International Center on Nonviolent Conflict

The Path of Most Resistance: A Step-by-Step Guide to Planning Nonviolent Campaigns

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By Ivan Marovic
Date of Publication: First edition, 2018 | Second edition, 2021

Free Download:
• Second edition: English | Farsi | Hungarian | Polish | Vietnamese
• First edition: Catalan | French | Portuguese (Brazilian) | Spanish | Urdu

Purchase a Print Copy:
• Second edition: English
• First edition: French | Portuguese (Brazilian) | Spanish

Purchase e-book (Nook | Kindle)

The Path of Most Resistance: A Step-by-Step Guide to Planning Nonviolent Campaigns is a practical guide for activists and organizers of all levels, who wish to grow their resistance activities into a more strategic, fixed-term campaign. It guides readers through the campaign planning process, breaking it down into several steps and providing tools and exercises for each step. Upon finishing the book, readers will have what they need to guide their peers through the process of planning a campaign. This process, as laid out in the guide, is estimated to take about 12 hours from start to finish.

The guide is divided into two parts. The first lays out and contextualizes campaign planning tools and their objectives. It also explains the logic behind these tools, and how they can be modified to better suit a particular group’s context. The second part provides easily reproducible and shareable lesson plans for using each of those tools, as well as explores how to embed the tools in the wider planning process.

The Second Edition released in March 2021 includes chapters on tactics and running a tactical planning workshop, and an Introduction by Hardy Merriman.

Watch the “Planning Nonviolent Campaign” Book Launch and Q&A Webinar

About the Author:

Ivan Marovic was one of the leaders of Otpor, the student resistance movement that played an important role in the downfall of Slobodan Milosevic in Serbia.

After the successful democratic transition in Serbia, Marovic began consulting with various pro-democracy groups worldwide and became one of the leading practitioners in the field of strategic nonviolent conflict.

What People Are Saying About the Book:

“Earlier this year, I had a webinar about social movements at Rhize, and Ivan was our lecturer. Check out his book about organizing resistance. Download is free today. Maybe you can start a campaign – it takes 12 h to plan one following these methods. #MakeChangeNow”

– Lu Yen Roloff, public Facebook post, October 25, 2018

“Downloaded my free copy yesterday. It’s a VERY thorough book on how to plan a nonviolent civil resistance campaign. It’s clear that an enormous amount of work went into writing & illustrating it.”

– Joel Preston Smith, Twitter, October 26, 2018

“I’m really happy to share Ivan Marovic new and free monograph on civil resistance from @civilresistance. Ivan is one of the best and most [strategically] innovative civil resistance activists and trainers I have had the honor of working with over the years.”

– Søren Warburg, Twitter, November 5, 2018

Civil Resistance and Peacebuilding

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Powering to Peace: Integrated Civil Resistance for Peacebuilding Strategies
By Veronique Dudouet, Berghof Research Centre for Constructive Conflict Management, 2016

Abstract: This monograph will offer a conceptual and empirical review of the civil resistance-peacebuilding nexus. It will explore the analytical definitions, boundaries and distinctions between these two approaches to conflict transformation, as well as their multiple areas of (potential or actual) complementarity. It will do so through a systematic coverage of the relevant scholarship as well as a succinct analysis of relevant case studies, where peacebuilding activities have accompanied, preceded or followed civil resistance campaigns. A number of concrete lessons learnt will also be identified and targeted to relevant audiences: (1) conceptual implications and areas for further research, (2) recommendations for nonviolent activists and peacebuilding practitioners, and (3) policy lessons learnt for international actors (bilateral donors, diplomats and inter-governmental agencies) seeking to support constructive and effective conflict transformation processes.

 

People Power Movements and International Human Rights: Creating a Legal Framework

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By Elizabeth A. Wilson
August 2017, Revised: July 2019
Free Download
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International human rights law did not come into existence top-down, out of the benevolent intentions of states, even though states eventually began to recognize that large-scale human rights abuses could pose a threat to the international order. Rather, it came into existence from the bottom-up efforts of ordinary people in civil society to ally with each other in solidarity and demand their rights, often through organized nonviolent campaigns and movements that pressured elites and powerholders to recognize or grant individual rights (freedom for slaves, women’s rights, labor rights, and children’s rights, to name a few). Unlike international law generally, the real source of international human rights law has been the coordinated, organized and nonviolently forceful efforts of individuals—in other words, what one can refer to as people power.

elizabeth_wilson

Elizabeth A. Wilson is visiting faculty at Rutgers Law School in New Jersey, USA. She is currently a Fulbright-Nehru Senior Scholar at the Centre for Policy Research in New Delhi, India. Her areas of specialization include public international law and international human rights law. She holds a J.D. from Harvard Law School and a Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, USA.

Making or Breaking Nonviolent Discipline in Civil Resistance Movements

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By Jonathan Pinckney, 2016
Free Download: English | Chinese | Summary of findings in Farsi
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Abstract: New research has recently raised the profile of nonviolent civil resistance as a major and particularly effective form of political struggle.  Yet the dynamics of nonviolent movements for change in repressive non-democracies remain poorly-understood.  In particular, little empirical research has addressed the crucial question of nonviolent discipline; how the leaders of nonviolent movements maintain their followers’ adherence to nonviolent practice, an aspect of civil resistance often argued to be crucial in explaining its success.  In this monograph I use new event-level data from the Nonviolent and Violent Campaigns and Outcomes (NAVCO) 3.0 dataset as well as comparative case studies to answer crucial questions about the aspects of movement tactics, strategy, and organization, as well as the broader political and social environment, which facilitate or undermine nonviolent discipline.  The findings of this study will increase scholarly knowledge of the dynamics of civil resistance, as well as providing important insights for activists, civic educators, and policymakers.

jonathan_pinckneyAbout the Author: Dr. Jonathan Pinckney is a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at the Institute of Sociology and Political Science at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), an external associate at the Peace Research Institution of Oslo (PRIO), and a research fellow at the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict (ICNC). He previously worked as a research fellow at the Sie Cheou Kang Center for International Security and Diplomacy, where he supervised data collection for the Social Conflict Analysis Database (SCAD) and the Nonviolent and Violent Campaigns and Outcomes (NAVCO) 3.0 data project. Jonathan researches resistance movements in non-democracies. His work has been published in the Journal of Peace Research, Foreign Policy’s Democracy Lab, and the edited volume Wielding Nonviolence in the Midst of Violence. Jonathan received his PhD in International Relations from the University of Denver in March 2018. He was a 2012 recipient of the Korbel School’s Sie Fellowship and a 2016 recipient of the ICNC Ph.D. fellowship.

