The Importance of Rallies, Marches, Walkouts, Sit-Ins, and Other Non-Violent Protests

"Non-violent resistance (NVR) is the practice of achieving goals such as social change through symbolic protests, civil disobedience, economic or political non-cooperation, Satyagraha, or other methods, while being nonviolent. This type of action highlights the desires of an individual or group that feels that something needs to change to improve the current condition. It is largely but wrongly taken as synonymous with civil resistance. Each of these terms—nonviolent resistance and civil resistance—has different connotations and commitments.” 

“Civil resistance is political action that relies on the use of nonviolent resistance by civil groups to challenge a particular power, force, policy or regime. Civil resistance operates through appeals to the adversary, pressure and coercion: it can involve systematic attempts to undermine the adversary's sources of power, both domestic and international. Forms of action have included demonstrations, vigils and petitions; strikes, go-slows, boycotts and emigration movements; and sit-ins, occupations, and the creation of parallel institutions of government. The phenomenon of civil resistance is often associated with the advancement of democracy.”

Perhaps some of the greatest examples of nonviolent resistance and civil resistance have been at the hands of leaders and people like Martin Luther King Jr., Mahatma Gandhi, Henry David Thoreau, Leo Tolstoy, Nelson Mandela, Alice Paul, Rosa Parks, amongst many, many others. From the Freedom Riders, to the Marchers at Salem, to the #NeverAgain and #EnoughisEnough protests (Marjory Stoneman Douglas student activists), we have seen great political and societal change from these nonviolent forms of demonstration.

Let’s take a quick look at some historical NVR’s:

Exhibit A:
1848-1920: Unites States: Women’s Suffrage was a political movement that spanned over a century, where women protested in order to receive the right to suffrage, or the legal right to vote, in the United States. This movement emerged from the broader movement of women’s rights; in 1848, the Seneca Falls Convention (the first women’s rights convention) passed a resolution in favor of women’s suffrage. It was a long battle, and included many marches and much protest, but eventually, in 1920, the 19th Amendment to the Constitution was passed, giving women the right to vote.

Exhibit B:
1823-1829: Ireland: One of the first mass-membership political movements of Europe, the Catholic Association was founded by Daniel O'Connell to use non-violent means to push the British government to pass Catholic emancipation, which culminated in the passing of the Roman Catholic Relief Act 1829 by the government of the Duke of Wellington

Exhibit C:
1819: England: Peterloo Massacre: Famine and chronic unemployment, coupled with the lack of suffrage in northern England, led to a peaceful demonstration of 60,000–80,000 persons, including women and children. The demonstration was organized and rehearsed, with a "prohibition of all weapons of offence or defense" and exhortations to come "armed with no other weapon but that of a self-approving conscience". Cavalry charged into the crowd, with sabers drawn, and in the ensuing confusion, 15 people were killed and 400–700 were injured.

Exhibit D:
1955-1968: United States: The Civil Rights Movement included tactics of nonviolent resistance, such as bus boycotts, Freedom Rides, sit-ins, marches, and mass demonstrations, were used during the Civil Rights Movement. This movement succeeded in bringing about legislative change, making separate seats, drinking fountains, and schools for African Americans illegal, and obtaining full Voting Rights and open housing. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s vision of "the Beloved Community" was inspired by his leading Christians in nonviolent resistance.

Exhibit E:
1968: Worldwide: The protests that raged throughout 1968 were for the most part student-led. Worldwide, campuses became the front-line battle grounds for social change. While opposition to the Vietnam War dominated the protests, students also protested for civil liberties, against racism, for feminism, and the beginnings of the Ecology movement can be traced to the protests against nuclear and biological weapons during this year. 

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said that “nonviolence is a powerful and just weapon. Indeed, it is a weapon unique in history, which cuts without wounding and ennobles the man who wields it. It is a sword that heals.” I’ve been thinking a lot about the innumerable wise words of Dr. King. Coretta Scott King, an author, activist, and civil rights leader (and wife of Dr. King) stated that “nonviolence is the only credible response to the violence we’re seeing around the world.” Many people question what the purpose of walk-outs, sit-ins, and protests are, saying that they don’t actually do anything. I would whole-heartedly disagree. I think there is great power in the collective, in unifying people under a cause, and standing with each other and supporting one another.

The example I often give when responding to the question “do you think that just wearing a specific color assigned to your protest day and showing up for a rally/march really matters?” is that of breast cancer awareness. Wearing a pink ribbon or pink clothing during Breast Cancer Awareness Month is a pretty standard and accepted social display of support. No one ever thinks twice about it. I’ve never seen anyone complain or riot about people walking for breast cancer awareness, raising funds for victims and survivors, or posting pictures on social media wearing pink for #breastcancerawareness. 

BUT WHEN IT COMES TO SEXUAL ASSAULT, THEY ALL COME OUT OF THE WOODWORK.

I cannot even comprehend the amount of backlash I saw and received for wearing black in support of Dr. Ford and ALL sexual assault survivors on our day of protest last week. I mean, literally, so many people blasted me on Facebook. I was truly dumbfounded and appalled. It rocked me, to my core. What was the difference? You have a victim, who took a polygraph test about her assault and showed ZERO signs of lying, who KNEW her assulter before she was assaulted by him, and spoke out about it when this person was being interviewed for a lifetime appointment to the highest COURT in the USA. And when millions of people want to stand up and stand with her and victims like her, wear black to unify together and draw attention to the issue, people really want to degrade all these women, say horrible things about them, disregard their democratic showing of protest and make them feel like trash?? Really?? 

So much of what I’ve seen and read these last couple weeks makes me sick. I am disgusted, appalled, outraged, and disheartened by the last of empathy and understanding and support of victims and survivors. But I (we) cannot let this stop us from using our voices, from standing up for our beliefs, from supporting each other because we fear the repercussions of doing so. THIS IS NOT FOR NOTHING. THIS IS NOT IN VAIN. What we’re doing is IMPORTANT. IT MATTERS. IT MAKES A DIFFERENCE. Even if that difference doesn’t come about quickly or visually, it matters to the millions of people who’ve experienced sexual assault, to know that WE BELIEVE THEM, that we support them and stand with them and will fight for them.

People make the mistake of thinking that the only goal of protests and nonviolent resistance is to reform law and change practices. While this is a main goal, of course, it is not the ONLY goal. We stand, we sit, we march, we chant, FOR THE PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN AFFECTED BY THESE TRAUMAS. 

THIS IS NOT FOR NOTHING. 

THIS IS NOT IN VAIN. 

THIS MATTERS.

THIS IS IMPORTANT.

THIS DOES MAKE A DIFFERENCE.