Vous êtes un soldat ou un officier de police à qui l’on a demandé de contrôler et éventuellement de disperser une manifestation publique. On vous a dit que les manifestants menaçaient l’ordre public et la sécurité nationale. Cependant, lorsque vous les rencontrez, les choses ne sont pas si claires. Il y a des centaines, voire des milliers de personnes, et elles ne sont pas violentes. Elles disent se mobiliser pour défendre les valeurs de votre pays […]

Una delle prime cose ad avermi colpito quando mi sono unita a un gruppo di Extinction Rebellion (XR) Francia è stato che c’erano molti meno studenti rispetto alle mie aspettative. Invece, il gruppo era costituito anche da molte persone anziane, professionisti full-time, mamme lavoratrici. Poco dopo avrei scoperto da un mio amico che ha frequentato XR a Leiden, che nei Paesi Bassi, in realtà, il movimento ha organizzato dei blocchi stradali di alcune delle autostrade principali del paese con una partecipazione rilevante di over-60. […]

There is a paradox in climate justice today. It is that we must be highly focused on local, short-term campaigns to even have a chance of achieving our goals, which are usually at the global scale (curb global warming, put an end to rising sea levels, etc.). Having participated in an XR local chapter in Lille, France for five months, I wrote this post to explore three characteristics of XR more broadly, which I believe can help environmental movements navigate this great paradox. […]

Last fall, I participated in the Copenhagen People Power Forum, which brought together movement leaders from all over the world to speak with leaders in public, private and humanitarian sectors to critique and advise the forms their solidarity with movements can take. It was an immense effort toward globalizing our struggles, but as with any other recent global gatherings, many invitees from Africa and elsewhere were unable to attend because of visa denials/delays at destination and transitory country embassies. […]

Mohsen Sazegara has been a social media influencer since before it became a thing. Having started his YouTube channel in June 2009 to share knowledge and resources on nonviolent action in Farsi, he pre-dates nearly every pioneer of the influencer phenomenon. But Mohsen’s influence has nothing to do with the fashion or fitness industries. The only “brand” he represents is nonviolent revolution for rights, freedom and democracy. […]

On May 14, 2023, Thai democracy made history. Two opposition parties—Move Forward and Pheu Thai—gained the most and the second most votes in the national election, defeating all pro-establishment parties, particularly the United Thai Nation Party led by former coup protagonist and Prime Minister, Prayut Chan-ocha. This electoral blow has major implications on a possible democracy pushback against growing autocratization in Thailand and other countries. It also showcases a pathway of collaboration between pro-democracy nonviolent movements and opposition parties. […]

With Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s controversial judicial reform on hold since Monday, the country’s population finds itself not at ease but only at a new crossroads in their struggle to protect their country’s democracy. A multi-sector strike, more than 12 weeks of intensifying protests, and dissent and defections among Israeli officials on numerous fronts… since the beginning of this year, Israel has been experiencing its largest demonstrations in a decade. […]

زیر سایه بسیاری از خبرهای رسانه‌ای، و در حالی که هدف شدید‌ترین سرکوب‌ها قرار گرفته است، انقلاب ملی ایران برای رسیدن به سکولار دموکراسی مطلوبش در حرکت است. این انقلاب در حالی در سراسر ایران ریشه می‌دواند وارد پنجمین ماه خود شده است. علی‌ رغم سرکوب‌های شدید و بی‌رحمانه رژیم، گستره اعتراضات چه به لحاظ جغرافیایی و چه به لحاظ مشارکت اقشار مختلف در حال گسترش است. مسئله‌ای که نشان می‌دهد رژیم در حال از دست دادن قدرت و کنترل اوضاع است.

Shadowed by many breaking headlines and increasingly brutal repression, the Iranian revolution for secular democracy continues to forge ahead. Soon in its fifth month, the uprising has taken root across Iran. Its widening geographic spread and deepening diversity of participants have been met with an intensified crackdown ordered by the Islamic regime–evidence that its grip on power is slipping. […]