Sandra Raponi
@sraponi.bsky.social
Philosophy professor, Honors faculty.
JD, PhD. Political & legal philosophy, global justice, international human rights law.
Working on human rights-based climate litigation, right to food, right to water, refugees, online speech.
Zen Buddhism.
JD, PhD. Political & legal philosophy, global justice, international human rights law.
Working on human rights-based climate litigation, right to food, right to water, refugees, online speech.
Zen Buddhism.
We are seeing what Ernst Fraenkel called “the dual state.” For most, life is routine and the rule of law exists. But if you interact with ICE, you face the full force of the prerogative state, which is marked by “unlimited arbitrariness and violence unchecked by any legal guarantees.”
January 31, 2026 at 1:06 PM
We are seeing what Ernst Fraenkel called “the dual state.” For most, life is routine and the rule of law exists. But if you interact with ICE, you face the full force of the prerogative state, which is marked by “unlimited arbitrariness and violence unchecked by any legal guarantees.”
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
White House with image of a Black man and an emoji of chains.
And the chosen image is of Don Lemon doing journalism.
And the chosen image is of Don Lemon doing journalism.
the White House's official X account gloats over the arrest of Don Lemon with a chains emoji
January 30, 2026 at 3:29 PM
White House with image of a Black man and an emoji of chains.
And the chosen image is of Don Lemon doing journalism.
And the chosen image is of Don Lemon doing journalism.
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
Last week in Minnesota, I watched ordinary people risk their lives to protect their neighbors. In the process, they not only won a significant—though not final—victory against authoritarianism, they proved virtually every MAGA social theory wrong. (gift link) www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
January 27, 2026 at 1:06 PM
Last week in Minnesota, I watched ordinary people risk their lives to protect their neighbors. In the process, they not only won a significant—though not final—victory against authoritarianism, they proved virtually every MAGA social theory wrong. (gift link) www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/0...
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
Since we published this, Pam Bondi's X account has started posting mugshots of Minnesotans arrested for impeding ICE/CBP. Sharing a defendant's photo publicly in this way is forbidden under DOJ rules
ICE and CBP are at the head of Trump's campaign to terrorize Minnesotans. But the Justice Department is not far behind.
ICE’s No. 1 Ally
The Department of Justice has rushed to shield federal agents from accountability and launched needless criminal investigations into Minnesota officials and residents.
www.theatlantic.com
January 28, 2026 at 8:23 PM
Since we published this, Pam Bondi's X account has started posting mugshots of Minnesotans arrested for impeding ICE/CBP. Sharing a defendant's photo publicly in this way is forbidden under DOJ rules
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
I wrote this song on Saturday, recorded it yesterday and released it to you today in response to the state terror being visited on the city of Minneapolis. It’s dedicated to the people of Minneapolis, our innocent immigrant neighbors and in memory of Alex Pretti and Renee Good.
Stay free
Stay free
Bruce Springsteen - Streets Of Minneapolis (Official Audio)
YouTube video by Bruce Springsteen
youtu.be
January 28, 2026 at 5:02 PM
I wrote this song on Saturday, recorded it yesterday and released it to you today in response to the state terror being visited on the city of Minneapolis. It’s dedicated to the people of Minneapolis, our innocent immigrant neighbors and in memory of Alex Pretti and Renee Good.
Stay free
Stay free
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
An essay as beautiful as it is insightful from @michaelpollan.bsky.social on the self & consciousness. The Buddhists figured out a good deal about how the mind works centuries ago, and there are few better guides than @joanhalifax.bsky.social, as Michael discovered.
How to Have a ‘Don’t-Know Mind’
My quest to understand consciousness took me to a cave in New Mexico and then deep into the cosmos.
www.theatlantic.com
January 27, 2026 at 1:36 AM
An essay as beautiful as it is insightful from @michaelpollan.bsky.social on the self & consciousness. The Buddhists figured out a good deal about how the mind works centuries ago, and there are few better guides than @joanhalifax.bsky.social, as Michael discovered.
