Jan-Werner Müller Urges 1st Amendment-Protected 'Escraches' Against US Authoritarians
Updated
Updated · The Guardian · Jun 15
Jan-Werner Müller Urges 1st Amendment-Protected 'Escraches' Against US Authoritarians
1 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Jun 15
Summary
Jan-Werner Müller argues Americans should use peaceful “escraches” — noisy, public shaming protests outside perpetrators’ homes — if Democrats fail to impose accountability on authoritarian actors.
He ties that call to what he describes as Trump 2.0 impunity, citing pardons for violent January 6 rioters and former officials such as Greg Bovino and Tina Peters profiting from extremism and election conspiracy claims.
Argentina’s post-dictatorship experience is his model: citizens used nonviolent marches, theater, graffiti and red paint to expose human-rights abusers who escaped punishment under amnesty deals.
Müller acknowledges risks of vigilantism, tit-for-tat escalation and repression, but says announced, nonviolent escraches should fall under First Amendment protections for speech and assembly.
He adds that recent court wins for protesters, including the Broadview Six, suggest authorities often target dissent arbitrarily rather than because of protesters’ actual conduct.
When public shaming becomes a tool for justice, where is the line between protected speech and dangerous vigilantism?
As controversial ideologies gain official platforms, how can citizens effectively counter them without eroding democratic norms?
What are the long-term consequences when public figures gain influence not despite, but because of, their controversial pasts?
Escraches in America: Legal, Historical, and Political Challenges of Public Protest in the Trump Era
Overview
This report explores Jan-Werner Müller's 2026 call for escraches—nonviolent, public protests outside the homes of those accused of abuses—as a response to fears that U.S. democratic institutions may fail to hold authoritarian actors accountable, especially if a second Trump administration comes to power. Drawing on historical roots like medieval charivari, the report explains how escraches can become a vital tool for public dissent when traditional avenues for justice are seen as ineffective. It also examines the legal, historical, and political challenges of adopting such tactics in the current U.S. context, where risks of repression and surveillance are high.