The Slippery Slope: How the Erosion of Our Rights Begins

They start with the small things to break you in—before you know it, everything’s gone.

Image Copyright © of Petty AF (Auntie’s Files)

Chile, the way rights are being snatched up like Black Friday deals on a flat-screen TV should have everyone paying attention. But the gag is, most folks won’t realize what’s happening until it’s too late.

Let’s talk about this mess with the White House and the Associated Press (AP). The AP refused to call the Gulf of Mexico by Trump’s newly made-up name, the “Gulf of America,” and in response, the administration straight-up banned AP reporters from covering presidential events. You heard me right—journalists, whose entire job is to keep the public informed, were kicked out because they didn’t play along with this ridiculous rebranding stunt.

Now, I know some of y’all might be thinking, “Well, it’s just a name change. No big deal, right?” WRONG. This is how it starts. They introduce a little nonsense, punish those who don’t comply, and before you know it, that “little” nonsense turns into a full-blown dictatorship playbook.

Press Freedom Ain’t a Suggestion—It’s a Right

The First Amendment isn’t just a fancy decoration in the Constitution—it’s the foundation of a free press. Journalists are supposed to report facts, not push government-approved language like they work for state propaganda. And let’s be real: If the government can strong-arm the media into rewriting geography to fit their agenda, what else can they rewrite? History? Science? Facts themselves?

This whole situation is textbook authoritarianism. The Inter American Press Association didn’t waste time calling it what it is—censorship and intimidation. And they’re right.

The government’s job isn’t to dictate what words the press can or can’t use. But this administration? They’re testing the waters. And if folks keep shrugging it off like “it’s not that deep,” we’ll be drowning in outright suppression before long.