Books to Read if you are Interested in Activism, Social Change and Justice
A comprehensive and broad range of books to read if you are Interested in activism, campaigning, organising, social change and justice.
Format
Book Reviews
You talk, We die: The Battle for Victoria’s First Safe Injecting Facility – Book review
A campaign case study and book review of a rapid-fire campaign journey to establish a drug injecting centre in inner-city Melbourne.
Radicals: Outsiders Changing the World – Book Review
A book review of Radicals: Outsiders Changing the World by Jamie Barlett. This book review focuses on the ‘radical’ climate activists.
Mining Resistance in India
Community resistance has been astonishingly effective at stopping mining in India. This article draws from the book Iron Will.
Mining Resistance in Brazil
Community resistance has been astonishingly effective at stopping mining in Brazil. This article draws from the book Iron Will.
The Noble Art of Book Reviewing
Video on the Noble Art of Book Reviewing with insights and tips for writing effective and engaging book reviews. This was part of a Commons Library Skills Session.
How Artistic Activism can move us Toward a Better Future
A new book called “The Art of Activism” provides a deep dive on the process, principles, history and practice of artistic activism.
Prisms of the People: Power and Organizing in Twenty First Century America – A Book Review
A book review of Prisms of the People: Power & Organizing in Twenty-First-Century America by Hahrie Han, Elizabeth McKenna & Michelle Oyakawa.
Prisms of the People: Power and Organizing in Twenty First Century America – Summary & Related Resources
A collation of resources about the book – Prisms of the People: Power and Organizing in Twenty First Century America – by Hahrie Han, Elizabeth McKenna and Michelle Oyakawa.
Book Review: We Will Not Cancel Us
Review of the booklet We Will Not Cancel Us – And Other Dreams of Transformative Justice by adrienne maree brown. Discusses transformative justice approaches as an alternative accountability measure to ‘canceling’ individual harm-doers.
Frame the Debate: Insights from Don’t Think of an Elephant!
An introduction to the concept of framing, drawing on George Lakoff’s book Don’t Think of an Elephant! Know Your Values and Frame the Debate.
How to un-do a ‘done deal’ with Strategy and Soul
Campaign insights from Daniel Hunter’s book Strategy and Soul about how to fight a battle people think is a ‘done deal’.
What the US can learn from Scandinavia in the struggle against inequality
In this interview, George Lakey explains what lessons can be learned from how movements in Scandinavia won and secured their egalitarian economic model.
3 tools for advocacy evaluation
Links to useful resources in the area of advocacy, policy change, and social movement evaluation.
How to inspire a young activist? A collection of books for kids and teens
An inspiring collection of stories about activism and social justice for children and teenagers mostly collated by Melbourne independent bookstore Readings.
Economic Messaging for Progressives: A review of Don’t Buy it by Anat Shenker-Osorio
Don’t Buy It by Anat Shenker-Osorio is a guide to progressive messaging on the economy and economics – A book review by Joel Dignam.
Purpose Driven Campaigning: 40 key principles for Growing Social Movements
Australian Progress has prepared this 40-point summary of Pastor Rick Warren’s bestselling book The Purpose Driven Church. The resource is based on Rick Warren’s experience of growing his church, Saddleback, from scratch to 20,000 members attending every week. Saddleback is now the eighth biggest church in the United States.
How to Make Trouble and Influence People – About and Book Reviews
Information about How to Make Trouble and Influence People, including reviews of the two editions. The book offers an alternative history of Australia, chronicling how it “has progressed by a series of little rebellions”.
Frameworks for Winning Change
Social change can be messy and challenging work! It helps to have frameworks to make sense of the situations we find ourselves in and plan for the way ahead. This article outlines four models, by Martin Luther King, Jr, George Lakey, Bill Moyer and Tim Gee.
Becoming allies: Reaching across the divide
Allies work is key to building strong and diverse groups and social movements. An ally is someone outside an oppressed group or identity, who commits to standing alongside those people.