Lessons from Civil Resistance for the Battle Against Financial Corruption

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Originally published in French in Diogenes, the article examines the critical role of bottom-up, grassroots citizen-led initiatives to counter this global scourge. It analyzes the dynamics of two recent successful people power campaigns:

  • UK Uncut (or UK UNKUT) has mobilized thousands of citizens to join the fight to reduce tax evasion, which it asserts would ease the need to cut drastically from social services in the United Kingdom. UK Uncut has been lauded for putting the issue of tax justice squarely on the public agenda.
  • Avaaz, a global digital resistance platform teamed up with a coalition of civil society organizations called the IF Campaign to nonviolently struggle against financial corruption. Their aim is to curb specifically corruption that deprives Global South countries of revenues that should be used for development. Together, IF Campaign and Avaaz have applied nonviolent pressure which ultimately shifted positions of G8 leaders who were not in favor of taking action on illicit financial flows.

Download a pre-publication version of the article (in English) here.

We invite you to also review a number of related resources below:

 

 

ICNC Monographs Published in 2015

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Published ICNC Monographs in 2015

The Tibetan Nonviolent Struggle: A Strategic and Historical Analysis
By Tenzin Dorjee, Tibet Action Institute

Contrary to a perception — fueled by Chinese propaganda during the 2008 Tibetan uprising that the Tibetan struggle is heading toward extremism, this study shows that the movement has since the 1950s moved toward a tighter embrace of nonviolent resistance. The study traces this evolution, analyzing the central themes, purposes, challenges, strategies, tactics and impacts of three major Tibetan uprisings over the past six decades. Tibetans are now waging a quiet, slow-building nonviolent movement, centered on strengthening the Tibetan national and cultural fabric via what the author refers to as transformative resistance. This is happening in an immensely repressive political environment, which shows that there is a way to mobilize people power against even one of the most ruthless regimes in the world.

By: Tenzin Dorjee
Series editor: Maciej Bartkowski
Volume editors: Hardy Merriman, Amber French, Cassandra Balfour
Date of publication: September 21, 2015

 

The Power of Staying Put: Nonviolent Resistance Against Armed Groups in Colombia

By Juan Masullo J., Department of Political and Social Sciences at the European University Institute (EUI)

Confronted with civil war, local civilians typically either collaborate with the strongest actor in town or flee the area. Yet civilians are not stuck with only these choices. Collectively defying armed groups by engaging in organized nonviolent forms of noncooperation, self-organization and disruption is another option. This monograph explores this option through sustained and organized civil resistance led by ordinary peasants against state and non-state repressive actors in Colombia’s longstanding civil war: the case of the Peace Community of San José de Apartadó.

By: Juan Masullo
Series editor: Maciej Bartkowski
Volume editor: Amber French
Date of publication: August 11, 2015

 

 

Religious Elites and Civil Resistance Struggles: Argentina, Chile, and El Salvador in the 1970s

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picThis ICNC Academic Webinar took place on Wednesday, April 6, 2016 at 12 p.m. EST.

This academic webinar was presented by Sharon Erickson Nepstad, Professor of Sociology at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. 

This webinar is transcribed into Chinese

Watch webinar below:

Webinar content:

1. Introduction of the Speaker: 00:00- 00:30
2. Presentation: 00:42 – 34:44
3. Questions and Answers: 34:45 – 57:07

 

Webinar Summary

In the study of civil resistance, pragmatic approaches have dominated, emphasizing the strategic action of resisters and governments. More recently, researchers have acknowledged that other actors – such as the military or the international community – play important roles in nonviolent struggles. While previous studies have focused on influence of military elites, whose decision to side with the movement or remain loyal to the state can profoundly affect the outcome, we know less about other types of elites, their behavior and potential impact on the nonviolent resistance. In this presentation, Professor Nepstad explores the role of religious elites in civil resistance conflicts.

Using comparative historical methods, Professor Nepstad compares the different political stances of the Catholic Church hierarchy in the 1970s-1980s in Chile (where the church opposed the dictatorship), Argentina (where the church was largely supportive of the state), and El Salvador (where the church hierarchy was divided over the political conflict). She asks two key questions: 1) What factors influenced religious leaders to either support or oppose civil resisters? and 2) In what specific ways did religious support or opposition affect the nonviolent movements’ trajectories? She concludes that religious elites are most likely to side with civil resisters when the religious institution receives no financial or political benefits from the regime, when state repression is indiscriminate, and religious leaders have close ties to the aggrieved. It is unclear whether state violence affects religious’ leaders decision to break ties with the authorities. When religious elites do support civil resisters, they can provide a variety of benefits, including transnational ties (and the potential for international solidarity), material resources, and moral legitimacy.

 

Presenter

sharonnepstadSharon Nepstad is a professor of Sociology at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque. Her interests are in social movements, religion, and civil resistance studies. She is the author of numerous articles and four books, including Nonviolent Struggle: Theories, Strategies, and Dynamics (2015, Oxford University Press); Nonviolent Revolutions (2011, Oxford University Press); Religion and War Resistance in the Plowshares Movement (2008, Cambridge University Press); and Convictions of the Soul (2004, Oxford University Press). She has been a visiting scholar at Princeton’s Center for the Study of Religion and at Notre Dame University’s Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies.

 

Recommended Readings:

  • Mignone, Emilio. 1988. Witness to the Truth: The Complicity of Church and Dictatorship in Argentina, 1976-1983, translated by Philip Berryman.  Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books.
  • Morello, Gustavo. 2015.  The Catholic Church and Argentina’s Dirty War. New York: Oxford University Press.
  • Peterson, Anna. 1997.  Martyrdom and the Politics of Progressive Religion: Progressive Catholicism in El Salvador’s Civil War. Albany: State University of New York.
  • Sigmund, Paul E. 1986. “Revolution, Counter-Revolution and the Catholic Church in Chile.” Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 438: 25-35.
  • Smith, Brian H. 1982. The Church and Politics in Chile: Challenges to Modern Catholicism.  Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

 

Apply by June 11 to Write for the ICNC Monograph Series

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New Call Released

ICNC is pleased to announce its fourth annual Monograph Awards call for proposals. The goals of the award are to support research and writing that:

  • develops robust conceptual frameworks for understanding the nature, dynamics, power and impact of civil resistance movements;
  • enhances the strategic use of civil resistance;
  • produces relevant findings for our target readership: academics, activists and organizers, civil society professionals, the policy and developmental communities, and journalists.

The deadline for submitting proposals is June 11, 2017.

In 2017, up to four awards, each worth $5,000, will be offered to prospective authors who have background in the study and/or practice of civil resistance and excel in writing accessibly (including for non-academic audiences). We encourage applications that focus on under-researched or under-published topics in the field of civil resistance.

