Case studies
One of the dangers of the myth of the power of violence is that it robs us of the memories of effective nonviolent resistance.
- Mary Lord, American Friends Service Committee
The presentation and discussion of case studies is a long standing tradition within nonviolence training. Stories of ordinary people who have used nonviolence to challenge injustice help us to counter the marginalisation of nonviolent means of struggle within mainstream history and media.
Case studies of nonviolent social movements have been used by nonviolence trainers to reveal the hidden history of popular nonviolent movements, and to demonstrate that the methods of nonviolent action have been used across an extraordinary diversity of cultural and political settings.
Case studies also offer a way for us preserve and communicate the practical experience of people who have used nonviolent struggle, and to consider the personal challenges that participating in nonviolent action may bring.
Resources:
The Legacy of Parihaka by Jenny Bornholdt
The story of Parihaka, the 'village of peace', established by Maori
prophets Te Whiti o Rongomai and Tohu Kakahi in defiance of the British
confiscation of land in Taranaki, Aotearoa/New Zealand.
Moved by love, never driven by intimidation by
Iain Murray
In 1962, Samoa became the first Pacific island nation to achieve
independence. This case study tells the story of the Mau, the popular
movement that undermined New Zealand's military rule of Samoa in the
early 20th century.
Black Power in Redfern 1968 - 1972 by Gary Foley
Examines the influence of young, urban activists on the struggle for indigenous rights in Australia. Includes information on the establishment of the Redfern Legal Service, the 1971 Springbok Tour protests and the Aboriginal Tent Embassy.
People Power in the Phillipines by James VanHise
The role of nonviolent resistance in toppling the regime of Ferdinand
Marcos.
Civilian Resistance in Czechoslovakia by James
VanHise
The Soviet invasion Czechoslovakia in 1968 was met with a
government-sanctioned campaign of nonviolent resistance which held the
invaders at bay for more than ten months. An oft-cited example of
civilian-based defence.
The Application of Gene Sharp's Theory of Nonviolent Action in Milosevic's Serbia by Srdja Popovic
A key organiser in the Serbian youth resistance movement Otpor! analyses the use of nonviolent action in the popular overthrow of Slobodan Milosovic in 2000.
The
White Rose: A Lesson in Dissent by Jacob Hornberger
The story of Hans and Sophie Scholl, the brother and sister executed by
the German authorities in 1943, after being caught distributing
anti-Nazi propaganda at the University of Munich.
Argentina - Mother Courage by Peter Ackerman and
Jack DuVall
Las Madres de Plaza de Mayo protested against the brutality of
the Argentinian military junta, breaking the silence surrounding the
'disappearance' of thousands of young people following the coup of 1976.
Greensboro Sit-Ins:
Launch of a Civil Rights Movement
This site commemorates the courageous actions of the four teenagers who
defied segregation by sitting at the 'whites-only' counter of a
Woolworth store in Greensboro, North Carolina, in 1960.
No-Nukers Demonstrate Their Strength at Seabrook
by Richard Asinof
An account of the 1977 occupation of the construction site of the
Seabrook nuclear power plant by 1,414 nonviolent activists.
Effective Non-violent Struggle in the Niger Delta
by Ben Naanen
In 1995, the Nigerian Government drew international condemnation when
it executed writer Ken Saro-Wiwa and eight other members of the
Movement for the Survival of the Ogoni People (MOSOP). This paper by
MOSOP's former General Secretary examines the Ogoni people's use of
nonviolent methods in their struggle for cultural survival.