Faced with the ever rising presence of oligarchy, fascism, classism, racism, sexism, queerphobia, xenophobia, and a whole lot more, a baby boomer lawyer/political activist and a millennial scientist have decided to dab their pens in ink as dark as ages past, and yet somehow still present, to speak truth to power. Jekyll Esq, the tempered liberal, and Mx Hyde, the radical leftist, are not afraid to call out injustice and the politicians who promote it.

Speak Out is dedicated to shining a light on all the ways Trump, Republicans, MAGA, conservatives, reactionaries, and white supremacists are harming our siblings and comrades, the vulnerable and the disempowered, and even themselves, as they rush towards a fascist America. In our thoughtful, well-researched articles, we will expose the harms and deeply flawed motivations behind these terrible ideologies, while also presenting our ideas for a truly just and fair society.

Why the aliases? In the debate over the US Constitution, the Founding Fathers frequently published arguments using pseudonyms. According to the Center for the Study of the American Constitution at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, they did so for a number of reasons:

First and foremost, it was felt that the avoidance of authors’ names concentrated attention on the issues, not on the personalities of the authors. Anonymity also contributed to the freedom of the press in that proponents of unpopular positions might be ostracized socially and/or economically if their identities were publicly divulged.

Furthermore, during a time when dueling was not uncommon, writers were reluctant to acknowledge their authorship of harsh or abusive rhetoric might produce a duel.

While we like to think our motivation is the first reason, in the age of the internet, and in the frightening moment we find ourselves, we would be foolish to discount the second. And avoiding duels never goes out of fashion.

You can join us by reading our semi-regular posts at speakoutnews.com.