SPRINGFIELD — Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell issued a stark warning that the country risked moving toward a situation of “authoritarianism versus democracy” under U.S. President Donald Trump, calling on her fellow lawyers to fight against the administration and to protect constitutional rights.

Speaking at a panel on LGBTQ rights at Western New England University on Tuesday, Campbell responded to an audience member who asked about the possibility of Trump ignoring a unanimous decision made by the U.S. Supreme Court. Campbell said that she had frequently heard the question of whether the country was facing a constitutional crisis.

“I have been stressing that it’s not an on and off switch. It’s actually like the turning of a dial,” Campbell said. “I don’t want to sugar coat the fact that that dial is turning in a direction we all don’t want it to be turning towards.”

Campbell cited the recent detention or Rümeysa Öztürk, a Tufts University student from Turkey whose capture by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Somerville was captured on camera.

She also mentioned the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who the administration admitted was mistakenly deported to El Salvador. The Supreme Court has ordered the Trump administration to facilitate the return of Garcia to the United States, something the administration has shown no signs of complying with.

Campbell added that her office had strategies in place for the case of further erosion of democratic norms, but also said such a situation would mark “uncharted territory.”

“We will use all the tools in our power maximum to fight back against a government that is no longer democratic, with a constitution of a checks and balances system that no longer matters,” Campbell said. “Where we’re moving more towards authoritarianism versus democracy, we will do everything in our power.”

Speaking to reporters before the panel, Campbell further emphasized that actions taken against Öztürk, a Fulbright Scholar whose reasons for detention have been kept vague, signaled an ignoring of the Constitution by Trump.

“You can’t have anything work exceptionally well in this state or in this country, if you don’t have the rule of law,” Campbell said. “What we’re seeing is a president and an administration looking to unravel that, undermine it and dismantle the Constitution.”

Asked about the state of LGBTQ rights under Trump, Campbell said it went beyond civil rights violations.

“It’s a targeting by this administration that, in many ways, involves life and death if you are of a certain identity in Massachusetts, in this country, including our young people who identify as trans,” Campbell said. “This is a scary time. This is a dangerous time, and this is absolutely a time for folks to be living in fear.”

Other panelists spoke about how the current political climate affects LGBTQ rights. None of the panel members, including Campbell, mentioned Trump by name, simply referring to “the current president” or “this administration.”

Tanya Neslusan, the executive director of the LGBTQ advocacy group MassEquality, said that beyond executive orders specifically targeting transgender individuals, other policies regarding immigration and tarrifs also harmed them.

“The transgender community is a historically economically marginalized population,” Neslusan said. “If transgender people don’t exist, then what about the people who are here that got their asylum status because of their gender identity? Those are just things that kind of keep in the back of your mind.”

The third panel member, Jennifer Levi of the GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) said that “the world changed” when Trump took office for his second term and began issuing executive orders targeting transgender rights, including for military members.

“Nobody was prepared for the vitriol that was included in that executive order and others that have been issued that have specifically called transgender people selfish, undisciplined and dishonest,” Levi said. “The front line impact on people’s lives is really dramatic and alarming and concerning.”

Under his new administration, Trump has also reached agreements with several high-profile law firms under threat of punitive executive orders. The firms have agreed to offer over $100 million worth of pro bono work for the administration for causes supported by Trump.

Campbell said during the panel discussion it was “sad to see law firms cave in,” and called on lawyers to use their abilities to oppose Trump.

“This is the time for lawyers in particular to step up, and there’s a whole host of ways to get involved,” Campbell said. “You have lawyers who are volunteering as rapid response lawyers for anyone who’s just picked up off the street, or a student whose visa suddenly is canceled and needing legal representation that our office can’t give because we are not empowered to do that. But we work with lawyers every single day, so there are a whole host of ways to plug in in real time.”

Alexander MacDougall can be reached at amacdougall@gazettenet.com.