Dear Readers

Dear readers,

I don't know exactly how you found your way here, but if you've made it this far, I know one thing for certain: you see what's happening.

You've watched democracy erode—not slowly, not in subtle ways, but in broad daylight, through executive orders, judicial overreach, media control, and state-sanctioned purges of expertise and dissent. You've seen people around you dismiss the warning signs, or worse, embrace them. You've felt the frustration of knowing too much, of recognizing patterns that others refuse to see.

You are not alone.

The truth is, this country has never been a true democracy. It was founded on systems designed to consolidate power in the hands of the few, built on the backs of those it excluded from the very concept of self-governance. The struggle for democracy in the U.S. has always been a fight against entrenched power—not a defense of something that was ever fully realized. 

But if history proves anything, it’s that resistance works. It has always been the pressure of movements, the defiance of those who refused to accept power as inevitable, that forced change. What we are fighting now is not just the collapse of democracy—it is the latest mutation of a system that has never belonged to all of us equally. 

I started Rebel Inquiry because I refuse to look away. I refuse to let authoritarianism take root without a fight. And I know I’m not the only one. 

There are plenty of spaces dedicated to news updates, quick takes, and reactionary commentary. This is not one of them. Rebel Inquiry exists because resistance requires strategy, historical context, and a clear-eyed understanding of how power operates. It exists because we can’t afford to be caught off guard.

If you’re here, you’re probably someone who values precision over panic, strategy over spectacle. You don’t want vague calls to “do something”—you want to know what works. You want to understand not just the what of authoritarianism, but the how—the structures, tactics, and playbooks that consolidate power and suppress dissent. 

I don’t write this because I think I have all the answers. I write this because I believe we need spaces that take resistance seriously. Spaces that don’t rely on hope as a strategy, but also don’t succumb to nihilism. Spaces where we can analyze, track, and respond in ways that are intentional, effective, and grounded in reality. 

I don’t come at this as an influencer, a pundit, or a political insider. I come at this as someone who has spent years tracking patterns of authoritarianism, resistance strategies, and the weaponization of emotional reasoning in politics. As someone who has seen firsthand how institutions purge those who stand in the way of autocracy. As someone who understands what’s coming and refuses to be caught off guard. 

If you’ve been looking for a place that takes authoritarianism seriously without fear-mongering or performative outrage, you’ve found it. If you’ve been looking for a space where information is distilled into strategy, where historical precedent informs present action, where we track and resist the mechanics of power together, you’re in the right place. 

We are not powerless. We are not helpless. But, we have to be smart. 

Let’s get to work. 

— Eris Kade 

Rebel Inquiry