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
"behind the violence in Minneapolis—captured in so many chilling photographs in recent weeks—is a different reality: a meticulous urban choreography of civic protest."
from Robert worth, @theatlantic.com
www.theatlantic.com/politics/202...
from Robert worth, @theatlantic.com
www.theatlantic.com/politics/202...
Welcome to the American Winter
In the frozen streets of Minneapolis, something profound is happening.
www.theatlantic.com
January 26, 2026 at 9:48 AM
"behind the violence in Minneapolis—captured in so many chilling photographs in recent weeks—is a different reality: a meticulous urban choreography of civic protest."
from Robert worth, @theatlantic.com
www.theatlantic.com/politics/202...
from Robert worth, @theatlantic.com
www.theatlantic.com/politics/202...
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
“Hold your beliefs with strength, but always extend love outward, even in the face of adversity.
Take one step, no matter how small, to help heal our world. Through these acts, carry his light forward in his name. Let his legacy continue to heal.”
Take one step, no matter how small, to help heal our world. Through these acts, carry his light forward in his name. Let his legacy continue to heal.”
January 26, 2026 at 7:57 AM
“Hold your beliefs with strength, but always extend love outward, even in the face of adversity.
Take one step, no matter how small, to help heal our world. Through these acts, carry his light forward in his name. Let his legacy continue to heal.”
Take one step, no matter how small, to help heal our world. Through these acts, carry his light forward in his name. Let his legacy continue to heal.”
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
For many in the Trump regime it seems incomprehensible or a scam of sorts that those not categorically under attack by ICE are so committed to solidarity with their neighbors who are, and thereby to universal human rights, to standing up on principle, and will risk their lives to do so.....
This Cold Winter, Love Is a Superpower
There are great days and terrible days in history, days a nation or world changed, that you remember forever. For me that's the fall of the Berlin Wall, the rise of the Zapatistas, 9/11, Hurricane Kat...
www.meditationsinanemergency.com
January 25, 2026 at 6:56 PM
For many in the Trump regime it seems incomprehensible or a scam of sorts that those not categorically under attack by ICE are so committed to solidarity with their neighbors who are, and thereby to universal human rights, to standing up on principle, and will risk their lives to do so.....
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
If you're living somewhere outside the USA, one thing you can do is pressure your leaders to boycott World Cup and Olympic events here.
January 24, 2026 at 8:29 PM
If you're living somewhere outside the USA, one thing you can do is pressure your leaders to boycott World Cup and Olympic events here.
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
I think a lot of us get hope wrong. Hope, I do not believe, is an emotion. In fact, hope makes space for lots of emotions to exist alongside it. You can DO hope scared, angry, sad etc...
Hope doesn't find us. We make hope through action and struggle. It's a practice of living and is re-made daily.
Hope doesn't find us. We make hope through action and struggle. It's a practice of living and is re-made daily.
January 25, 2026 at 2:05 AM
I think a lot of us get hope wrong. Hope, I do not believe, is an emotion. In fact, hope makes space for lots of emotions to exist alongside it. You can DO hope scared, angry, sad etc...
Hope doesn't find us. We make hope through action and struggle. It's a practice of living and is re-made daily.
Hope doesn't find us. We make hope through action and struggle. It's a practice of living and is re-made daily.
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
On one side is a nurse and a poet dying while saying “Are you okay?” and “I'm not even mad at you dude"
And on the other side are armed officers of the state saying “Boo hoo” and “Fucking bitch.”
And they want you to believe the first side are the domestic terrorists.
And on the other side are armed officers of the state saying “Boo hoo” and “Fucking bitch.”
And they want you to believe the first side are the domestic terrorists.
Alex Pretti’s last words were “are you ok?” said the woman next to him who ICE also pepper sprayed in the face.
January 24, 2026 at 8:31 PM
On one side is a nurse and a poet dying while saying “Are you okay?” and “I'm not even mad at you dude"
And on the other side are armed officers of the state saying “Boo hoo” and “Fucking bitch.”
And they want you to believe the first side are the domestic terrorists.
And on the other side are armed officers of the state saying “Boo hoo” and “Fucking bitch.”
And they want you to believe the first side are the domestic terrorists.