To learn more about past Monograph Awardees and Published Monographs, see the following links:

Published ICNC Monographs

2016 Monograph Awardees and Their Topics

2015 Monograph Awardees and their Topics

2014 Monograph Awardees and their Topics

Proposals for Monograph Topics
ICNC is interested in receiving monograph proposals that pertain to our priority research topics and other themes, of particular interest to our diverse target readership.

Monograph as an Applied Study
In addition to presenting ground-breaking analyses or findings, monographs are also expected to present general and specific recommendations relevant for our target readership.

Writing for the Non-specialist Reader
ICNC Monographs are written with the non-specialist reader in mind. The quality of analytical and empirical analyses equal that of a serious academic publication, but the language and terminology used are not overly academic and are accessible to a broad-reaching readership. Applicants must therefore demonstrate the ability to write clear, accessible, and vivid prose.

Peer Review
ICNC Monograph drafts go through an external review process before they are accepted for publication. The reviews are conducted by experts in the field, including though not limited to ICNC academic advisors.

Publication Format
The length of the monograph should be between 15,000 and 17,000 words, or around 60-70 pages (double space, 12 pt. font size, Times New Roman). The author must use Chicago-Turabian style and in-text citations. We highly encourage authors to provide their own images (with permission), such as fieldwork photos, for inclusion in the monograph. Authors may want to review published ICNC monographs to familiarize with themselves with publication format.

The introduction should specify the central issue or thesis to be addressed and state clearly the main questions to be answered. It should also explain the added-value of the study to existing literature.

Analytical frames and concepts will ideally be supported by empirical examples, observations, narratives, historical or contemporary accounts provided by dissidents, organizers and activists, and cases of civil resistance. Authors should use qualitative or quantitative methodologies, or both, supported by practical examples of nonviolent resistance.

Based on the analysis presented, the monograph must provide an explanation of how its findings and analysis are relevant for general and specific readerships, and for movement practice in the field — for example, in the conclusion. Authors are also encouraged to include policy recommendations informed by the findings of their studies.

Authors are expected to deliver their draft monographs within 6 to 9 months of receiving their award (once appropriate documents are signed by all parties). Authors should expect to collaborate regularly and closely with the ICNC Series Editor and an in-house developmental and copy editor to ensure the quality of the final publication. Responsiveness to the editors and their requests is crucial to ensure smooth writing progression.

Reminder: From the very beginning of drafting, authors must keep in mind that the readership for their work is diverse. Language and arguments presented must avoid unnecessarily complex or overly scholarly jargon.

Eligibility and Requirements
Educators, scholars, practitioners, and writers who have substantive knowledge of civil resistance literature, demonstrated writing ability, and relevant research or practical experience are encouraged to apply. We are open to various evidence of eligibility, including but not limited to:

  • academic and non-academic publications (journal articles, chapter, books, manuals, journalistic pieces, blog posts) related to civil resistance;
  • completed coursework on civil resistance;
  • curricular and teaching experience related to civil resistance;
  • activist-related manuals and experience training on civil resistance;
  • recorded public lectures and public speaking on civil resistance;
  • interviews on civil resistance given to online media that were published, recorded, or aired;
  • multi-year experience as an activist and organizer of nonviolent campaigns.

We particularly welcome applications from promising young researchers, scholar-practitioners, and educators who view the opportunity to write a monograph as an important part of their in-depth reflection on civil resistance practice or scholarship.

In addition to furthering research, study and resources in the field of civil resistance, these awards have been developed to expand the ICNC network of collaboration. Therefore, preference is given to proposals from people whose research or writing ICNC has not supported in the past.

How to Apply
Interested applicants are asked to fill out the online application form and submit requested information, including a research proposal, detailed CV, and at least one writing sample, preferably on some aspect of nonviolent civil resistance or social movements.

Apply now

Application Deadline and Next Steps
The deadline for proposal submissions is June 11, 2017. Depending on the number of proposals received, it may take up to six weeks to review proposals, contact selected applicants and announce the awardees.

Stages of Monograph Writing and Review
After the proposal is accepted ICNC signs an independent contractor’s agreement with an awardee. The contract usually stipulates the following submission process:

  1. Submission of 5,000 words of any text pertaining to the accepted proposal;
  2. Submission of 10,000 words of text that follows recommendations provided by ICNC on the first text submission;
  3. Submission of the first full draft that incorporates and addresses ICNC suggestions and comments on the second text submission;
  4. Submission of the second full draft that incorporates and addresses ICNC suggestions and comments on the first full draft;
  5. Submission of the third revised full draft that incorporates and addresses ICNC suggestions and comments on the second full draft;
  6. Once ICNC and the author are satisfied with the completed work, the monograph draft is submitted to at least two external, independent reviewers to determine the quality of the monograph, including whether further improvements are needed, and if so, what kind;
  7. After the external reviews are submitted to ICNC we pass them onto the author. If the monograph is recommended for publication by both reviewers, ICNC asks the author to address reviewers’ suggested changes, if any. The author lets ICNC know which of the suggested changes were incorporated into the monograph and which ones were left out and why;
  8. Once the revised monograph draft is submitted to ICNC we initiate copyediting and layout/graphic design, and continue working closely with the author during this process.

Monograph Publication and Dissemination
After the completion of the final draft and graphic design, ICNC makes the monograph available on-demand via Amazon, where the readers can order a hard copy or/and e-book for a small fee that covers printing costs. The monograph PDF is made available free of charge on the ICNC website. ICNC and the author will collaborate to strategically disseminate and promote the monograph.

The authors may also be invited to present their monographs during a webinar and/or during an ICNC educational event in the United States or in another country where appropriate.

