Civil Liberties

Highlights:

The Trump Administration’s Use of State Power: Keeping Track of the Big Picture

Tracking the use of State power requires systematically identifying linkages between individual developments and broader trends. This graphic offers one method.
A photo taken on April 25, 2024 shows a television transmission of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban

Autocracy, Corruption, and Decline: Why Hungary and Orbanism Must Never be a Model for the U.S.

Adopting Orban's model would reshape the U.S. into a country that shares Hungary's weakened checks and balances, corruption, and stumbling economy.
Binders of executive orders stacked on a desk.

Collection: Just Security’s Coverage of Trump Administration Executive Actions

Coverage of key developments, including in concise “What Just Happened” expert explainers, legal and policy analysis, and more. Check back frequently for updates.
People walk by a photo of commanders killed by Israel

From War to Control: How the Recent Iran-Israel Conflict Risks Deepening the Islamic Republic’s Repression

The ceasefire may stop the bombs, but it will not reverse the repression that has long defined Islamic Republic’s internal trajectory.
A sign for the US Department of Homeland Security in Washington, DC, March 24, 2025. (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images)

How DHS’s New Social Media Vetting Policies Threaten Free Speech

A pair of cables issued by the State Department that are ostensibly intended to combat antisemitism will inevitably chill or punish First Amendment-protected speech.
A U.S. Army reviewing stand continues to be built in front of the White House ahead of the Army's 250th birthday parade and celebration on June 11, 2025 in Washington, DC. Tanks and other heavy military equipment have arrived in the Nation's Capital for a military parade in honor of the U.S. Army's 250th anniversary, which coincides with President Donald Trump's birthday and Flag Day. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

The Military Parade and Protections of the First Amendment

The President’s invocation of purported authority to deploy the military in response to free speech raises alarming applications of untested laws meant only for emergencies.
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People take part in a protest in Trafalgar Square after marching through London ahead of the first anniversary of the death of Mahsa Amini, on September 13, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

Safeguarding Evidence: The Coalition that Preserved Content from Iran’s “Women, Life, Freedom” Protests

Woman, Life, Freedom victims and survivors have been asking the world for help. It is time to amplify their calls and turn these cries for justice into reality.
National Guard soldiers and US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Police officers clash with demonstrators outside the Metropolitan Detention Center, MDC, in downtown Los Angeles, California on June 8, 2025. (Photo by FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)

“The Insurrection Act” by Any Other Name: Unpacking Trump’s Memorandum Authorizing Domestic Deployment of the Military

"The Memorandum ... raises many of the same concerns as an Insurrection Act invocation would, and that could end up looking quite similar in practice."
As family members and activists watch as people are loaded into transport vans after they were taken into custody at the offices of a homeland security contractor on June 04, 2025 in Chicago, Illinois. About a dozen immigrants were taken into custody. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Unequal Before the Law: How Trump’s Death Penalty Order Codifies Dangerous Speech

Tying the harshest punishment the state can impose to the identity of the accused is dangerous speech that can increase the risk of intergroup violence.
Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev and Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan

Threats Lurk Behind the Scenes in Azerbaijan’s Talk of Peace With Armenia

Azerbaijan's push for peace with Armenia masks its expansionism and business dealings that should raise alarms for the global community.

Big Tents and Collective Action Can Defeat Authoritarianism

The journey from individual angst to collective action and shared humanity takes time, vision, and commitment. Cases around the world show it is also the pathway to victory.
US President Donald Trump (R) walks with Russia's President Vladimir Putin (L)

When the Free Press Falters: What America Can Learn from Russia’s Descent

The unraveling of press freedom in the United States mirrors Putin's capture of the Russian media, write two experts who know both terrains.
An American flag behind a judges bench in a courtroom

Judicial Deference and Presidential Power Under the Alien Enemies Act

Where judges have in the past and should in the future draw the line on judicial deference to the President in Alien Enemies Act cases.
Statue of Liberty holding torch with text bubbles instead of flame. Chatbot technologies in daily life, freedom of speech concept vector illustration. Vector illustration.

Curating Cyberspace: Rights, Responsibilities, and Opportunities

To challenge authoritarianism, platforms should embrace a role that balances expressive rights and responsibilities in a pro-democratic way.
Conceptual image of a laptop surrounded by cloud illustrations and being watched by security cameras

One Step Forward? Agreement on Spyware Regulation in the Pall Mall Process

A new code marks a serious commitment by states to regulate digital surveillance tools, but stops short of agreeing to hard legal standards.

The Just Security Podcast: Keeping Track of the Big Picture–Challenges to Press Freedom and Beyond

A discussion with Rebecca Hamilton about the use of State power and how to identify linkages between individual developments and broader trends in press freedom and beyond.
A line of people, some under umbrellas, with a woman at the center holding a poster with photos on it and the message, in Spanish, saying, "He has worked for a solid company since he was 18. An investigation is urgently needed for his prompt release. No more unjust detentions."

El Salvador’s Authoritarian Slide Should Hold Lessons – Not Examples – for the U.S.

In fighting rampant gang violence, President Bukele has turned El Salvador into even more of a lawless, opaque State.
Image of the Capital overlayed with digital color blocks

Beyond Data Rescue: Building Structural Safeguards for Federal Data Preservation

Disappearance of vital resources from government websites exposes a fragile ecosystem in which accountability mechanisms have broken down.
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