You Can't Obstruct Justice If You Pretend It Doesn't Exist
Judge Boasberg called it contempt, DHS called it strategy and Trump said the quiet part out loud: "homegrowns are next."
A NOTE FROM 50501CHICAGO:
At 50501Chicago, we typically channel our outrage into strategic action, transforming anger into organizing. But sometimes, the moment demands raw clarity and right now, staying calm feels wrong.
What's happening isn't normal, and we shouldn't pretend it is. When judges are being openly defied and constitutional guardrails are collapsing in real-time, measured tones feel like complicity.
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50501 National Day of Action - APRIL 19
This isn't about slogans and signs. This is about the people becoming the fourth branch of government—the ultimate check and balance when Trump and his loyalists decide the law only applies to their enemies.
Judge James Boasberg said the Trump administration showed "willful disregard" for the law. That’s judge-speak for: they knew exactly what they were doing—and did it anyway.
Trump and his hand-picked toadies have been seeing how much they can get away with. Their plan is simple: break the rules, make excuses and hope we’re too tired to push back.
April 19th isn't just about making noise. It's our proof that we see what they're doing before they can claim we're the problem. Because we know what people are saying is scheduled for April 20th.
Back in January, Trump signed an executive order authorizing DHS to study “whether to invoke the Insurrection Act of 1807”. That would give him the power to deploy the military on U.S. soil—to detain protesters, silence dissent, suspend rights, and call it “peace.”
It’s not a conspiracy theory. It’s historical fact. This is the exact playbook authoritarians have used throughout history… make up a crisis, declare an emergency, deploy the troops, crush dissent.
That's why April 19th matters. Because once military boots are on the streets, "I didn't know" is no longer an acceptable excuse. Once critics are being loaded into unmarked vans, "I wasn't paying attention" won't bring them back…
The difference between democracy and authoritarianism isn't a dramatic coup. It's a thousand small moments where we choose comfort over courage and stillness over solidarity.
April 19th is our chance to prove we won't go quietly.
The courts said no but… Trump said yes.
Let’s be clear: ICE didn’t “misunderstand” Judge Boasberg. They ignored him.
They deported 260 people in direct violation of a federal order—including Kilmar Abrego García, a man with NO criminal record, who had already won his case in court. He was legally protected. The Ninth Circuit said so. SCOTUS said so. They dissapeared him anyway.
García was sent to a facility the judge had already called a death trap. One where detainees face “torture, beatings, even death.” They did it fast, betting that once he landed, U.S. courts couldn’t bring him back.
They were right.
Even after being caught, Trump’s DOJ said it was an “administrative error.” Then on April 14, Trump met with El Salvador’s president—and Bukele called returning García “preposterous.” Trump thanked him for it.
50501Chicago has covered García’s case before. But what’s happening now isn’t just about one man—it’s about precedent. If they can disappear a legal resident with a clean record, what makes you think they’ll stop there?
"Homegrowns are next."
That wasn't just a slip-up caught on a live mic. On Monday, April 14, while meeting with El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele in the Oval Office, President Trump was caught on video telling Bukele:
The homegrowns are next, the homegrowns. You've got to build about five more places
referring to prison facilities to house American citizens.
When asked directly if his plans to deport people to El Salvador include "potentially U.S. citizens, fully naturalized Americans,
Trump responded:
I'm all for it.
Let that sit.
During the same meeting, Trump told reporters:
If it's a homegrown criminal, I have no problem. Now we're studying the laws right now, Pam [Bondi] is studying. If we can do that, that's good
Then Trump made their next move crystal clear. Caught on a hot mic, Trump warned:
The homegrowns are next.
He meant you.
He meant us.
Anyone who resists.
The blueprint is blatantly obvious… if you look. First, test your deportation machine on non-citizens who have the least protection. Perfect the process. When courts object, ignore them. Show everyone that judges are optional. Once that's established, expand the list.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said something appalling about García during the meeting with El Salvador's President Bukele:
He's a citizen of El Salvador, so it's very arrogant even for American media to suggest that we would even tell El Salvador, how to handle their own citizens.
He added that
courts have no right to conduct foreign policy.
Read that again. They're not just refusing to follow a Supreme Court order - they're saying the Supreme Court has no right to give them orders at all. Law professor Kim Wehle warns:
This deportation case
…creates a situation where President Trump can deny due process to anyone—not just immigrants.
Judge Boasberg found "probable cause" for criminal contempt because the administration openly defied him.
What happens when they turn that same contempt on journalists? On organizers? On regular citizens who dare to criticize?
This isn't a warning. This is the alarm blaring!
THE STUDENTS. THE SYSTEM. THE SILENCE.
This isn’t just about García. We’ve reported on Mahmoud Khalil and Mohsen Mahdawi—Columbia organizers disappeared for organizing, not for any crime. You can read both breakdowns on our Substack here:
But while the press watches Columbia, the real purge is happening in silence.
According to Inside Higher Ed, over 600 student visas have been revoked. Another 4,700 international students have had their records terminated in SEVIS, the federal tracking system. Some were flagged for misdemeanor charges. Others for nothing at all.
No hearings. No appeals. Just a system working exactly as designed.
Judge Paula Xinis is trying to stop it. When Trump’s lawyers tried to delay proceedings, she told them:
Cancel vacations. Cancel appointments. All hands on deck.
They shrugged. And kept going.
But Trump and his band of fascists are still stalling while García and hundreds sit in a prison that American taxpayers paid $6 million to use.
We've outsourced our dirty work to make it harder for our courts to fix.
APRIL 19 could be our LAST CHANCE
To us, 50501, April 19 isn't optional. It's our last chance to be counted before the line gets crossed.
When courts are ignored, when laws are broken on camera, when DHS dares judges to hold them accountable—it’s not a legal problem. It’s a people problem.
Chicago’s action is called Resistance as Joy—not because we’re happy, but because they don’t expect us to survive this with any spirit left. Joy is our refusal. Joy is what they don’t know how to kill.
Come write your name in the record. Before they try to erase it.
April 19th is important.
And so is the next one and the next one. We need to rally regularly. It’s time to set the May dates. Continue to build partnerships and collaborations.
Exactly! And why impeachment just doesn’t make sense. Why would we use a legitimize an illigetimate? I think we have to remove & convict.