ICNC Priority Research Topics in Civil Resistance:

  1. The role and impact of civil resistance before, during, and after political transitions
  2. Why and how civil resistance movements maintain nonviolent discipline
  3. The role and impact of a variety of external actors in civil resistance struggles
  4. Nonviolent resistance strategies to reduce societal violence and/or marginalize violent non-state actors (i.e. criminal groups; militias and paramilitaries engaged in civil war; extremist and terrorist groups)
  5. Assessing the impact of civil resistance training, knowledge and skills acquisition on civil resistance movements
  6. The impact of women in civil resistance movements
  7. Civil resistance strategies to fight climate change
  8. The role of emotions in movement emergence and civil resistance
  9. Why some nonviolent movements are hijacked by violent flanks and how nonviolent movements interact with violent movements and can plan better to prevent violent groups from taking over
  10. Civil resistance and how it can contribute to peacebuilding
  11. The impact of civil resistance on defections from supporters of a movement’s opponent such as members of the business community, banks and finance, bureaucracy, religious organizations, members of the security forces, state-controlled media, and other pillars of support.
  12. The relationship between pre-figurative and intra-movement dynamics and the broader political, social and/or economic impacts of nonviolent movements
  13. Strategies for civil resistance campaigns against abusive or unaccountable practices involving multinational corporations—where and how do movements and their allies target or pressure; what strategies, tactics, and framing are most effective; etc.?
  14. Popular grassroots movements on the margins (landless peoples, unemployed, underprivileged) that demand inclusion, an end to discrimination, access to resources and better services in a nominal democracy
  15. How have nonviolent activists and movements in nondemocracies overcome the scarcity of material resources in the past nonviolent movements?  How did they generate material resources, conduct successful grassroots fund-raising efforts, and manage their financial and material resources and needs in adversarial conditions?
  16. Civil resistance and nonviolent resistance campaigns in democracies that experience raising waives of anti-democratic populism and growing authoritarian practices

Additional Themes of Interest:

  1. Study of intersectionality between broad based pro-democracy movements and non-traditional, under-represented movements and groups such as LGBT, or ethnic minorities
  2. Why some actors choose nonviolent resistance and others resort to violent means
  3. Assessment tools for movements—how do movements assess their current state and progress over time?
  4. How do localized protests, and everyday resistance turn into national political movements?
  5. Analysis of strategic approaches to sustaining movements and building resilience, despite fear and apathy
  6. The role and impact of civil resistance on people’s and states’ identities and/or aspirations
  7. Civil resistance and negotiations
  8. Different forms of leadership in civil resistance
  9. Civil resistance and international law—Are acts of civil resistance protected under international law? How can civil resistance impact international law?
  10. Nonviolent national defense (sometimes referred to as civilian-based defense)
  11. National or local surveys on the potential for, and effectiveness of, civil resistance methods in war-torn societies
  12. The role of constructive programs and alternative institution building in civil resistance
  13. Review of studies across disciplines about the onset of civil resistance movements under repressive conditions using a civil resistance perspective
  14. Conceptual analysis and empirical study of formation of diverse social coalitions as part of civil resistance movements
  15. Civil resistance and the prevention of major atrocities
  16. The use and impact of new technologies in civil resistance struggles
  17. Failure of civil resistance in crucial cases/campaigns: lessons learned
  18. Recovering historical cases of civil resistance struggles that are unknown or under-researched
  19. Nonviolent resistance to coups d’état
  20. Comparative studies of recent civil resistance cases in a region or across regions, with emphasis on Latin America, sub-Saharan Africa, Asia and the Pacific region
  21. Studies of the situations in which civil resistance is justified and appropriate and situations in which it may be misused or used by repressive actors
  22. The role of nonviolent resistance strategies in international solidarity movements in support of nonviolent struggles

Recognition for ICNC Monograph on Nonviolent Struggle in Tibet

The Tibetan Nonviolent Struggle: A Strategic and Historical Analysis by Tenzin Dorjee (ICNC Monograph Series 2015) was listed among 26 publications on medium.com’s “The Best Human Rights Books of 2016“:

“From the excellent ICNC Monograph Series, this book succinctly traces the history of the Tibetan nonviolent freedom struggle from the Tibetan Uprising of 1959 up to the present, examining it through the lens of strategic nonviolent theory. In this respect, it is one of the handiest books around on the subject.”

The Power of Staying Put: Nonviolent Resistance Against Armed Groups in Colombia

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By: Juan Masullo, August 2015
Series editor: Maciej Bartkowski
Volume editor: Amber French
Free Download: English | Spanish
Purchase a Print Copy
Purchase e-book (Nook | Kindle)

Confronted with civil war, local civilians typically either collaborate with the strongest actor in town or flee the area. Yet civilians are not stuck with only these choices. Collectively defying armed groups by engaging in organized nonviolent forms of noncooperation, self-organization and disruption is another option. This monograph explores this alternative through sustained and organized civil resistance led by ordinary peasants against state and non-state repressive actors in Colombia’s longstanding civil war: the case of the Peace Community of San José de Apartadó.

Read Masullo’s related article “Villagers stand up for peace in Colombia’s civil war.”

Read “Campesinos colombianos que defienden la paz” (en español)

 

About the Author

 

Juan Masullo Jiménez is a Doctoral Researcher at the Department of Political and  Social Sciences at the European University Institute (EUI). He studied political science and sociology at Javeriana University (Bogotá, Colombia), and holds Master’s degrees in International  Relations (International Peace and Security) from the Institut Barcelona d’Estudis Internacionals (IBEI) and Political Science (Comparative Politics) from the Central European  University (CEU). Juan is a recipient of the 2014 ICNC Monograph Award.

 

The Tibetan Nonviolent Struggle: A Strategic and Historical Analysis

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By: Tenzin Dorjee, September 2015
Series editor: Maciej Bartkowski
Volume editors: Hardy Merriman, Amber French, Cassandra Balfour
Free Download: English | Tibetan
Purchase a Print Copy
Purchase e-book (Nook | Kindle)

Contrary to a perception — fueled by Chinese propaganda during the 2008 Tibetan uprising that the Tibetan struggle is heading toward extremism, this study shows that the movement has since the 1950s moved toward a tighter embrace of nonviolent resistance. The study traces this evolution, analyzing the central themes, purposes, challenges, strategies, tactics and impacts of three major Tibetan uprisings over the past six decades. Tibetans are now waging a quiet, slow-building nonviolent movement, centered on strengthening the Tibetan national and cultural fabric via what the author refers to as transformative resistance. This is happening in an immensely repressive political environment, which shows that there is a way to mobilize people power against even one of the most ruthless regimes in the world.

 

About the Author

Tenzin (Tendor) Dorjee is an activist and writer, and the former executive director of Students for a Free Tibet, global network of students and activists dedicated to advancing Tibetan freedom and human rights. His writings have been published in various forums including the Huffington Post, Global Post, Courrier International, Tibetan Review, Tibet Times and the CNN Blog. He is a regular commentator on Tibet-related issues on Radio Free Asia, Voice of America and Voice of Tibet. Born and raised in India, he holds a bachelor’s degree from Brown University and a master’s from Columbia University. He worked at the National Endowment for Democracy, before working at Students for a Free Tibet, where he served as executive director from 2009 to 2013. He is currently Program Director at Tibet Action Institute. Tenzin Dorjee is a recipient of the 2014 ICNC Research Monograph Award.

