Staff writer at @TheAtlantic, formerly @nytimesbooks, and author of "How to Be a Dissident."
Joined May 2009
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Pinned Tweet
Feb 19
I’ve spent the past year on a search. How do we push back against the forces that feel like they are crushing us right now? How do we resist the dehumanization of our politics, our technology? The answers came from people who pushed back before us: the dissidents...🧵
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Gal Beckerman retweeted
For his 80th birthday, Donald Trump threw America a UFC fight—and one particular book can help you understand how this "spectacle of excess" expresses Trump's worldview, @GalBeckerman writes: theatlantic.com/books/2026/0…
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I watched the UFC fights last night and I can promise you this is the only piece that brought Roland Barthes into the Octagon.
theatlantic.com/books/2026/0…
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Gal Beckerman retweeted
Jun 10
MLK didn't call America finished. He called it a promissory note - still uncashed, still owed.
That's a harder patriotism than Hegseth's. It requires looking at the gap between what we said and what we did.
250 years in, the note is still outstanding.
I laid out in @TheAtlantic a few different ways to love America when you're not on board with Pete Hegseth's idea of patriotism.
theatlantic.com/books/2026/0…
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Gal Beckerman retweeted
Jun 9
Trump's executive order on national parks and museums forbids language that "disparages Americans past or living" and orders focus only on "greatness of achievement."
That's not patriotism. That's enforced amnesia with a flag pin.
Beckerman names the alternative: love for a country that is unfinished, self-critical, and still moving toward what it promised. That version has a record. The other one just has fireworks.
I laid out in @TheAtlantic a few different ways to love America when you're not on board with Pete Hegseth's idea of patriotism.
theatlantic.com/books/2026/0…
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Gal Beckerman retweeted
Jun 9
What makes someone a dissident?
On the latest episode of The Burn Bag, @galbeckerman (@TheAtlantic) joins us to discuss conscience, courage, authoritarianism, performative rebellion, and what it means to live without betraying one’s inner voice.
Spotify: bit.ly/3RXLdJZ
Apple: bit.ly/4dZ8jbK
YouTube: bit.ly/4os1bbl
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I laid out in @TheAtlantic a few different ways to love America when you're not on board with Pete Hegseth's idea of patriotism.
theatlantic.com/books/2026/0…
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Gal Beckerman retweeted
Jun 8
As our nation turns 250, it’s worth asking what form patriotism should take, @GalBeckerman argues. A new book about American pride prompted him to ponder what it means to love an unfinished country: theatlantic.com/books/2026/0…
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Gal Beckerman retweeted
How to Be a Dissident is out today in the UK!
How do we push back in a world where political leaders wield fear and where social media misinforms?
HOW TO BE A DISSIDENT by @galbeckerman is out today!
‘Profound … feels essential in these times’ Sarah Bakewell
‘The book everyone needs NOW!’ Daniel Kehlmann
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Gal Beckerman retweeted
How do we push back in a world where political leaders wield fear and where social media misinforms?
HOW TO BE A DISSIDENT by @galbeckerman is out today!
‘Profound … feels essential in these times’ Sarah Bakewell
‘The book everyone needs NOW!’ Daniel Kehlmann
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Gal Beckerman retweeted
May 28
Yeah this is like saying, "Everyone does coke on the weekends, it's irresistible." Not really, and you might have a problem.
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Gal Beckerman retweeted
May 27
With his new encyclical, Pope Leo XIV makes a case for resisting AI on grounds far beyond religion; he argues for the importance of human fallibility and struggle, @galbeckerman writes: theatlantic.com/culture/2026…
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Gal Beckerman retweeted
May 23
The festooning of Donald Trump’s name and likeness across Washington, D.C., is consistent with authoritarian tendencies, @galbeckerman argues: These are leaders who “like to have their face in your face.”
Read more, and view a collection of images taken across the nation’s capital: theatln.tc/brEwDYY9
📸: Carolyn Van Houten
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Gal Beckerman retweeted
May 23
Awesome book, How to be a Dissident, by @galbeckerman:
amazon.com/How-Be-Dissident-…
Insights by Solzhenitsyn, Camus, Spinoza and other thinkers on dissent in response to tyranny
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Gal Beckerman retweeted
May 16
If you’re heading out for a summer vacation, The Atlantic’s writers and editors have suggested some page-turners to bring along. Our staff writer @galbeckerman chose “The Silver Bone.” See more selections here: theatln.tc/OdcDlpqD
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Gal Beckerman retweeted
May 15
HOW TO BE A DISSIDENT author Gal Beckerman joined Anand Giridharadas on The.Ink to talk about his book and what everyday people can do to fight back against the most pressing issues of our time.
Watch their conversation at the link.
the.ink/p/how-to-fight-fasci…
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Gal Beckerman retweeted
May 15
A killer recommendation from @galbeckerman for @TheAtlantic’s Summer Reads special—the first of @AKurkov Kyiv Mysteries. Samson Kolechko just unraveled his third case for @HarperViaBooks and @maclehosepress, so you had better catch up!
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Gal Beckerman retweeted
May 14
I love this art, I love the books, so happy to be involved with it: theatlantic.com/books/2026/0…
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Gal Beckerman retweeted
May 13
How did Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán lose his re-election?
Author of "How to be a Dissident" @galbeckerman examines Hungary's recent election this Sunday at 9:30 PM ET on @cspan 2. After the program airs, watch the full book talk on our website c-span.org/event/book-tv/gal…
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Gal Beckerman retweeted
May 13
At noon ET, join the Atlantic staff writer Gal Beckerman and podcast host Adam Harris to discuss Beckerman’s new book, “How to Be a Dissident,” which is part history and part manual for living with integrity in an age of conformity and authoritarian drift. theatlantic.com/books/2026/0…
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