A right-wing think tank, the **Manhattan Institute**, co-founded in 1978 by former Central Intelligence Agency director **William Casey**, is behind state-level legislative efforts to classify minor protest-related crimes as “civil terrorism.” Known for its influence on 1990s zero-tolerance policing in New York City and the Trump administration’s campaign against diversity, equality, and inclusion programs, the Institute is now pushing for an 18-month prison sentence for acts like vandalism, blocking a roadway, or trespassing during a protest. ### The Genesis of 'Civil Terrorism' This initiative aligns with a broader effort to crack down on leftist organizations and social movements, recasting nonviolent civil disobedience as potential crimes. **Tal Fortgang**, a legal policy fellow at the **Manhattan Institute** and a recent New York University law graduate, is a key proponent of this novel theory. Fortgang argues that “today’s left-wing agitators deploy random acts of lawlessness designed to inconvenience and disrupt as many civilians as possible, hoping to pressure them to get the government to change course. This tactic is reasonably described as a form of terrorism, though the activists aren’t murderous like al-Qaida or Hamas—they don’t use guns, bombs, or threats of unpredictable bloodshed. Instead, they engage in *civil terrorism*.” He has focused his justification for this theory on anti-war, pro-Palestinian, and Black Lives Matter activists, claiming they constitute the “overwhelming majority of groups engaged in this behavior.” Fortgang asserts that mass commission of minor crimes to intimidate or coerce a population into adopting certain policies warrants reclassification as civil terrorism. ### Legislation Takes Hold: Utah and Arizona Two pieces of state-level legislation, ghostwritten by the billionaire-backed **Manhattan Institute**, are actively advancing Fortgang’s vision. In Utah, **HB 331** was passed earlier this year and signed into law by Governor **Spencer Cox** on March 24. The law heightens penalties for “aggravated disorderly conduct” during protests, creates a new crime for “unlawfully advancing foreign organizations,” and controversially outlaws civilians wearing masks at protests, a measure criticized for its inconsistency given law enforcement’s ability to mask up. In Arizona, the **Manhattan Institute’s** model legislation, **HB 2136**, has cleared the Lower Chamber and is awaiting a vote in the state Senate. Arizona Democrats are vowing to hobble the bill, with Governor **Katie Hobbs** having vetoed a similar bill last year that would have made blocking a roadway a felony. ### Civil Liberties Under Threat Civil liberties advocates are raising serious alarms about these legislative efforts. **Darrell Hill**, policy director for the **American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona** (**ACLU of Arizona**), highlights Arizona’s history of targeting protesters, noting that these bills are part of a narrative pushed by the Trump administration to equate left-wing protest activity with extremism and terrorism based simply on viewpoints or expressive activity. Arizona state senator **Catherine Miranda**, the second-ranking Democrat in Arizona’s upper house, called **HB 2136** “an attack on all our First Amendment rights—the right to assemble, to free speech, to petition our government.” She warned that if passed, the “civil terrorism” bill would make it a felony for two or more people to block a public thoroughfare. Fortgang, in response to concerns about infringing on constitutional rights, stated that allowing unchecked acts of civil disobedience would “subordinate everyone else's legitimate interests to ever-escalating demonstrations that take over our lives.” Representative **Michael Way**, a Republican state representative from a Phoenix exurb, cited intense protests over President **Donald Trump’s** immigration enforcement policies as justification for codifying “civil terrorism.” ### Historical Echoes of Crackdowns Authorities in both Arizona and Utah have previously attempted to use questionable laws to suppress progressive and left-wing movements. During the 2020 protests over the murder of **George Floyd**, prosecutors in Salt Lake City and Arizona charged anti-police-brutality demonstrators with felony offenses under gang statutes. In Phoenix, 15 protesters were charged with participation in a criminal street gang after Maricopa County prosecutors misled a grand jury about the existence of an “ACAB (all cops are bastards) gang.” These charges were ultimately dismissed by a judge, and the lead prosecutor was suspended from practicing law for two years over her role in fabricating the charges. These historical precedents underscore the potential for misuse of expanded legal powers against protesters.