 

Recognition for The Tibetan Nonviolent Struggle

The Tibetan Nonviolent Struggle: A Strategic and Historical Analysis by Tenzin Dorjee (ICNC Monograph Series 2015) was listed among 26 publications on medium.com’s “The Best Human Rights Books of 2016“:

“From the excellent ICNC Monograph Series, this book succinctly traces the history of the Tibetan nonviolent freedom struggle from the Tibetan Uprising of 1959 up to the present, examining it through the lens of strategic nonviolent theory. In this respect, it is one of the handiest books around on the subject.”

Curriculum Fellowship Awardees 2016

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In 2014, ICNC launched the Curriculum Fellowship Program to support development of courses on nonviolent conflict and promote teaching in the growing field of civil resistance studies. That year, seven fellows were selected, and the following year (2015) there were six fellows.

In 2016, ICNC has selected six fellows to help them introduce or expand existing curricular and educational activities in the field of civil resistance. Some of these fellows will teach class-based curses at their affiliated academic institutions in the United States and Portugal, while others will develop and run online academic seminars for the Brazilian, Vietnamese and African audiences as part of the ICNC curriculum support.

We are featuring three final evaluation and learning assessment reports from the 2016 Fellows. The reports demonstrate a significant impact the ICNC-supported classroom-based and online courses have had on their participants and on learning about civil resistance and nonviolent movements, in general.

2016 Fellows include:

Courtney CookCourtney Cook is an educator, activist, and artist. She is currently a doctoral student in the Curriculum and Instruction Department at the University of Texas at Austin. Specializing in Cultural Studies in Education, Courtney’s research focuses on critical pedagogy and humanizing dialogue as a means of engaging with systemic injustice, cultural trauma, and contemporary violence. She completed her Master’s Degree at Boston University in African American Studies in 2008 where she focused on American slavery, the Civil Rights and Black Power Movements, collective memory, trauma and literature.

As a long-time English teacher, Courtney used literature and creative writing to invite her students into critical dialogue regarding civic responsibility and issues of power, race, class, gender, and ideology. As an activist and artist she has taught creative writing in prisons and worked with young people in processes of overcoming addiction. Currently she is teaching future educators about issues of race, class, gender, political oppression, and civil resistance, and is the co-organizer of the 5th annual Cultural Studies in Education Conference, “Education Under Fire: Countering Violence with Peaceful Resistance, Radical Love, and Social Imagination.” As an experienced curriculum specialist and consultant, Courtney has developed curriculum within the fields of peace education, human rights education, and anti-racist education. Currently she is developing curriculum guides for the Institute for Community, University, and School Partnership’s Blackademics Television series for educators and activists to use as resources in their classrooms and communities.

Course title: “Introduction to Civil Resistance and Sociocultural Influences on Education”
Location: University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, USA (August-December 2016)

Abstract: In this course, students will become familiar with the sociological, cultural, and political contexts and dimensions of education in U.S. society, and will come to understand relationships of power within society that can be found in schooling and nonviolent resistance movements.
The units on nonviolent resistance that are incorporated into this course cover an introduction to what civil resistance is and framing civil resistance in education; an examination of the strategies and tactics nonviolent movements use to organize and resist oppression; a study of schools as sites of resistance designed to help students critically reflect on the role of teaching and learning on civil resistance movements; a session on conceptualizing resistance and building community through dialogue; a deep dive into the concept of ‘collective imagining’, assessing the relationship between shared visions, individual voices, and direct nonviolent action; and finally, a further analysis of various case studies of nonviolent movements.

Clay Fuller is a research assistant for the Walker Institute of International and Area Studies, a sixth year PhD candidate (ABD) and adjunct instructor at the University of South Carolina, and he also teaches international relations online for Western Carolina University (NC). Clay studies non-democratic political institutions and the conditions under which these allow for liberal economic experimentation.

The title of his dissertation is ‘Authoritarian Liberalism: Dictatorship in the 21st Century.’ His dissertation proposes an alternative assumption to the largely held belief that authoritarian regimes that grow the domestic economy and adopt semi-democratic political institutions will eventually lose control of the process and democratize. Essentially, modern authoritarian regimes are quite capable of adopting most of the necessary conditions for democracy while successfully avoiding the sufficient. His first field is comparative politics and second is international relations. Clay’s research resides in the nexus of these two fields and offers promising new data and insight concerning the use of special economic zones (SEZs) and sovereign wealth funds (SWFs). He regularly teaches an original topics course on modern dictatorships (to which this fellowship is applied) and regularly teaches basic international relations theory courses.  View his CV here.

Course title: “Dictatorship and Civil Resistance in the 21st Century”
Location: University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina, USA (August-December 2016)

Abstract: This political science course combines the traditionally domestic and/or area focus of comparative politics with the global and/or interstate levels of analysis associated with international relations. Authoritarianism, neo-authoritarianism, soft authoritarianism, dictatorship, monarchy, autocracy, totalitarianism, single-party regimes, military juntas, and the all-encompassing ‘non-democracy’ are merely a few of the many names given to world’s oldest and most common form of government. Despite ‘waves of democratization,’ in 2015 Freedom House reported that 55% of the world’s countries and 60% of the world’s population are not fully “free.” They also currently report a steady decline in freedom around the world for the entire past decade (freedom measured by civil liberties and political rights). This class explains and explores what these data and terminology mean, the methodologies used to generate these stats, and the major theoretical explanations for the continued survival of non-democracies and their leaders. In addition to learning the various theories concerning non-democratic survival, there are three other components to the course: 1) a section on data collection in dictatorships, 2) a semester-long computer simulation of the fall of a dictatorship to a civil resistance campaign, and 3) a large segment on civil resistance including its history, strategies, and tactics. It is actually not very difficult to remove a dictator from office relative to the difficulty of building a democratic society. The aim of this course is not only to educate students about the 80+ non-democratic regimes that exist today, but also to inspire students to learn more about the front end of the democratization process (removal of the dictator or regime) while simultaneously warning them about the pitfalls that face the group that replaces the regime.

Clay’s course evaluation & learning assessment

10391415_10206274131270933_2047872226622876504_nLilit Makunts is currently an Associate Professor at Russian-Armenian University in Yerevan. She earned her Ph.D. in Cognitive Linguistics specializing in Political Discourse. She teaches Sociolinguistics, Cognitive Linguistics, and Discourse Analysis. After attending the Fletcher Summer Institute for the Advanced Study of Nonviolent Conflict in 2015 she initiated an academic course on Civil Resistance in the Department of Political Science this fall.

Still a student, she was very actively engaged in civic initiatives. Her aspiration for democratic changes in Armenia made her enter politics in 2004 and try to promote universal values. However, after about 8 years as a political board member in the Liberal Party of Armenia and the head of the youth organization (2004-2012) she realized that without civic education and the acknowledgment of people power among society no substantial democratic changes can take place. This was the major reason she quit political activity and started working with civil society groups and individuals. Together with academic teaching, she works as a trainer on different civil society platforms.

