CounterPunch Exclusives

CounterPunch Exclusives

Another Kind of World Cup Victory

Image by Fauzan Saari.

Who would imagine that an international sporting event will be the next battleground in the fight against authoritarian repression?

Yet that scenario is unfolding right now, and the battleground is the World Cup tournament – soon to begin in cities around the U.S. To understand the dynamics of the situation, consider the concept of state terror, i.e. a regime’s efforts to instill fear as a means of dividing and disempowering a people, thereby tightening its grip on power.

In the past year and a half, the Trump administration has deployed ICE as an instrument of state terror. In assaults on LA, Chicago, Minneapolis, and other cities, ICE agents have engaged in unlawful traffic stops and racial profiling, carried out warrantless raids on homes, and inflicted excessive and lethal force on protesters and bystanders. ICE’s management of detention centers around the country has been characterized by cruelty, violence, and degrading conditions. At least 46 people have died in ICE custody since Donald Trump took office last year.

Markwayne Mullin, the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, made clear that ICE will be present at World Cup venues, including SoFi Stadium near my home in Los Angeles County. Mullin........

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