Category: Handbook of Activism

Since the 2016 election I have thrown myself into direct action to oppose the Trump regime, together with my friends in Rise and Resist.

I have learned many lessons from my fellow activists, and especially from the Lesbian Avengers’ Handbook.

Here are some of those lessons.

Banner Making

An alternative to having a banner printed professionally is to make it yourselves. Plural intended, this is a group activity. Weed barrier fabric and white duct tape gives a home made quality,

Principles of Demonstrating

Rise and Resist is a direct action group that frequently exercises First Amendment rights by protesting in New York City. Here are our principles of non-violent demonstrating.

Printing for Activists

Graphics and the written word have been important to activism since time immemorial. Much surviving graffiti from the Roman era (yes, the Romans had graffiti artists) dealt with politics. As always, the Lesbian Avengers...

Anatomy of a Protest

We gathered together before the protest. Familiar faces, familiar roles. The planning had all been done in committee, but it was a familiar plan—put up a call on social media for a demo at...

Protest Marshal Training

Video of protest marshal training by Jamie Bauer. Useful for protesters as well as volunteer marshals, know what your rights are and what to expect. Jamie draws on their long experience, including ACT UP...

198 Methods of Nonviolent Action

From Gene Sharp’s book Politics of Nonviolent Action by way of the Albert Einstein Institution. Sharp carefully catalogs protests into 198 methods of non-violent action. Remarkably little has changed – Twitter campaigns are an...

ACT UP Zap Action Teach-In Outline

ACT UP was (and still is) a tremendously successful direct action group formed in 1987 to effect change in the response to the AIDS epidemic. Many of its members are still activists, and are...