The Power of Protests

Protests They are used as a part of a systematic and nonviolent campaign to achieve something Protests are often organized as a way of publicly making their opinions heard in an attempt to influence public opinion or government policy, or they may undertake direct action in an attempt to directly enact desired changes themselves Protests are sometimes restricted by governmental policy (such as the requirement of protest permits) or media monopoly. One state reaction to protests is the use of riot police https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eP-mv5IjFzY 12:48

They Can Lead to Riots & Revolutions Unaddressed protests may grow and widen into civil resistance, dissent, activism, riots, insurgency, revolts, and political and/or social revolution Insurgency: an active revolt or uprising Civil Resistance: political action that relies on the use of nonviolent resistance to challenge a particular power, force, policy or regime Forms of action have included demonstrations, vigils and petitions; strikes, boycotts, sit-ins Examples: Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr, the Women’s Marches, the 2014 Hong Kong ‘Umbrella movement’

Arab Spring https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fgcd5ZcxDys Here's How the Arab Spring Started and How It Affected the World 3:54 A series of anti-government protests, uprisings, and armed rebellions that spread across the Middle East in late 2010. It began in response to oppressive regimes and a low standard of living

The Effect of the Arab Spring The effects of the Tunisian Revolution spread strongly to other countries: Libya (the Libyan civi war) Egypt (the Egyptian crisis and coup) Yemen (Yemeni civil war) Syria (Syrian civil war)

Yellow Vests Movement A political movement for economic justice that began in France in 2018 The movement is motivated by rising fuel prices, high cost of living, unfair taxation They are calling for President Macron’s resignation Yellow vests, which French law required all drivers to have in their vehicles and to wear during emergencies, were chosen as "a unifying thread and call to arms" because of association with working-class industries https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8lvtYiOiCQU 3:19

As of 22 December, 10 fatalities had been linked to the protests in France By late December, over 1,843 protesters and 1,048 police had been injured. Injuries included facial injuries caused by police non-lethal “flashball” weapons that are supposed to be fired at the torso, not at the head

Black Lives Matter (BLM) Started in 2013 after George Zimmerman was acquitted of the shooting death of Trayvon Martin Demonstrations were held all over the country, they protested the killings of more than 40 unarmed black people by law-enforcement officers. A majority of these officers were not indicted, however; of those that were, only 3 were found guilty. To date, only 1 of the convicted has received a prison sentence. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AiZwWZ0aceg

The Women’s March A worldwide protest on January 21, 2017, the day after the inauguration of President Trump Many thought he had made some comments that were considered as anti-women or otherwise offensive It was the largest single-day protest in US history The goal of the annual marches is to advocate legislation and policies regarding human rights and other issues, including women’s rights, immigration reform, healthcare reform, reproductive rights, LGBTQ rights, etc The main protest was in Washington DC (over 200,000 people) with many other marches taking place worldwide. Approximately 1-1.6% of the U.S. population participated in one of the 408 marches in the US Worldwide participation has been estimated at over seven million – with hundreds of marches on all 7 continents (even 1 in Antarctica)

Social Media and Revolution How has social media and the internet been used in recent protests/revolutions? How has it been used to help the movements? How has it been used to quash or discourage the movement? How have governments tried to censor information about the movements online? Make a group informational poster about the relationship between social media technology and the revolutions. You should look into at least 2 separate movements/protests.