Orwell’s dystopian society becomes reality in Trump’s America

The adjective “Orwellian” comes to mind as I check my phone and am inundated with more news about the Trump administration. Only 18 days into his Presidency, Trump announced, “any negative polls are fake news” on Twitter.

Perhaps you are familiar with the term “Orwellian.” It emerged from the works of George Orwell and is used to describe conditions that are destructive to an open society. In the book Nineteen Eighty-Four (1984), Orwell imagined a dystopian society that was under constant surveillance and controlled by propaganda.

“It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.” ― George Orwell, 1984

In Orwell’s society, the state Party determined the role of information and encouraged doublethink (the acceptance of inconsistent concepts without question) among citizens. Subsequently, the mass population accepted misinformation and lies from the Party as truth.

The idea that we are living in a dystopian society very similar to the one in 1984 is not new or original. However, in the first three weeks of Trump’s presidency, there are clear signs that we are witnessing the making of a totalitarian regime in America.

Propaganda through control of the media

“Power is in tearing human minds to pieces and putting them together again in new shapes of your own choosing.” ― George Orwell, 1984

The Trump administration has ceaselessly accused the media of disseminating ‘fake news,’ while showing support for select conservative media outlets such as Fox News.

Steve Bannon, assistant to the president and chief strategist and the former executive chair of the controversial alt-right website Breitbart News, declared mainstream media the “opposition party” and demanded that the media keep its mouth shut.

Furthermore, the White House threatens to tighten its grip on mainstream media by taking over seat assignment in the White House press briefings. Previous administrations left seat assignments to the White House Correspondents Association to avoid the appearance of press favoritism.

By discrediting the integrity of news media, the Trump administration has waged an information war. Anti-media is on the rise and Americans have begun to question the legitimacy of news sources, leaving doubt and confusion to fester.

A free press is more than an exercise of free speech; it is instrumental to the functioning of a democratic society. A free press allows for diverse perspectives and equips the public to make informed opinions by holding institutions, politicians and businesses accountable. Without a free press, information becomes propaganda meant to further the agenda of those in power.

Surveillance

“Winston kept his back turned to the telescreen. It was safer, though, as he well knew, even a back can be revealing.” ― George Orwell, 1984

The President is a proponent of enhanced surveillance that will determine if people are linked to terrorism based on facial features, behavior and biological characteristics. The government will gather and store information about individuals with certain facial features or characteristics without their knowledge. Simply put, this is racial profiling in its worst form.

Misinformation and Lies

“Reality exists in the human mind, and nowhere else.” ― George Orwell, 1984

Our President is a liar. Reputable news organizations, such as The Washington Post and U.S. News, have provided evidence that Trump has knowingly told falsehoods and blatantly disregarded the truth with malice intentions i.e.: Thousands, primarily Arab, people in New Jersey cheered the destruction of the Twin Towers; the murder rate in America is the highest it has been in 47 years; 81 percent of white murder victims are killed by black people; the press is trying to cover up terrorism by underreporting terrorist attacks; millions of people voted illegally, and the list goes on.

Lies can blur the truth and change people’s perception of reality when they are told often enough and repeated frequently enough.

“Doublethink”

“For, after all, how do we know that two and two make four? Or that the force of gravity works? Or that the past is unchangeable? If both the past and the external world exist only in the mind, and if the mind itself is controllable – what then?” ― George Orwell, 1984

The introduction of “alternative facts” and made-up events to mainstream society has become a staple of the Trump administration. The term “alternative facts” was used to defend White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer after he misreported the attendance at Trump’s inauguration. While this incident may seem trivial, it demonstrates the lengths to which the Trump Administration will go to reinvent what they want Americans to believe.

The White House essentially asks Americans to accept inconsistent concepts as true; exactly what Orwell called “doublethink.”

Writing on the Wall

The evidence of a rising American totalitarian government is mounting as Trump continues to undermine his opposition and centralize power.

What we are witnessing is the groundwork for a transition into a closed society, and it is nothing short of terrifying. How quickly we forget the American internment camps during WWII that resulted in the incarceration and forced relocation of approximately 120,000 Japanese people, most of whom were American citizens.

Millions of people cling to the hope for equality and justice in the fight against institutionalized discrimination. However, there are also millions of people who believe that the President is taking reasonable measures to protect America, and those people will gladly trade in the freedom of others for the illusion of security.

“And at the same time the consciousness of being at war, and therefore in danger, makes the handing-over of all power to a small caste seem the natural, unavoidable condition of survival.” ― George Orwell, 1984