The purpose of this manual is to help trainers run well-designed workshops to prepare citizens in effective nonviolent methods for defending their governments and their institutions against coup d’états.

The phrase “coup d’état” is from the French, “blow against the state.” It refers to the sudden, forcible overthrow of a government by a group plotting against it. Governments have been shaken or forcibly brought down since time immemorial. Our era is no exception.

The good news is that powerful nonviolent means of resisting coups are available. In significant instances, supporters of democracy have used nonviolent methods effectively to resist attempted take-overs by usurpers. This manual attempts to learn from this important experience and pass it on to others.

Richard K. Taylor
Introduction by Hardy Merriman