alec karakatsanis
@equalityalec.bsky.social
founder, Civil Rights Corps
civil rights lawyer
author of usual cruelty (2019) and
copaganda (2025)
any views expressed here are my own, and not those of civil rights corps
civil rights lawyer
author of usual cruelty (2019) and
copaganda (2025)
any views expressed here are my own, and not those of civil rights corps
One of many problems with "training" propaganda is that it portrays violence by government as unintentional and accidental. E.g., as something not central to what those in power *want* ICE to be doing. In other words, Democrats pushing "training" are lying to people about the goals:
January 19, 2026 at 6:37 PM
One of many problems with "training" propaganda is that it portrays violence by government as unintentional and accidental. E.g., as something not central to what those in power *want* ICE to be doing. In other words, Democrats pushing "training" are lying to people about the goals:
Later, I continued:
January 19, 2026 at 6:36 PM
Later, I continued:
In light of Democrats calling for more "training" for ICE, this passage from my book Copaganda seems relevant:
January 19, 2026 at 6:29 PM
In light of Democrats calling for more "training" for ICE, this passage from my book Copaganda seems relevant:
THREAD. Having just written a book about this and talked to a LOT of Democrats, I can assure you that neither Cory Booker nor the policing industry he’s advertising think that more money for ICE “training” and tech would address any problem that any person of good will has with what ICE is doing.
January 18, 2026 at 3:09 PM
THREAD. Having just written a book about this and talked to a LOT of Democrats, I can assure you that neither Cory Booker nor the policing industry he’s advertising think that more money for ICE “training” and tech would address any problem that any person of good will has with what ICE is doing.
THREAD. Anyone who is telling you that Democrats should strategically be starting conversations about whether ICE needs better "training" is completely out of their mind.
January 14, 2026 at 4:07 PM
THREAD. Anyone who is telling you that Democrats should strategically be starting conversations about whether ICE needs better "training" is completely out of their mind.
Chapter 2 of Copaganda explains why this is important, and how manipulating the volume of news is one way powerful institutions get us afraid of the most vulnerable people in society and unbothered by the far more consequential crimes of those with money and power.
January 12, 2026 at 8:03 PM
Chapter 2 of Copaganda explains why this is important, and how manipulating the volume of news is one way powerful institutions get us afraid of the most vulnerable people in society and unbothered by the far more consequential crimes of those with money and power.
Air pollution kills over 100,000 people every year in the U.S., about 5 times all homicide combined. But you won't see wall-to-wall coverage of Trump's deadly announcement. The *volume* of news coverage affects who and what we are afraid of, and which larger threats we ignore.
January 12, 2026 at 8:03 PM
Air pollution kills over 100,000 people every year in the U.S., about 5 times all homicide combined. But you won't see wall-to-wall coverage of Trump's deadly announcement. The *volume* of news coverage affects who and what we are afraid of, and which larger threats we ignore.
In the chapter of Copaganda called The Big Deception, I talk about how this is one of the most important tactics of propaganda: portraying the stated motives of powerful people as their actual ones, and more broadly, lying about deeper reasons and causes for what things happen.
January 12, 2026 at 5:26 PM
In the chapter of Copaganda called The Big Deception, I talk about how this is one of the most important tactics of propaganda: portraying the stated motives of powerful people as their actual ones, and more broadly, lying about deeper reasons and causes for what things happen.
As I explain with many examples in Copaganda, these systems are functioning exactly as they are designed. This is what they are trained to do. This is what they keep doing. The reasons police policies and behavior are the same in hundreds of cities is that it is intentional.
January 9, 2026 at 4:02 PM
As I explain with many examples in Copaganda, these systems are functioning exactly as they are designed. This is what they are trained to do. This is what they keep doing. The reasons police policies and behavior are the same in hundreds of cities is that it is intentional.
As PBS and mainstream pundits and Democrats call for more money to ICE for "training," here's what's happening in the real world:
January 9, 2026 at 4:02 PM
As PBS and mainstream pundits and Democrats call for more money to ICE for "training," here's what's happening in the real world:
Here he is mocking Noem for not being cruel enough. You genuinely cannot make this stuff up. Dozens of Democrats voting to praise ICE, sponsoring the Laken Riley Act, hugging and laughing with Rubio. These people are walking us off the cliff.
January 9, 2026 at 12:05 AM
Here he is mocking Noem for not being cruel enough. You genuinely cannot make this stuff up. Dozens of Democrats voting to praise ICE, sponsoring the Laken Riley Act, hugging and laughing with Rubio. These people are walking us off the cliff.
I have been tracking Democratic Senator Chris Murphy's public comments for some time. He's been one of the most cartoonish boosters of ICE and depraved purveyors of anti-immigrant sentiment. Any movement to make our world less violent and more just cannot have such leaders.
January 9, 2026 at 12:05 AM
I have been tracking Democratic Senator Chris Murphy's public comments for some time. He's been one of the most cartoonish boosters of ICE and depraved purveyors of anti-immigrant sentiment. Any movement to make our world less violent and more just cannot have such leaders.
The coverage of the ICE execution by PBS has been shameful. It's a case study in copaganda. They brought on Obama's former ICE director to distract from core issues, sow confusion about whether what happened was justified, and promote more $$ for police/ICE "training" industry.