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
What we are watching is a paramilitary force learning that they can kill with impunity, that the regime will smear the victim and defend them. Unless politicians and the legal system exerts accountability, it will not stop. donmoynihan.substack.com/p/past-the-b...
January 24, 2026 at 4:32 PM
What we are watching is a paramilitary force learning that they can kill with impunity, that the regime will smear the victim and defend them. Unless politicians and the legal system exerts accountability, it will not stop. donmoynihan.substack.com/p/past-the-b...
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
In his first year back in the White House, President Trump has presided over a sweeping expansion of executive power while eroding democratic norms. n.pr/3YVl5Q3
How President Trump has challenged a constitutional foundation
In his first year back in the White House, President Trump has presided over a sweeping expansion of executive power while eroding democratic norms.
n.pr
January 23, 2026 at 11:12 AM
In his first year back in the White House, President Trump has presided over a sweeping expansion of executive power while eroding democratic norms. n.pr/3YVl5Q3
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
This is tomorrow’s front page for The Minnesota Star Tribune. In a moment in which much of legacy media are enabling and condoning the worst actions of the Trump admin, the reporters and editors of the Star Tribune are not holding back one bit.
January 23, 2026 at 4:32 AM
This is tomorrow’s front page for The Minnesota Star Tribune. In a moment in which much of legacy media are enabling and condoning the worst actions of the Trump admin, the reporters and editors of the Star Tribune are not holding back one bit.
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
ICE’s new policy directing agents to ignore the 4th Amendment is one of the most frightening things we’ve seen yet. And there’s no telling where it could end up. open.substack.com/pub/joycevan...
Breaking the Fourth Amendment
Last night, we learned from a report in the Associated Press that ICE, contrary to longstanding Fourth Amendment jurisprudence, is taking the position that it can enter people’s homes without a judici...
open.substack.com
January 23, 2026 at 6:04 AM
ICE’s new policy directing agents to ignore the 4th Amendment is one of the most frightening things we’ve seen yet. And there’s no telling where it could end up. open.substack.com/pub/joycevan...
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
Tomorrow’s front page of the Minnesota Star Tribune: Jan. 23, 2026
January 22, 2026 at 11:19 PM
Tomorrow’s front page of the Minnesota Star Tribune: Jan. 23, 2026
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
🚨HOLY CRAP. An ICE whistleblower just revealed a secret memo authorizing ICE officers to break into homes without a judicial warrant, which DHS's own legal training materials say is unconstitutional!
ICE then hid the memo from the public, passing it along by word of mouth and private conversation.
ICE then hid the memo from the public, passing it along by word of mouth and private conversation.
January 21, 2026 at 10:00 PM
🚨HOLY CRAP. An ICE whistleblower just revealed a secret memo authorizing ICE officers to break into homes without a judicial warrant, which DHS's own legal training materials say is unconstitutional!
ICE then hid the memo from the public, passing it along by word of mouth and private conversation.
ICE then hid the memo from the public, passing it along by word of mouth and private conversation.
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
Appreciate this from @dandrezner.bsky.social, and it was an honor to co-author with him.
Today’s newsletter is about a natural experiment that happened on Bluesky yesterday. danieldrezner.substack.com/p/on-trump-a...
On Trump, Anarchy, and a Natural Experiment
My latest co-authored essay for Foreign Affairs.
danieldrezner.substack.com
January 21, 2026 at 12:47 PM
Appreciate this from @dandrezner.bsky.social, and it was an honor to co-author with him.
“In a world of great power rivalry, the countries in-between have a choice: compete with each other for favour, or combine to create a third path with impact: …the power of legitimacy, integrity, and rules will remain strong if we choose to wield it together.”
January 21, 2026 at 3:45 AM
“In a world of great power rivalry, the countries in-between have a choice: compete with each other for favour, or combine to create a third path with impact: …the power of legitimacy, integrity, and rules will remain strong if we choose to wield it together.”
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
You're paying for this.
Trump's Big Ugly Bill gave BILLIONS to ICE and giant corporations—using money meant to lower your health care costs.
Instead of helping your mom get cancer treatment, your tax dollars are being used to terrorize communities.
