10.1 Protest and direct action

Protest and direct action are powerful tools used by social movements to challenge the status quo and push for change. These tactics range from marches and sit-ins to boycotts and civil disobedience, each designed to disrupt, raise awareness, and pressure decision-makers.

The effectiveness of protest tactics depends on various factors, including the movement's goals, resources, and public opinion. Non-violent resistance, pioneered by figures like Gandhi and King, has proven particularly effective in building support and pressuring authorities, though it faces criticism in some contexts.

Forms of Protest and Direct Action

Tactical Repertoires of Social Movements

• Protests and direct actions are tactical repertoires used by social movements to challenge power structures, raise awareness, and push for social, political, or economic change
• These tactics involve a range of activities designed to disrupt the status quo, attract media attention, and put pressure on decision-makers to meet the movement's demands
• Movements often use a variety of tactics in combination, playing to their strengths and adapting to changing circumstances (the civil rights movement used a combination of marches, sit-ins, boycotts, and legal challenges to successfully pressure for desegregation and voting rights)

Types of Protest Tactics

• Marches and rallies involve large gatherings of people, often in symbolic locations (Washington D.C., state capitals), to demonstrate support for a cause and attract media attention
  • Speeches, chants, and signs are used to convey the movement's message
  • Examples include the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in 1963 and the Women's March in 2017
• Sit-ins and occupations involve protesters physically occupying a space, such as a government building, business, or public area, to disrupt normal operations and demand change
  • The civil rights movement famously used sit-ins to protest segregation (Woolworth's lunch counter sit-ins)
  • Other examples include the Occupy Wall Street movement and the Standing Rock pipeline protests
• Boycotts and strikes involve withholding economic participation or labor to put pressure on a target
  • Consumer boycotts aim to hurt a company's profits (Montgomery Bus Boycott, Delano Grape Strike)
  • Strikes disrupt production to gain leverage in labor disputes (1894 Pullman Strike, 1970 Postal Workers Strike)
• Hunger strikes involve refusing food to draw attention to an issue and pressure authorities to meet demands
  • This tactic has been used by prisoners (Irish Republican Army prisoners in the 1980s), activists (Cesar Chavez), and even elected officials (Irom Sharmila's 16-year hunger strike against martial law in India)
• Property destruction and sabotage involve damaging or destroying property to impose an economic cost on a target and generate publicity
  • The Earth Liberation Front used arson and vandalism against companies and government agencies seen as harming the environment (Vail Ski Resort arson, University of Washington horticulture center arson)
  • Suffragettes in the early 20th century engaged in window-smashing and arson to demand the right to vote
• Hacktivism involves using computer hacking to further a political or social cause
  • Tactics include disrupting websites (Distributed Denial of Service attacks), leaking confidential information (WikiLeaks), or hijacking social media accounts (Syrian Electronic Army)
  • Groups like Anonymous and LulzSec have engaged in various hacktivist actions for political and social causes

Effectiveness of Protest Tactics

Factors Influencing Tactical Effectiveness

• The effectiveness of a protest tactic depends on various factors, including the movement's goals, resources, public opinion, media coverage, and the response of power holders
• Movements must carefully consider their tactical choices based on their specific context and objectives
  • A tactic that works well for one movement may be counterproductive for another
  • Tactics must be adapted to changing circumstances and the evolving political landscape
• The effectiveness of a tactic can also depend on the specific target and context
  • Boycotts may be more effective against companies than governments, as companies are more sensitive to economic pressure
  • Hunger strikes may be more effective in prison contexts than in the broader public sphere, as prisoners have fewer alternative means of protest

Evaluating Specific Tactics

• Disruptive tactics like sit-ins, strikes, and occupations can be effective in forcing concessions from a target by imposing economic costs or generating negative publicity
  • The Montgomery Bus Boycott successfully pressured the city to desegregate its buses by hurting the transit system's profits
  • The Flint Sit-Down Strike forced General Motors to recognize the United Auto Workers union by disrupting production
• However, disruptive tactics also risk alienating public opinion if seen as too extreme
  • The 1999 WTO protests in Seattle generated negative media coverage due to instances of property destruction and clashes with police
• Violent tactics like property destruction and sabotage can generate significant media attention and impose costs on a target, but they often backfire by discrediting the movement and justifying repression by authorities
  • The Weather Underground's bombing campaign in the 1970s led to a public backlash against the anti-war movement and increased FBI surveillance of activists
• Non-violent tactics like marches, rallies, and boycotts can be effective in building public support and putting pressure on power holders, especially when they attract large numbers of participants and generate favorable media coverage
  • The March on Washington helped build momentum for the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
  • The United Farm Workers' grape boycott led to improved working conditions for farmworkers

