As Donald Trump completes the first 100 days of his return to the presidency, concern is rising about whether the U.S. remains a functioning democracy—or whether it is slipping, or has already slipped, into authoritarianism. During a May 9 national media briefing hosted by American Community Media, three leading experts—Lucan Ahmad Way, Aziz Z. Huq, and Gloria J. Browne-Marshall—sounded the alarm about patterns of autocracy taking hold across American institutions.

A growing number of Americans share their concern. According to a recent Public Religion Research Institute poll, 52% of Americans now agree with the statement that Trump is “a dangerous dictator.” A separate ABC News/Washington Post/Ipsos poll shows 49% believe the president is flouting the rule of law and steering the country away from its founding principles.

“We expected a path that was much more in line with places like Hungary and Poland,” said Professor Lucan Ahmad Way, political scientist at the University of Toronto. “But what we’ve seen is something much more dramatic and rapid. This is a much more rapid effort at imposing authoritarianism than we’ve seen in places like Hungary, Turkey, India—any of those places, actually.”

Way, who co-authored recent op-eds in Foreign Affairs and The New York Times, argued that the United States is now exhibiting clear signs of competitive authoritarianism, a term for regimes that maintain the appearance of democracy (like elections) while subverting core institutions such as the judiciary, press, and civil service. “These are cases where opposition is allowed to run but faces increasing costs—legal threats, harassment, or censorship. That is now unambiguously what we’re seeing in the U.S.,” he said.

Professor Aziz Z. Huq, constitutional law expert from the University of Chicago, addressed what he called “partial noncompliance” with court rulings by the Trump administration. “We’ve observed a pattern of both rhetorical and legal attacks on the court system,” said Huq. “In some immigration and spending cases, it’s not plausible to speak of good faith compliance.”

Huq emphasized that judges have limited tools to enforce compliance, even when the executive branch openly defies rulings. “We have yet to see whether contempt proceedings will hold weight,” he noted, referencing a D.C. court’s decision to delay such a case.

One of the most sobering insights came from Professor Gloria J. Browne-Marshall, a civil rights attorney and constitutional scholar from John Jay College of Criminal Justice, who reminded attendees that many marginalized communities have long experienced what mainstream America is now confronting.

“There is very little that’s being experienced in this country that has not already been experienced by the African-American community,” she said. “They practiced on us—and now it’s expanding.”

Browne-Marshall added that due process and civil rights protections are being rapidly eroded, citing the use of the Alien Enemies Act to detain and deport individuals—including students—without hearings. “If we allow marginalized people to have their rights stripped, it only takes a small step to expand those abuses to the rest of the population,” she said.

On the issue of due process, Huq explained its centrality in protecting all individuals from government overreach, regardless of immigration status. “Due process is a right that adheres to humans, not just citizens,” he said. “It is a mechanism to prevent erroneous or arbitrary government action.”

Despite the dire tone of the briefing, the panelists expressed cautious hope. “It is never irreversible,” Way said. “We can fight back—and in the United States, with its resources and civil society, it’s unlikely that authoritarianism will be fully consolidated.”

Browne-Marshall echoed that sentiment: “We need to study the weaknesses of the regime and work together. Protest can take many forms—reporting the truth, teaching banned topics, or supporting advocacy groups. But silence will only make things worse.”

The conversation ended with a pointed reminder about the long game: demographic change. “This is about 2045,” Browne-Marshall warned, referencing the projected year when the U.S. becomes majority people of color. “This apartheid state, the foundation of which is being laid right now, aims to preserve white patriarchal rule into a diverse future.”

While the speakers stopped short of offering a single solution, they agreed on one thing: the time to act is now.