Course title: “Introduction to Civil Resistance: History and Strategies of Nonviolent Struggle”
Location: Online (November-December 2016)

Abstract: This is an online seminar that aims to provide civil society representatives, social/political activists and students with basic knowledge of civil resistance history as well as introduce them to strategies and tactics that are employed worldwide to make nonviolent resistance effective. The course intends to discuss various cases of nonviolent campaigns and movements and reflect on their efficiency by drawing parallels across local contexts. The course will begin with the introduction of civil resistance and its historical background and will focus on its common misconceptions. It will discuss the reasons why nonviolent campaigns succeed more often than violent ones and will touch upon the idea of people power and how it works. The seminar will further discuss strategic frameworks for analyzing campaigns and movements as well as explore issues of innovative and creative tactical choice. Cultural resistance will then be introduced as a creative way to challenge and fight oppression. The last component of the online course will be devoted to the discussion of the role of negotiations in civil resistance and the options regarding their application in nonviolent struggles in Armenia.

Lilit’s course evaluation & learning assessment

Etiene Martins is a Brazilian Federal Judge and a former police officer. He was a police officer for 16 years at Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil, and served at its Legal Department. In 2014, he was appointed Federal Judge and, currently, serves at the 4th Federal Court of Guarulhos City, District of São Paulo. He holds a B.A and a M.A in Public Security. In 2008, he earned LLB from the Federal University of the State of Rio de Janeiro. Since November 2015, Etiene Martins has been Professor of Constitutional Law and International Law at Enfase Institute (Brazil).  Etiene has additionally started teaching Criminal Law at the D. João VI Police Academy. Etiene is active in the field of civil resistance training. He is a Kingian Nonviolence Conflict Resolution Co-Trainer affiliated with the Center for Nonviolence & Peace Studies (University of Rhode Island) In 2011, he attended the Kingian Nonviolence Training – Level I (University of Rhode Island) and, in 2015, the Fletcher Summer Institute on the Advanced Study of Nonviolent Conflict. In June this year, he will embark on the “Kingian Nonviolence Training – Level II – ADVANCED TRAINING in Leadership, Organization, Mobilization” at the University of Rhode Island. He is the author of the chapter “Law, Violence, and Public Security: Martin Luther King Jr.’s Philosophy Applied” published in the book Kingian Nonviolence: Applications for International & Institutional Change, 2015.

Course title: “Strategic Nonviolent Action, Peacemaking, Community Policing”
Location: D. João VI Police Academy, Rio de Janeiro-Brazil (October-November 2016)

Abstract: This is an online seminar that aims to introduce police officers to ideas and concepts of civil resistance scholarship and practice, and to show how important social and political changes can be brought about by nonviolent actions. The course also intends to make participants aware of how civil resistance campaigns can help to reduce violence and enforce the rule of law. Since civil resistance campaigns can play such an important role in fighting corrupt practices, state abuses and strengthening rule of law, police would benefit from understanding and gaining greater insight from the field of civil resistance studies. The course aims to teach its participants how to identify civil resistance campaigns, deconstruct misconceptions about civil resistance actions and nonviolent movements, and how to constructively work with activists and civil resistance campaigns. The course consists of five components: 1) an introduction to civil resistance through a historical and practical perspective; 2) an examination of nonviolent action in history, focusing on the Martin Luther King campaign; 3) a look into the strategies and skills that create successful civil resistance movements; 4) applying nonviolent action to policing; and 5) an exploration of the future of civil resistance. Collectively, these components examine the proponents, philosophies and techniques of nonviolent action in transforming violent conflicts into more constructive nonviolent contentions that will benefit resolution of personal interpersonal, societal, and international conflicts.

Etiene’s course evaluation & learning assessment

Dr. Truong Nong grew up in South Vietnam and came to America as a refugee in 1980 when he and his family escaped Vietnam in search of freedom. Dr. Nong earned a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and a Master of Arts Degree in Political Science from the University of Houston, as well as a Ph.D. degree in Education, specializing in online education, at Northcentral University, Arizona, United States. He has been a part-time faculty member at the University of Houston, teaching the Vietnamese language and Viet-studies courses.

In addition to being an educator, Dr. Nong has been an activist in the Vietnamese-American community in Houston for the past 30 years.  Currently, he serves as Advisor to the Executive Board of the Vietnamese Culture and Science Association (VCSA), a national Vietnamese American organization based in Houston. In this capacity, over the past eighteen years he has delivered a number of leadership workshops for VCSA’s annual youth-leadership camps. Further, since 2005 he has dedicated himself full-time to the establishment of the Institute for Civic Education (ICEVN), a non-profit institute that provides online civic education, leadership development, and business management to Vietnamese students worldwide.  In addition to designing and teaching the online courses offered by ICEVN, Dr. Nong has written and published several articles on the democratization process in Asia that have appeared in Vietnamese diaspora magazines.

Course title: “Dynamics and Effectiveness of Civil Resistance: History and Strategies of Nonviolent Struggle in Vietnam”
Location: Online (January-February 2017)

Abstract: The online seminar provides an overview and analysis of the strategies that civil resistance movements have employed worldwide, particularly in dealing with oppressive regimes. The course will begin with an introduction to civil resistance– presenting the scope and power of civil resistance in both theory and practice, before moving to an exploration of the strategies and effectiveness of civil resistance movements.  The course will then focus in on case studies of civil resistance in non-democracies, before locating participants specifically in the struggle for rights in Vietnam.  Here the course will examine and analyze civil resistance practice and nonviolent movements throughout the history of Vietnam, and participants will develop an understanding of the Vietnamese Constitution’s framing and rights.  The course will conclude with a discussion on the application of theory and strategies for civil resistance in repressive regimes—discussing and drawing lessons from the application of theory and strategies for civil resistance, to current conditions in Vietnam.

 Headshot-Picture-254x300Ana Isabel Rodriguez is currently a PhD fellow in International Relations and Conflict Resolution at the University of Coimbra. She holds three Masters degrees, the most recent being from Georgetown University in Latin American Studies. Ana’s two other degrees are in International Relations and in European Union Studies, both from the Universidad CEU San Pablo, Madrid. Ana has received multiple scholarship awards: the FCT Scholarship, a mixed grant from the Government of Portugal and the European Union to do her PhD (2015-019); the Fulbright Scholarship, for her MA program at Georgetown University (2012-2014); and the “la Caixa” Scholarship, for her MA in International Relations at CEU San Pablo (2009-2010). Previously, she has worked as a researcher and consultant at various international organizations, think tanks, and universities– including the Inter-American Development Bank, Human Rights Watch, and CSIS in Washington DC, and the Institute of European Studies in Madrid.