Civil Disobedience and Non-violent Resistance

Defining Civil Disobedience and Non-violent Resistance

• Civil disobedience involves deliberately breaking a law deemed unjust, usually in a public and non-violent manner, to protest and draw attention to an issue
  • Practitioners often accept legal punishment as a form of moral witness
  • Examples include Rosa Parks refusing to give up her bus seat and the Freedom Rides challenging segregated interstate travel
• Non-violent resistance is a broader philosophy of social change that eschews the use of violence and instead relies on tactics like civil disobedience, non-cooperation, and moral persuasion to challenge injustice and oppression
  • Proponents argue that non-violence is both morally superior and more strategically effective than violence
  • Key theorists include Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., and Gene Sharp

Historical Examples of Non-violent Resistance

• Mahatma Gandhi pioneered the use of non-violent resistance in the Indian independence movement
  • Tactics included the Salt March, where protesters illegally made salt to challenge the British salt monopoly
  • Non-cooperation campaigns involved boycotting British goods and institutions
• Martin Luther King Jr. and other civil rights leaders adapted Gandhi's ideas to the American context
  • The Montgomery Bus Boycott challenged segregation in public transportation
  • The March on Washington and the Selma to Montgomery marches pressured for voting rights legislation
• The anti-apartheid movement in South Africa used tactics like strikes, boycotts, and civil disobedience to challenge the racist apartheid system
  • The Defiance Campaign involved protesters deliberately violating apartheid laws
  • The United Democratic Front organized consumer boycotts and stay-at-home strikes
• The Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia and the Solidarity movement in Poland used non-violent resistance to successfully challenge communist regimes
  • Tactics included mass demonstrations, general strikes, and the creation of parallel institutions

Strengths and Criticisms of Non-violent Resistance

• Non-violent resistance can be effective in winning public sympathy and putting pressure on power holders, as it contrasts the moral force of the protesters with the violence and repression of the state
  • The brutal suppression of peaceful protesters during the Birmingham Campaign and the Selma to Montgomery marches helped turn public opinion against segregation
• Critics argue that non-violent resistance is less effective against ruthless opponents willing to use overwhelming force
  • The Chinese government's violent crackdown on the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989 effectively ended the pro-democracy movement
• Some activists argue that an exclusive focus on non-violence can lead to a romanticization of suffering and a neglect of other forms of political struggle
  • Malcolm X and the Black Power movement criticized the civil rights movement's emphasis on non-violence and argued for a more militant approach
  • The Zapatista Army of National Liberation used a combination of armed struggle and non-violent tactics to demand indigenous rights in Mexico

Consequences of Protest and Direct Action

Legal Consequences

• Protesters often face legal consequences for their actions, including arrest, fines, and imprisonment
  • These consequences can vary depending on the specific tactic used and the legal and political context
  • In some cases, protesters may face more severe charges like conspiracy, terrorism, or treason, especially if their actions are seen as threatening to national security or the social order (the SHAC 7 case)
• Civil disobedience, by definition, involves breaking the law, and practitioners often accept legal punishment as a form of moral witness
  • However, some activists argue that unjust laws should be resisted rather than obeyed (the Nuremberg Defense)
• Legal defenses like the necessity defense and the First Amendment right to free speech and assembly can sometimes be used to justify protest actions, but their success varies depending on the specific case and jurisdiction
  • The necessity defense argues that a criminal act was necessary to prevent a greater harm (the Plowshares Movement)
  • The First Amendment has been used to defend protest tactics like flag burning and inflammatory speech

Social and Economic Consequences

• Engaging in protest and direct action can also have social consequences, including stigmatization, harassment, and violence from opponents or law enforcement
  • Protesters may face doxxing, online harassment, or physical attacks (the car attack at the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville)
  • Law enforcement may use excessive force, surveillance, or infiltration against protest movements (COINTELPRO)
• Protesters may face economic consequences like job loss or blacklisting
  • Employers may fire or refuse to hire activists, especially those associated with controversial or disruptive tactics
  • Boycotts and strikes can lead to lost wages and economic hardship for participants
• Marginalized communities often face disproportionate consequences for engaging in protest, as they are more likely to be targeted by law enforcement and less likely to have access to legal and financial resources
  • Black Lives Matter protesters have faced harsh police responses and legal penalties
  • Indigenous activists opposing pipeline projects have been met with militarized police forces and private security

Movement-Building Consequences

• Participating in social movements can also have positive social consequences, such as building solidarity, empowerment, and a sense of collective identity among participants
  • The act of protest itself can be a transformative experience, fostering a sense of agency and community
  • Movements can create alternative institutions and support networks (the Black Panther Party's survival programs)
• The legal and social consequences of protest can sometimes serve to galvanize a movement and win public sympathy
  • The Birmingham Campaign's use of child protesters and the resulting police violence helped turn public opinion against segregation
  • The arrest and imprisonment of activists can sometimes generate more support for a cause (the Free Angela Davis campaign)
• However, repression and consequences can also have a chilling effect on activism, deterring people from participating in movements or using certain tactics
  • The heavy penalties faced by environmental activists have led some to abandon direct action in favor of legal and institutional tactics
  • The threat of surveillance and infiltration can create a climate of fear and paranoia within movements, hampering organizing efforts