January 8, 2026 at 4:26 PM
The coverage of the ICE execution by PBS has been shameful. It's a case study in copaganda. They brought on Obama's former ICE director to distract from core issues, sow confusion about whether what happened was justified, and promote more $$ for police/ICE "training" industry.
Both of my books--Usual Cruelty and Copaganda--are always available for free to people who are incarcerated and to teachers who want to teach the books but whose students can't afford it. Don't hesitate to reach out to me if you're interested. Here's the free paperback version:
January 6, 2026 at 3:44 PM
Both of my books--Usual Cruelty and Copaganda--are always available for free to people who are incarcerated and to teachers who want to teach the books but whose students can't afford it. Don't hesitate to reach out to me if you're interested. Here's the free paperback version:
There are moments the mask is removed, and all the lies evaporate. This quote by a District Attorney in California is incredible. He says the volume of shackled poor people brought to court--what he calls the "cattle call"--makes it impossible to consider them as individuals.
December 29, 2025 at 7:02 PM
There are moments the mask is removed, and all the lies evaporate. This quote by a District Attorney in California is incredible. He says the volume of shackled poor people brought to court--what he calls the "cattle call"--makes it impossible to consider them as individuals.
My 94-year-old grandmother is doing some light reading.
December 25, 2025 at 2:43 PM
My 94-year-old grandmother is doing some light reading.
Thousands of articles, podcasts, and "think pieces" where liberals dismiss "defund" as unpopular, and yet the policy demand to reduce the size of police, prosecutor, and prison budgets is one of the most popular, consistently polled issues in the U.S: equalityalec.substack.com/p/convention...
December 21, 2025 at 7:35 PM
Thousands of articles, podcasts, and "think pieces" where liberals dismiss "defund" as unpopular, and yet the policy demand to reduce the size of police, prosecutor, and prison budgets is one of the most popular, consistently polled issues in the U.S: equalityalec.substack.com/p/convention...
A full, official editorial today in the New York Times. Not an op-ed. The statements and images are made on behalf of the paper itself.
December 9, 2025 at 2:36 AM
A full, official editorial today in the New York Times. Not an op-ed. The statements and images are made on behalf of the paper itself.
Torture is a feature of life in thousands of US jails and prisons. It’s often blamed on “guards,” but someone had to design this contraption, build it, plan its use, and run it up the chain of command. Judges and lawyers had to create a legal regime where this stuff pervades for decades.
December 5, 2025 at 3:29 PM
Torture is a feature of life in thousands of US jails and prisons. It’s often blamed on “guards,” but someone had to design this contraption, build it, plan its use, and run it up the chain of command. Judges and lawyers had to create a legal regime where this stuff pervades for decades.
There’s no hope of an anti-fascist coalition if journalists do stuff like this without accountability. Crime was *down* under Boudin, who barely changed anything! It’d be like the SF Chronicle saying: “many in the city blame Boudin for city’s children becoming flat-earthers.”
November 30, 2025 at 1:49 PM
There’s no hope of an anti-fascist coalition if journalists do stuff like this without accountability. Crime was *down* under Boudin, who barely changed anything! It’d be like the SF Chronicle saying: “many in the city blame Boudin for city’s children becoming flat-earthers.”
I want you to understand that while news media and politicians were fearmongering every day about shoplifting in SF (while property crime was *down*), THIS was happening: "the inhalation of one-millionth of an ounce will cause cancer with a virtual 100% statistical certainty."
November 28, 2025 at 4:50 PM
I want you to understand that while news media and politicians were fearmongering every day about shoplifting in SF (while property crime was *down*), THIS was happening: "the inhalation of one-millionth of an ounce will cause cancer with a virtual 100% statistical certainty."
Lots of different options:
November 25, 2025 at 8:56 PM
Lots of different options:
The Washington Post is just straight up spreading misinformation. Total witchcraft. Not a single person at the Post has any basis for the claim that "increased enforcement of tougher laws" either happened at all or reduced murder. Maybe someone should write a book about it...
November 20, 2025 at 6:39 PM
The Washington Post is just straight up spreading misinformation. Total witchcraft. Not a single person at the Post has any basis for the claim that "increased enforcement of tougher laws" either happened at all or reduced murder. Maybe someone should write a book about it...
This Thursday at lunch I have the honor of giving a public lecture at Berkeley Law School about propaganda and the complicity of liberal institutions in this authoritarian moment. My grandma say that if you're in the Bay Area you absolutely cannot miss this.
November 18, 2025 at 6:31 PM
This Thursday at lunch I have the honor of giving a public lecture at Berkeley Law School about propaganda and the complicity of liberal institutions in this authoritarian moment. My grandma say that if you're in the Bay Area you absolutely cannot miss this.
In the U.S. and UK, university administrators are trying to crush those who speak for truth and kindness in a world of lies and cruelty. Battles like this get little attention, but they affect what every teacher feels free to say in every moment. Profoundly shapes our world.
November 11, 2025 at 3:47 PM
In the U.S. and UK, university administrators are trying to crush those who speak for truth and kindness in a world of lies and cruelty. Battles like this get little attention, but they affect what every teacher feels free to say in every moment. Profoundly shapes our world.