How To Protest Effectively - For The Interested

How To Protest Effectively

“Protests can energize people and overawe governments. But it is the steady and often tedious work of organization that sustains democracy — and can change the world. Protests are useful mostly to the extent that they mobilize people to participate in the follow-up meetings to realize the protest’s goals.”

You wouldn’t think a former George W. Bush speechwriter would be the one to write a great article about how to make a protest effective, but that’s exactly what David Frum has done in this Atlantic article.

He explains why some protests make a bigger impact than others and offers a playbook of sorts for how to get the most out of your protest — no matter what the particular issue may be.

His observations include that the more conservative your protest, the more radical it becomes; the importance of a simple, clear desired result; and that protests should be used as catalysts for meetings where the real impact is made.