Course title: “Dynamics of Peace, Civil Resistance and Conflict”
Location: University of Coimbra, Portugal (September-December 2016)

Abstract: The course ‘Dynamics of Peace, Civil Resistance and Conflict’ will include a unit of five modules focused specifically on the dynamics of civil resistance. The overall goal of this unit is to introduce students to the topic of civil resistance and nonviolent conflict, as part of the course’s larger inquiry into the theoretical debate on the ethics of security, violence and peace. The five civil resistance modules will cover: A) The concepts, dynamics and history of civil resistance; B) Skills and conditions for the success of the civil resistance movements; C) Types of civil resistance, with a particular focus on democratic transitions and civil resistance in democracies; and D) Practical analysis of recent and current movements, such as the Indignados movement in Spain, among others. The methodology of the course will include theoretical and practical classes, with in-class presentations from students, a documentary screening, and a talk featuring a guest speaker.

Curriculum Fellowship Awardees 2014

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In 2014, ICNC launched its new curriculum fellowship to support development of courses on nonviolent conflict and promote teaching in the growing field of civil resistance studies. During the first edition of the curriculum fellowships, ICNC has selected seven instructors and scholars to help them introduce or expand existing curricular and educational activities in the field of civil resistance at their universities and colleges. Our 2014 curriculum fellows teach in the United States, United Kingdom, Israel, and Poland.

2014 fellows include:

Benedetta Berti is a Kreitman Post-Doctoral Fellow at Ben Gurion University, a lecturer at Tel Aviv University, and a fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS). Dr. Berti’s areas of expertise include human security, internal conflict, integration of armed groups, and post-conflict stabilization. Berti’s work has appeared, among others, in Foreign Policy, Studies in Conflict and Terrorism, and Mediterranean Politics. Recently, Dr. Berti also authored the book Armed Political Organizations. From Conflict to Integration (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2013). Dr. Berti is a Member of the Young Atlanticist group of the Atlantic Council, the Körber Foundation’s Munich Young Leader group, the ME 2.0 Israeli-Palestinian Young Business Leaders Forum, she serves as academic advisor for the Yala Online Peace Academy and is affiliated with the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations. She holds a Ph.D in international relations from the Fletcher School (Tufts University).

Course title: “Mobilization, Social Protest, Revolution: Civil Resistance from the Arab Spring to Occupy Wall Street” (Spring 2015)
Location: Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel

Abstract: This seminar will explore the vast topic of ‘contentious politics’—looking specifically at the role of social movements and civil society groups. In the course of the semester students will look at different dynamics of civil resistance and strategic nonviolent struggles, relying heavily on case studies from the Middle East (but not exclusively). Some of the key themes that will be explored in the course of the semester include: conceptualizing civil resistance in its various forms; deconstructing and criticizing the myth of the ‘effectiveness of violence’ and discussing realistic alternatives (from grassroots nonviolent mobilizations, to digital activism and to local forms of ‘everyday resistance’); as well as discovering and applying economic, political, social and organizational tools to assess when and why strategic nonviolence works. The course is highly interdisciplinary and draws from both ‘classic’ works in civil resistance and political theory, to organizational sociology, social anthropology and international relations.

Paulina Codogni, Political scientist; Vice-Rector for International Cooperation at Collegium Civitas, where she also works as a lecturer in the field of International Relations; adjunct in the Institute of Political Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences. Graduate of the Warsaw School of Economics, where she studied International Political and Economic Relations. She has also graduated in Financing and Banking. The title of her Ph.D. thesis, defended at the Polish Academy of Sciences, was “The Polish elections in June 1989 – at the Threshold of the Transformation,” and it was published in 2012. Author of two other books: Year 1956, published in 2006 and The Polish Roundtable – Crossing the Rubicon, published in 2009. Co-author of Biographical Dictionary of Central and Eastern Europe 20th Century (Warsaw, 2005) and of the Polish edition of Oxford Contemporary History (Warsaw 2008). Now she is doing a research on transforming everyday life activities into forms of civil resistance.

Course title: “Salt and Politics– Nonviolent Resistance in the XX and XXI Century” (Fall 2014)
Location: Collegium Civitas, Warsaw, Poland

Abstract: This is an elective course for graduate and upper-level undergraduate students as well as Erasmus and exchange students. It is focused on introducing students to the theory and practice of civil resistance struggles and their dynamics including the role of external actors, new media and technology. During the course we analyze and interpret civil resistance campaigns with the use of canonical case studies but also referring to relatively less known campaigns. A special emphasis is placed on diverse strategies and tactics used during civil resistance struggles. We discuss main reasons for successes and failures of non-violent campaigns. The civil resistance theory and practice are addressed by analyzing different aspects of campaigns – everyday acts of resistance, women and youth participation, culture and symbols, among others. The course has incorporated books on civil resistance (among others, authored by Gene Sharp, Erica Chenoweth and Maria J. Stephan, Adam Roberts and Timthy Garton Ash, and Kurt Schock), documentaries (two segments from A Force More Powerful), articles and video materials provided by ICNC.

Shannon Gibson is a Full-time Lecturer at the University of Southern California in the School of International Relations, where she teaches courses on international organizations, environmental politics, global public health, and transnational social movements. Her research focuses on the role of civil and “uncivil” society participation in transnational politics. As part of her dissertation, “Dynamics of Radicalization: The Rise of Radical Environmentalism against Climate Change,” she conducted field and participant observation research at a variety of international summits, including World Social Forums in Brazil and Senegal, the 2010 G20 Summit in Pittsburgh, and the United Nations climate negotiations in Denmark and Mexico in order to assess the evolution and impact of environmental social movements and activist networks in the climate change regime. This work was supported by the National Science Foundation and the University of Miami’s Center for Ecosystem Science and Policy. She has co-authored an article “Environmental Praxis, Climate Activism, and the UNFCCC: A Participatory Action Research Approach,” (Globalizations 9:3).

Course title: “Order and Disorder in Global Affairs” (Spring 2015)
Location: University of California, California, USA

Abstract: “Order and Disorder in Global Affairs” (IR 382) is an upper-level undergraduate elective that focuses on the various “orders” and “disorders” created by modern globalization across political, economic, social, cultural and environmental spheres. As such, it takes a largely critical approach to the study of globalization. In order to explore globalization and its discontents theoretically and practically, the course focuses on several transnational social movements and grassroots civil resistance struggles and their attempts to bolster, reform, transform, discredit, or decommission globalization and its supporting institutions, actors and ideologies. These movements are explored through documentaries, academic and activist literature, and the instructor’s firsthand experiences as a scholar-activist. Finally, at the culmination of the course, we examine various alternative proposals, including impact and role of civil resistance movements, for creating more sustainable, just and democratic governance structures and societies. The course will integrate books, documentaries and other materials on civil resistance recommended by ICNC.

