Help Nadine Leave the U.S.

I want to celebrate my friend Nadine Seiler -- aka @warriorgoddessfortheresistance -- who turns 60 today! Nadine, a naturalized citizen, is a dynamo who has been protesting fascism in the streets since 2017, with an energetic blend of wit, style, and courage. I first spotted her in 2020 at DC protests during tRump's first impeachment, and I can't remember how or when we got to talking, but now she's my wonderful houseguest whenever she comes to NYC.

Nadine's activism is high-visibility, seemingly tireless, and instantly recognizable. Photos and videos of her protesting in DC and beyond have appeared in major news outlets all over the world. Whether she's urging us to "Make Democracy Great Again" or calling out the corrupt "Supreme Coup," the cameras gravitate to her banners brightly painted with pithy (and often humorous) messages; her homemade political-statement headpieces, t-shirts, and jewelry; her trademark electric blue eyeliner; and her dazzling smile.

"As an older, Black, immigrant, female, non-believer, I have to fight for myself, others similarly aligned, AND for those who are willfully ceding their power to the orange fascist DICKtator," Nadine recently wrote.

Nadine has devoted her time and money to her effort. As she told USAToday in August 2024, "I'm so concerned that we are on the precipice of an autocratic society that I have decided to sacrifice my finances to bring this message out here." (She then joked, "People keep saying I'm being paid with dark money. Well, I need to get them to pay me more!")

At the time of that interview, Nadine was in the midst of a daily, months-long campaign to warn people about Project 2025 -- the authoritarian roadmap for decimating civil rights and the federal government under a second Trump presidency.

Of course, what Nadine feared -- what any decent person feared -- came to pass, and the MAGA regime is racing through its Project 2025 checklist with the help of the shadow president, oligarch Elon Musk. (Nadine says, "I tried to warn mofos!") Constitutional rights now exist in theory more than reality. Video after video taken by bystanders and victims shows unidentified and often masked federal agents -- who claim they are with ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) and refuse to show warrants -- violently kidnapping people in public. The targets have included mothers with infant children; activists; and a student who merely co-signed a pro-Palestine op-ed in a university newspaper. Even Ras Baraka , the mayor of Newark, N.J., was arrested while accompanying members of Congress to an ICE facility inspection.

It's not a matter of being documented or undocumented. Green cards, student visas, and even U.S. citizenship have not protected people from abduction, detention, and deportation. People who are deported can be sent practically anywhere. Last week, the regime attempted to send non-Libyan immigrants to Libya, while hundreds of Venezuelan men have been deported to the CECOT mega-prison in El Salvador on the basis of their tattoos. (Trump publicly told the leader of El Salvador, "The homegrowns are next.")

Nadine obviously has lots of risk factors as a Black immigrant and high-profile activist. The fact that she's a naturalized U.S. citizen who has lived in the U.S. since 1987 doesn't help these days. "I want folks to understand how it feels ... not knowing, if and when, you'll be the one abducted and sent to some for-profit prison in Louisiana and/or TexA$$," Nadine wrote to me, in her inimitable way. "It's been very stressful, for me, for the last few months. It's a real possibility, to become a victim of this fascist regime."

Nadine wants to be able to leave this country of her own accord -- without suffering the physical and emotional trauma that a deportation would cause -- and start over. Her plan is to go to Trinidad and Tobago, her country of origin. A previous $10,000 GoFundMe was a terrific start but not enough for her to move, which is an expensive undertaking when you're moving a few blocks, let alone moving out of the country.

About that earlier effort, Nadine wrote (in her awesome Nadine style), "Please know, the funds will be used to support my ultimate goal, which is to E.x.i.t! before Gestapo ICE, rolls up and ships me off to an El Salvadorian Gulag for females (which is probably in the works) or anywhere another despot like Nayib Bukele exists."

I'm setting the ultimate goal here at $40,000, which I hope will make it easier for Nadine pay off any debt; pack and ship her possessions; deal with any emergencies the regime might inflict on her (who knows if she'll need legal help?); and find a place in Trinidad and Tobago.

No donation is too small (or too large!). Although I'll miss her so much, I just want to get Nadine out of here before she becomes a news story, at best, or simply disappeared, at worst.

Naturally, if you don't have anything to spare, I would appreciate a share instead. Thank you in advance for helping the Warrior Goddess of the Resistance!