In my previous blog post, I shared a definition of the term “movement” and discussed some distinguishing aspects of movements—such as how they are different from organizations, and the functions that they perform in a society.

This leads to the next question: how do movements make change?

There’s a growing effort among human rights funders and organizations to focus on supporting grassroots movements around the world. This trend is rooted in recognition that movements often play an essential role in making social, political, and economic change; that traditional models of funding and support are coming under greater pressure by governments; and that alternative models of change and support are needed.

A year before he was assassinated, Dr. King delved into the highly charged debate over the Vietnam War, taking a firm and unequivocal stance in opposition. Many supporters, including some of his closest advisors, had practically begged him not to speak out against the war and risk alienating President Lyndon Johnson, who had ushered the Civil Rights and Voting Rights Acts through a fitful Congress. The press weighed in too. But Dr. King took care to protect the integrity of the movement, even if it entailed risk and cost. […]

As governments and communities seek the right combination of methods to halt terrorism, one that we too often miss is nonviolent resistance. It’s not that we haven’t seen the power of protest movements that use mass marches, sit-ins, boycotts and other forceful but nonviolent tactics. To the contrary, people worldwide have been moved by watching such movements sweep aside the walls of apartheid, the tanks of dictators or the impunity of kleptocracies. […]

Since 1992, Ekta Parishad has organized marches totalling 20,000 km as part of our struggle to keep land rights for marginalized populations on the Indian government’s agenda. Why marches? Because they serve as constant headaches for the government while simultaneously strengthening solidarity and re-energizing people suffering from landlessness and homelessness. Every action is a step on the ladder toward a just society, where recognized inclusiveness brings change first within us and ultimately beyond us, in the society and nation.

Most activists and other practitioners of civil resistance realize that governments can use various methods of digital surveillance to find and silence dissenters. The question of how to protect ourselves can seem overwhelming. Wherever you look there are different and often contradictory recommendations. It can all seem too complicated, just impossible to keep up with. What you need is a framework to help you make good security decisions […]

In my June 2017 “Let’s Get Strategic” post, I explained my disagreement with the conclusion of Ben Case’s “Beyond Violence and Nonviolence” article, in which he promotes the idea that violence can be strategically effective for grassroots movements. There’s a further claim in Case’s article, which I did not address previously, but which merits an additional response. […]

With recent protests in the United States capturing headlines, it is sometimes easy to lose sight of largescale mobilizations from decades past. Several notable episodes took place during the 1970s, when myriad groups nationwide—and especially in Washington, D.C.—protested U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War. Now is a better moment than any to […]

When developing a new field of study in the social sciences, the selection of terms for key concepts can be crucial. Certain words may evoke multiple meanings because they are filtered through a reader’s cultural experiences and personal imagination. Failure to account for this possibility can diminish the clarity of research and even […]