Rachel Julian has spent 20 years working on peace and nonviolence issues including peace campaigning, education, social enterprise and community development. She worked for 5 years for both the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament and Nonviolent Peaceforce. She has also worked for International Peace Bureau, Calderdale Community Foundation, GlobalOps and is founder and Chair of the Trustees for a local Community Centre. She now teaches, and leads courses on, International Relations, Peace and Development at Leeds Metropolitan University in the UK. Her expertise ranges from how developing movements and how organisations or projects are run, the roles and responsibilities of individuals, nonviolent social change and the importance of local ownership of peace and resistance movements. She teaches, lectures and leads workshops on nonviolence and social movements and continues working with a range of peace and justice organisations. Her PhD is on overcoming the challenge of demonstrating results in conflict transformation, and since 2012 she has been teaching undergraduate and postgraduate modules on Peace building, Managing projects, Conflict resolution and Introduction to Peace. She supervises PhD students on conflict resolution, nonviolence and peace education. Her research focuses on the development of Unarmed Civilian Peacekeeping.

Course title: “Nonviolence and Civil Resistance” (Spring 2015)
Location: Leeds Metropolitan University, Leeds, United Kingdom

Abstract: The course on civil resistance is a component of the first year Undergraduate module ‘Introduction to Peace.’ Over three weeks the students will specifically study ‘Nonviolence and Civil Resistance’ will include the theory and practice of nonviolent civil resistance with a guest lecture on Gandhi, and group research on historical nonviolent intervention, growing contemporary nonviolent social movements and researching civil resistance, addressing some of the critical questions in the field through their case studies such as dealing with nonviolence and violence, power and civil resistance and social movement theory. From doing this course the students will learn the theory of nonviolence and civil resistance and have it embedded in historical and contemporary examples. They will be doing one of the assessments based on this content and will produce a display of research they have produced. The course is offered by Leeds Metropolitan University as part of the BA(Hons) International Relations and Peace Studies. The guest lecture and materials will also be available to students on the MA Peace and Development course in their module ‘Critical Perspectives on Peace and Conflict’.

Allyson McCreery is an adjunct professor at Arcadia University. She teaches classes on both nonviolent and violent conflict. She has developed academic courses on both civil resistance and visual propaganda of armed conflict. McCreery holds an MA in International Peace and Conflict Resolution (2013) from Arcadia University as well as an MA in Art History and Archaeology from Temple University (2010). Her academic research focuses on the role of the arts and cultural heritage in transforming conflict, thus bridging these academic fields. She was a Peace Fellow with the International Peace and Security Institute (IPSI) and has completed field studies in Serbia and Kosovo, Ukraine and Crimea, the Republic of Cyprus and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, and Northern Ireland. Other research includes reconstructing identity in post-conflict Northern Ireland, examining the potential for cultural diplomacy in divided cities, and analyzing the role of ethnic and national symbols in divided landscapes. She has co-authored an article called “Crisis as Impetus Toward Conflict Resolution in Cyprus,” (Peace Review: A Journal of Social Justice 24:4, 446–453) and is working towards the publication of several other manuscripts.

Course title: “Making Moves: Strategic Nonviolence and Civil Disobedience in American Culture”
Location: Arcadia University, Philadelphia, USA

Abstract: Throughout American history strategic nonviolence and civil disobedience have led to significant transformations in American political, economic, and social spheres. The strong force of activism in American culture, represented through actions such as peaceful protests and boycotts, has changed the course of American history. Civil rights and liberties often compose the platform of strategic nonviolence and civil disobedience as citizens exhibit resiliency in their efforts and motivations to change the status quo. This course will investigate why and how civil resistance works, noting both successes and failures across several decades from the Civil Rights Movement to current day, as well as international examples. Utilizing primary and secondary sources, students will expose the role of strategic nonviolence in initiating change through demonstrations, boycotts, and other nonviolent measures.

Benjamin Naimark-Rowse is an academic and practitioner with over a decade of experience directing NGOs and advising governments on criminal justice, democratization, human rights, and transitional justice issues. He has served as a Program Officer with the Open Society Justice Initiative, an electoral observer with The Carter Center, and the Founding Director of the Seevak Human Rights and Social Justice Fellowship. From 2007-2010, he co-directed Darfurian Voices, the first public opinion survey of Darfurian refugees on issues of peace, justice, and reconciliation, which entailed conducting 2,152 refugee interviews along the Chad/Sudan border and briefing the survey findings to key stakeholders around the world. During 2011 he conducted political analysis of the Egyptian Revolution including two field research missions in Egypt.

Ben holds a M.P.A. from Princeton’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and a B.A. with honors from the University of Chicago. He has served as an Assistant Editor of the Journal of Public and International Affairs and as a public security expert review group member for the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime. He is a Truman National Security Fellow and a Ph.D. candidate at The Fletcher School at Tufts University.

Ches Thurber is a research fellow at Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center for cience and International Affairs and a Ph.D. candidate at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University. His research pans the spectrum of intrastate conflict dynamics ranging from ontentious politics to civil war. His doctoral dissertation, “Between Mao and Gandhi: Strategies of Violence and Nonviolence in Revolutionary Movements,” examines variation in strategies employed by groups seeking to capture state power. Previously, he worked as a foreign and defense policy aide in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Course title: “From Gandhi to the Arab Spring: The Theory and Practice of Nonviolent Resistance” (Fall 2014)
Location: Tufts University, Boston, USA

Abstract: From colonial America to colonial India, the Berlin Wall to Tahrir Square, nonviolent resistance movements have proven capable of toppling regimes and recasting the geopolitical landscape. But what exactly constitutes “nonviolent resistance?” Why do some groups employ it while others turn to arms? Why and when is it effective? What, if anything, can the international community do to help nonviolent movements succeed? This seminar is intended to provide a broad, interdisciplinary overview of the study of what has been interchangeably called civil resistance, nonviolent direct action, and strategic nonviolence. It will explore questions surrounding the ethics of nonviolent action, when and where civil resistance is used, the conditions under which it is more or less effective, and its consequences for local communities, state polities, and the international system. The course will draw from seminal philosophical texts, historical accounts, and cutting-edge social science research. Students will gain an understanding of both the normative and empirical debates surrounding the practice of civil resistance and a familiarity with key cases in which it has been used.