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:
- Maps and Maptivism
- QR Codes
- Digital File-Sharing
- Nonviolent Media Hijacking
- “Trend” a Hashtag
- Influence Search Engine Results
- Livestreaming
- Check-ins
- Self-Surveillance
- Flash Mobs
Given the limitations the Coronavirus pandemic has placed on many of the usual activist tactics (like rallies, marches, forums, canvassing etc) it’s timely to revisit this project.
Please note that this project was undertaken in 2012 so there may be many new possibilities. The spreadsheet is still open to be edited and added to, but please be respectful of the original work.
Please note the spreadsheet is no longer publicly accessible.
Watch a video of an ICNC webinar presented by Mary Joyce. Note that the video is audio of Mary speaking accompanied by these slides.
