#maria stephan

[nicolagriffith]

It's easy to believe the world is full of hate, to feel overwhelmed and that change is impossible. But 150 yrs worth of data show it takes just 3.5% of a population—12 million Americans—engaged in nonviolent civil resistance to create real change—even the fall of administrations. This is doable.

3.5% — A Small Number With Huge Implications

[thoughtfulfangirling]

As Sidney Tarrow argued twenty years ago, nonviolent political action is good for de-mocracy: it forces governments to comply with citizens' demands and forces citizens to participate in the political process.

—Why Civil Resistance Works: The Strategic Logic of Nonviolent Conflict by Erica Chenowith & Maria Stephan

[thoughtfulfangirling]

Constructing reliable, legitimate, and accountable democratic institutions is easier when the conflict has been primarily nonviolent for three reasons. First, the active participation of large numbers of citizens in the process of democratic change, through their involvement in campaigns of nonviolent resistance, enhances the prospect that the citizenry will remain politically engaged after the transition... Second, in countries where nonviolent resistance has succeeded in removing entrenched power, the victorious party has demonstrated that nonviolent means can be effective in winning power... ...In a country that has just witnessed the triumph of mass, nonviolent resistance, leaders may attempt to bolster their legitimacy by swearing off violence toward the very civilians that put them in power... Third, successful campaigns that rely primarily on violent methods are more likely to operate by means of secrecy and martial values... ...campaigns that rely on a nonviolent strategy are more likely to use consent, leading to the establishment of more democratically oriented parallel institutions that might aid in the transition to a democratic system when the conflict has ended.

—Why Civil Resistance Works: The Strategic Logic of Nonviolent Conflict by Erica Chenowith & Maria Stephan

[thoughtfulfangirling]

Moreover, developing societal expectations of peaceful conflict resolu-tion, institutionalizing the rule of law, and establishing a reliable security-enforcement apparatus are especially difficult tasks following conflicts in which people have been "killing one another with considerable enthusiasm and success"...

—Why Civil Resistance Works: The Strategic Logic of Nonviolent Conflict by Erica Chenowith & Maria Stephan

[thoughtfulfangirling]

In fact, strikingly, the long-term effects of failed nonviolent campaigns are more favorable to democracy and civil peace than the long-term effects of successful violent campaigns.

—Why Civil Resistance Works: The Strategic Logic of Nonviolent Conflict by Erica Chenowith & Maria Stephan

[thoughtfulfangirling]

When the regime's armed defenders refused to obey orders to repress the campaign, the Shah was unable to remain in power. However, the refusal to obey was contingent upon the campaign's remaining nonviolent. As troops whispered to protestors during the summer of 1978, "We belong to the peo-ple, but we are in the service, do not commit any violence, we do not want to shoot'' (cited in Kurzman 2004, 63). Had the campaign turned violent, the troops would have adhered to their government service responsibilities.

—Why Civil Resistance Works: The Strategic Logic of Nonviolent Conflict by Erica Chenowith & Maria Stephan

[thoughtfulfangirling]

Although violent insurgencies captured power in some cases, the human costs were very high, with millions of casualties. Moreover, the conditions in these countries after the conflict ended have been overwhelmingly more repressive than in transitions driven by nonviolent civic pressure.

—Why Civil Resistance Works: The Strategic Logic of Nonviolent Conflict by Erica Chenowith & Maria Stephan

[thoughtfulfangirling]

State support may also undermine insurgent incentives to treat civilian populations with restraint, because civilians are viewed as dispensable rather than as the main sources of support. As Weinstein argues, for instance, insurgencies that must rely on local populations to finance the insurgency are much likelier to treat such populations with restraint and respect.

—Why Civil Resistance Works: The Strategic Logic of Nonviolent Conflict by Erica Chenowith & Maria Stephan