Trump's Big Ugly Bill gave BILLIONS to ICE and giant corporations—using money meant to lower your health care costs.
Instead of helping your mom get cancer treatment, your tax dollars are being used to terrorize communities.
CNN airs a compilation of escalating ICE aggression towards peaceful protesters.
January 16, 2026 at 9:52 PM
You're paying for this.
Trump's Big Ugly Bill gave BILLIONS to ICE and giant corporations—using money meant to lower your health care costs.
Instead of helping your mom get cancer treatment, your tax dollars are being used to terrorize communities.
Trump's Big Ugly Bill gave BILLIONS to ICE and giant corporations—using money meant to lower your health care costs.
Instead of helping your mom get cancer treatment, your tax dollars are being used to terrorize communities.
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
Some people were confused by my ICE post. This should clear it up.
January 17, 2026 at 1:43 AM
Some people were confused by my ICE post. This should clear it up.
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
This is a transparent attempt to create a pretext for invoking the Insurrection Act.
One provision applies when a group of people "opposes or obstructs the execution of the laws of the United States or impedes the course of justice under those laws." And when it's (allegedly) the state itself...
One provision applies when a group of people "opposes or obstructs the execution of the laws of the United States or impedes the course of justice under those laws." And when it's (allegedly) the state itself...
Trump escalates his attack on Minnesota Democrats as Justice Department launches a criminal investigation into Gov Walz and Mayor Frey apparently on the theory that their objections to ICE amount to illegal interference, sources tell @perrystein.bsky.social www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...
Justice Dept. launches criminal investigation of Minnesota governor
The Justice Department has issued subpoenas for Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey as part of an investigation into impeding law enforcement.
www.washingtonpost.com
January 16, 2026 at 11:33 PM
This is a transparent attempt to create a pretext for invoking the Insurrection Act.
One provision applies when a group of people "opposes or obstructs the execution of the laws of the United States or impedes the course of justice under those laws." And when it's (allegedly) the state itself...
One provision applies when a group of people "opposes or obstructs the execution of the laws of the United States or impedes the course of justice under those laws." And when it's (allegedly) the state itself...
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
For people elsewhere who have asked how to support Minnesota while we’re overrun with nazi thugs, here’s an excellent list of places that could use financial help. Lots of choices. Thank you so much!
docs.google.com/document/d/1...
docs.google.com/document/d/1...
Stand With Minnesota: Resource Hub
Causes to Donate to in Minnesota to Help Our Communities Defend Themselves from ICE This list is now available/shareable at standwithminnesota.org *Note: I am from Minnesota, and these come from peo...
docs.google.com
January 15, 2026 at 2:48 AM
For people elsewhere who have asked how to support Minnesota while we’re overrun with nazi thugs, here’s an excellent list of places that could use financial help. Lots of choices. Thank you so much!
docs.google.com/document/d/1...
docs.google.com/document/d/1...
Reposted by Sandra Raponi
My recent conversation: What Is Engaged Buddhism? with the great @joanhalifax.bsky.social now available on The Road Home podcast.
You can subscribe to the substack or download wherever you get your pods (please *don't* use Spotify, thank you deep bows).
ethannichtern.substack.com/p/ep-164-wha...
You can subscribe to the substack or download wherever you get your pods (please *don't* use Spotify, thank you deep bows).
ethannichtern.substack.com/p/ep-164-wha...
Ep. 164 - What is Engaged Buddhism? A Conversation with Roshi Joan Halifax
Listen now | At a recent event in support of Dharma Moon’s Yearlong Buddhist Studies program on January 6th, Ethan was joined by the great Roshi Joan Halifax, to discuss the practice, history and theo...
ethannichtern.substack.com
January 10, 2026 at 3:50 PM
My recent conversation: What Is Engaged Buddhism? with the great @joanhalifax.bsky.social now available on The Road Home podcast.
You can subscribe to the substack or download wherever you get your pods (please *don't* use Spotify, thank you deep bows).
ethannichtern.substack.com/p/ep-164-wha...
You can subscribe to the substack or download wherever you get your pods (please *don't* use Spotify, thank you deep bows).
ethannichtern.substack.com/p/ep-164-wha...