That’s what Lewis meant when he said: Get in good trouble, necessary trouble.
Today, that kind of trouble gets you flagged, bagged, or disappeared.
No kings. That’s still the point.
But the kingless republic only survives if someone makes noise when the process goes quiet. If someone shows up at a courtroom, or a protest, or a ballot counting station—and stays.
You depose wannabe kings with “good trouble.” But that only works when the good troublemakers aren’t silenced.
Bibliography
1. U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida.
2. Order Granting Summary Judgment in Public Records Act Violation, Case No. 4:22-cv-106 , 2022.
3. A federal ruling affirming the violation of First Amendment rights in a public records denial. Cited to demonstrate judicial recognition of transparency as a constitutional issue.
4. Madison, James.
5. Federalist No.
6. In The Federalist Papers , 1788.
7. Foundational political theory arguing for checks and balances as a safeguard against centralized power. Referenced as the philosophical root of “resistance by design.”
8. American Civil Liberties Union.
9. “ACLU Wins Lawsuit Against Missouri Drag Show Ban.” Press Release, August 2023.
10. Details the legal overturning of Missouri’s anti-drag law. Supports the section on high school protest and state overreach in regulating identity expression.
11. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
12. “Operation at Bean Station Plant.” Agency Bulletin, April 2018.
13. Describes a mass workplace raid later ruled unconstitutional. Used to illustrate the generational harm of warrantless ICE actions on immigrant families.
14. Sotomayor, Sonia.
15. Dissent in Egbert v. Boule , U.S. Supreme Court, 2022.
16. Justice Sotomayor warns of unchecked executive power and its implications for constitutional accountability. Referenced in the article’s broader argument on erosion of remedies.
17. National Archives.
18. “The Bill of Rights and the Ninth Amendment.” National Constitution Center, 2021.
19. Explains the purpose of the Ninth Amendment in protecting unenumerated rights, including privacy. Forms the legal basis for critiques of digital surveillance and browser search tracking.
20. Liptak, Adam.
21. “In Abortion Cases, Privacy Rights Are Reexamined.” New York Times , May 2024.