Title reads 'Civil Resistance 2.0: 198 Nonviolent Methods Upgraded'. There is a plane flying in a blue sky with white clouds. It is sky writing a hashtag sign - #.

Civil Resistance 2.0: 198 Nonviolent Methods Upgraded

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Introduction

In 2012 Mary Joyce and Patrick Meier undertook a research project to translate Gene Sharp’s 198 Methods of Nonviolent Action into digital forms.

Gene Sharp, leading theorist of nonviolence, researched and catalogued 198 tactics and provided a rich selection of historical examples in his seminal work, The Politics of Nonviolent Action (3 Vols.) Boston: Peter Sargent, 1973.

These “nonviolent weapons” are classified into three broad categories:

  • nonviolent protest and persuasion,
  • noncooperation (social, economic, and political), and
  • nonviolent intervention.

Through a crowdsourced spreadsheet Joyce and Meier sourced digital remixes of the original tactics, sorted into tabs according to the three categories.

New tactics were also added including:

  1. Maps and Maptivism
  2. QR Codes
  3. Digital File-Sharing
  4. Nonviolent Media Hijacking
  5. “Trend” a Hashtag
  6. Influence Search Engine Results
  7. Livestreaming
  8. Check-ins
  9. Self-Surveillance
  10. Flash Mobs

Examples

Here are examples from the spreadsheet of the original tactic that have been updated.

Tactic no. 9 – Leaflets, Pamphlets, and Books 

  • Technical Enhancements of Method 1.0

Paper books can be sold online through an org’s website. Pamphlets can be digitized and emailed to supporters who them print them out a distribute them. This allows design and distribution to occur in different parts of the country (or world), saves designers the cost and security risk of printing massive amounts of leaflets, yet still allows paper to be used as a medium if the target audience is offline.
New ways to deliver leaflets, eg., by remote control planes/helicopters (civilian drones/UAVs).

  • Method 2.0

If books and pamphlets are digitized (ie, as a PDF) they can be distributed more widely at near-zero cost via email or posting on a website or blog. If the audience has access to laptops or tablet devices (or a Kindle), the materials can be designed, distributed, and read without ever being printed out.

Through collaborative crowd sourced translation platforms like Wiki Pages, leaflets and pamphlets can be firstly edited into simplified English, then machine translated via Google Translate into all world languages for subsequent anonymous download and distribution. 

Tactic no. 12 – Skywriting and Earthwriting

  • Technical Enhancements of Method 1.0

If recorded digitally and then shared, the number of people who view the skywriting and earthwriting may be greatly increased (example: 350.org earthwriting made of crowds of volunteers).
Earthwriting: people in Kyrgyzstan and Libya have written SOS or HELP US in earth for detection by airplanes and satellite images.
People in one building could cooperate to make writings with their lit windows.

  • Method 2.0

The use of remote control airplanes (civilian UAVs/drones) can and have also be used for skywriting. They have yet to be applied in the context of civil resistance. Also, the use of bright lasers at night, like the Batman symbol projected into the night.

Tactic no. 17 – Mock Elections

  • Technical Enhancements of Method 1.0

An offline mock election can be promoted using websites, social media, and SMS.

  • Method 2.0

Voting in mock elections can occur online by allowing votes on a website or by mobile phone by SMS voting.
Skewing bookies’ odds online by gaming a betting platform.
Unofficial online polls and surveys may damage regime’s propaganda and show the real popularity of dissent views.

Watch Video

Watch a video of an ICNC webinar presented by Mary Joyce. Note that the video is audio of Mary speaking accompanied by these slides.

Access Spreadsheet

The spreadsheet is open to be edited and added to, but please be respectful of the original work.

Examples of Tech Tactics

Explore more examples of tech tactics from Beautiful Trouble and Nonviolence International.

Explore Further

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