Trump’s Tweets Are Being Weaponized Against Him — Here’s How
Meet the organization fighting his campaign tweet by tweet.
Have you ever looked into the comments section of a Trump tweet?
It’s typically an us-versus-them, mud-slinging, name-calling one-upmanship competition between liberals and conservatives — His base is further galvanized, sometimes in hateful and bigoted ways, and his dissidents are furthered angered. No one’s mind is changed. Nothing is actually accomplished.
It’s an endless cycle. For some of us, it can even by hard to remember a time when a US President utilized the bully pulpit in a traditional manner. Or even an empathetic manner.
Enter: Defeat By Tweet
Defeat by Tweet is a grassroots campaign designed to weaponize Trump’s own language against him. Every time Trump tweets, it triggers thousands of “microdonations” from liberal supporters across the country, whose money ends up in the pockets of Black-led political organizers.
How Does It Work?
Users sign up to donate a certain amount of money every time Trump tweets, replies, or retweets. Usually, it’s in the realm of a few pennies (since, as we all unfortunately know, Trump tweets a lot).
Defeat By Tweet then aggregates these pennies, these microdonations, into one massive donation from thousands of donors and hundreds of tweets.
Don’t worry! If Trump goes on a Twitter rampage (which is partial to doing), you can set a cap for your donation, so you don’t accidentally donate far more than you expect. You can also give a flat donation if you prefer.
To date, Defeat By Tweet has raised 1.6 million dollars, almost to their 2 million dollar goal. Each individual tweet generates nearly $1,700 in profit, and that number only rises with each microdonation. Trump tweets about 30 times a day, so you can imagine how this money can quickly stack up.
Because Trump tweets more and more near elections, and the number of donors is rising, Defeat By Tweet’s fundraising is rising exponentially. There’s no need to flatten this curve.
You know in Avatar: The Last Airbender when Aang manages to redirect the lightning he was attacked with into a new weapon? Trump’s Twitter platform, his favorite form of political engagement, is now being weaponized against him. It’s beautiful to witness.
Where Does The Money Go?
The money you donate goes directly to Black-led organizers in swing states called the Justice Fund. It’s a coalition of 24 different political organizers that operate on a local level to enact national change. All of the organizers have a strong track record of utilizing their funds effectively.
Michigan Liberation, one member of the Justice Fund, is focused on justice reform, specifically for Black citizens of Michigan. It holds public servants and police departments accountable for missteps in justice, like the modern-day slavery in American prisons that disproportionately affects Black people.
Other organizations are politically-geared to take Trump down in battleground states, like Our Voice Our Vote. They focus on community activism and voter mobilization to ensure fair elections in Arizona, where Vice President Biden is just narrowly winning.
Defeat By Tweet has criteria for these organizations: these must be reputable, grassroots, Black-led, and in need of support. Your money is going in the right pockets.
Why Should I Help?
Defeat by Tweet is revolutionary because it turns words into actions. It takes something completely unhelpful — social media rants — and turns it into activism.
Of course, this movement is unlikely to actually stop Trump from tweeting. In fact, he probably ignores any replies from non-MAGA hat-wearing people. These donations are largely a symbolic act. It’s a stand against his incendiary language, falsehoods, and calls to violence on his Twitter feed.
In an era where Trump uses Twitter as a tool of oppression and division — like when he retweeted a “White Power” video or lies about the democratic nature of mail-in ballots — Defeat by Tweet the first step against the tide of division. It’s an empathetic plea against the divisive rhetoric of Trumpism, and a return to grassroots political organizing.
Defeat By Tweet also understands the philosophy of collective action. I only donate one penny at a time. That’s nothing. But when his tweets are aggregated, and when thousands of people are donating one penny at a time, the money starts to roll in.
To paraphrase David Mitchell, each tweet is but a drop in an ocean, but what is an ocean but a multitude of drops?
Donate now:
