or a dictatorship, meaning that power is derived from the people. The president is not allowed to disregard the Constitution and laws passed by the people’s representatives when dispensing justice.

At an individual level, due process protects us from arbitrary judgement by the government. Whether someone is fighting an eviction, seeking asylum, defending against criminal charges, or protecting custody of their children, we all rely on due process every time we engage with the justice system. Without due process, the government could unlawfully deport people, jail people for lengthy periods of time without a fair trial, demand money, seize homes or otherwise harm people without giving them a chance to defend themselves.

President Trump has spent the first 100 days of his second presidency pushing unconstitutional executive orders and actions and targeting judges, private law firms, public interest firms, nonprofits, and individual lawyers. Taken together, these attacks are a direct affront to the due process protections enshrined in the Constitution.

Expedited deportations: The Trump administration has illegally fast-tracked deportations without fair legal processes. For example, Kilmar Abrego Garcia was shipped to a torture prison in El Salvador in the middle of the night without notice or a hearing, and in spite of a court order prohibiting his deportation. This is a clear violation of due process and the rights owed to all individuals. His story is one of many who have been banished without adequate justification.

Arrests of outspoken students: The Trump administration has directed masked ICE officers to arrest multiple students and professors for their First Amendment protected speech. This is a clear violation of due process, and a warning sign of authoritarianism that people across the political spectrum have condemned. In a free society, plainclothes officers cannot pull us into unmarked vehicles at a moment’s notice.

There are countless other examples, including the most recent suggestion by Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller that the government might suspend habeas corpus,which guarantees that people can challenge their unlawful detention by the government. This and other threats to our country’s commitment to due process put us in precarious positions.

The government does not get to pick and choose who deserves the protections enshrined in the Constitution. Allowing the Trump administration to do so is a slippery slope that leaves us all vulnerable. Lawyers, students, immigrants, and members of civil society will play a crucial role in checking the worst inclinations of this Trump administration. We must meet this moment with fierce and unwavering resistance in the courts, in the streets, and in statehouses across the country. Our Constitution demands it and our democracy depends on it.

The world is pretty terrifying right now. It’s hard to hear scary things all day and worry about your future and the futures of your family members, friends, and children with so much uncertainty and so much on the line.

This is intensified by the fact that we live in a technological age where all information, good or bad — but lately, mostly bad — is constantly delivered to your cell phone. There are no breaks, no pauses, just a constant deluge of news, all day, all night, without stopping.

Every single day, it seems there is a new emergency, something new to watch or be concerned about — entire communities fearful of their due rights being violated, people feeling unsafe, and wondering what’s next — all while our civil liberties, rights, and freedoms hang in the balance.

Undoubtedly, we’re living in historic times, and the uncertainty and high stakes take a toll on your mind and body.

But please remember that even though it’s a heavy time in our country, you must prioritize yourself, take a break from doom scrolling, and spend time doing things that bring you joy.

Find something that lets off some steam, and do it. Schedule a coffee date with an old friend or a new one. Invite some friends over for wine and dance. Read a book, start journaling, take a walk, do a YouTube dance video, listen to some music, or watch a movie you keep hearing about.

And if you are struggling with your mental health, talk to someone: a trusted friend, a family member, or a therapist. You can also call 866-903-3787 to speak to someone on the National Mental Health Hotline for free.

Fighting for our freedom, civil rights, and liberties requires long-term stamina and energy. It’s a never-ending fight, so it’s important to remember the long game. You can’t pour from an empty cup or run something with a dead battery.

Prioritize yourself and take time to power up and fill your cup. Those moments of levity will help you take care of yourself and keep the energy needed to show up when things come up.

It’s no secret that democracy is in decline in the United States.

The last few decades have seen an onslaught of 21st-century voter disenfranchisement campaigns, as politicians in states across the country pass restrictive voter ID laws, close polling places en masse, and draw hyper-partisan legislative districts designed to dilute the power of our votes and make it harder to cast a ballot – especially for Black, Brown and other marginalized communities.

But more recently, these anti-democratic forces have grown even more extreme, with the spread of conspiracies, election subversion, and a relentless deluge of disinformation sowing mass doubt in the integrity of our electoral process. And now, since the Trump administration has taken power, these machinations have crossed new thresholds, and nowhere has that been more evident of late than in Wisconsin.

In recent weeks, Wisconsin has faced some of the gravest government abuses of power of our time. On Friday, April 25, Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan was handcuffed, shackled and arrested on federal charges for allegedly obstructing justice by refusing to allow her normal courtroom processes to be commandeered by ICE agents who did not have a judicial warrant. 

Judges are not required to carry out federal immigration enforcement, and the administrative warrant ICE presented did not authorize them to disrupt regular courtroom business, to enter any private places in the courthouse, or to direct the judge’s actions – the FBI placed her under arrest to try to scare our public officials into becoming ICE assistants, which the law does not require of them.

Just seven days later, in another exercise of gross federal overreach, White House Border Czar Tom Homan vaguely threatened to arrest Governor Tony Evers for issuing a memo directing state employees to consult with government legal counsel before speaking with ICE agents who appear at state-owned buildings, legal guidance in line with several other states.

These egregious actions have shaken Wisconsin's democracy to its core. Instead of upholding his sworn oath to protect and defend the Constitution, President Trump and his administration are actively defying and dismantling it right before our eyes.  Flouting court orders, arresting sitting judges and targeting public officials for objecting to policy objectives is authoritarian and anathema to our system of checks and balances. All people must have their rights to due process,  and they must have the ability to express their beliefs, attend school, do their jobs, and go about their lives without fear of arbitrary detention, deportation, arrest or retaliation by the state.

In a democracy, we settle policy differences through robust debate, votes and elections. We make change by speaking our minds, protesting, organizing, and building together towards a better future. If we don’t reject these actions now and instead allow the government to jail people they disagree with and disappear others they don’t like, democracy won’t survive.

Luckily, the people of Wisconsin recognize what’s happening and are taking action. In the wake of Judge Dugan's arrest, protesters gathered outside the courthouse and the FBI building, and a coalition of advocates swiftly spoke out against calls to arrest Gov. Evers.

At the beginning of April, Wisconsin voters rejected the world’s richest man's attempt to buy our votes. We’ve also shown up at town halls to defend our neighbors most in need against attempts to gut Medicaid and Social Security, and we’ve marched in the streets in solidarity and gratitude with immigrant communities across the state.

Wisconsinites know what’s at stake in this moment. We have been fighting hard – for those we care about and those we’ll never meet. We need to keep fighting, to keep caring, to keep showing up for ourselves and our communities. If we want democracy to last, we have no other choice.