Politics

Trump's culture war: "They've created an atmosphere of obedience"

What seemed impossible is now plausible in the United States, just 12 weeks into Donald Trump's tenure in the White House. A suffocating atmosphere of surveillance state has taken hold on university campuses, museums, research centers, and cultural institutions as a result of the government's persecution of all ideas and issues that run counter to the president's agenda. "He's managed to create an atmosphere of anticipated obedience. Not only in the cultural sphere, but everywhere. I have students who are considering abandoning their theses because they don't know if they'll be singled out or persecuted for the topics they cover," explains Megan Clark, a Columbia professor who asks to use a fictitious name to avoid being identified by the new administration.

What seemed impossible is now plausible in the United States, just 12 weeks into Donald Trump's tenure in the White House. A suffocating atmosphere of surveillance state has taken hold on university campuses, museums, research centers, and cultural institutions as a result of the government's persecution of all ideas and issues that run counter to the president's agenda. "He's managed to create an atmosphere of anticipated obedience.

Not only in the cultural sphere, but everywhere. I have students who are considering abandoning their theses because they don't know if they'll be singled out or persecuted for the topics they cover," explains Megan Clark, a Columbia professor who asks to use a fictitious name to avoid being identified by the new administration..