198 METHODS OF NONVIOLENT POLITICAL ACTION

198 Ways to Fight Without Losing Your Soul

Here’s the thing about violence: the people who know it best are the last ones to jump into it. You know why? Because once you cross that line, there’s no going back. It’s not just about the punch you throw or the shot you fire—it’s the ripple effect. Every swing lands on more than just the person in front of you. It hits their family, their friends, and, yeah, it hits you too. It sticks with you. Violence solves one thing and breaks a thousand others.

But when it feels like there’s no other way, and the world is pushing you to the edge, you need to know this: there are 198 ways to fight before you ever make violence an option. That’s not weakness—that’s strategy. Because anyone can throw a punch, but not everyone has the guts to outsmart the system with their brain, their will, and their voice.

From seasoned war veterans to the average Joe who just doesn’t know what the hell to do next, this list is for you. It’s for people who get that the real battle is in the mind first. There are 198 ways to push back against tyranny, oppression, and the crap that’s tearing this world apart—without making new victims along the way.

We’re talking marches, boycotts, pranks, public actions that will make corrupt leaders squirm in their suits. These methods aren’t soft—they’re fierce. They don’t require you to roll over; they require you to stand up with a clear head and an iron will. Nonviolence isn’t passive, and it sure as hell isn’t for the faint of heart. It’s for warriors who know the cost of war.

You’ve got 198 tools at your disposal, each one sharper than any weapon. So before you think there’s nothing left but fists and fire, dig into this list and see what real power looks like. Peace doesn’t mean surrender. It means you're playing the long game, where the fight’s not just for today, but for tomorrow and every day after.

The people who know how to fight are the ones who choose not to, until there’s no choice left. And brother, with 198 options on the table, you’ve got a hell of a lot of choices left.

A description and other historical examples of each can be found in volume two of The Politics of Nonviolent Action, by Gene Sharp. Republished from The Albert Einstein Institution

THE METHODS OF NONVIOLENT PROTEST AND PERSUASION

Formal Statements

1. Public Speeches: Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech didn’t just move hearts—it shook a nation to its core. If you’ve got something to say, stand up and say it like you mean it.
2. Letters of opposition or support: Forget passive-aggressive tweets. A hard-hitting open letter gets to the point and makes leaders squirm when it’s signed by people who know their stuff.
3. Declarations by organizations and institutions: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights laid the foundation for how the world should treat people. Get a group together and declare what matters.
4. Signed public statements: Celebrity petitions are fine, but when regular folks unite and throw their names behind a cause, it’s a tidal wave that politicians can’t ignore.
5. Declarations of indictment and intention: The Declaration of Independence was a war cry on paper. Lay out your grievances and let those in power know you’re done playing by their rules.
6. Group or mass petitions: Change.org petitions can go viral. Sometimes the right signatures are all it takes to topple the wrong ideas.

Communications with a Wider Audience

7. Slogans, caricatures, and symbols: A simple symbol like ☮ has inspired movements for decades. Put your art or words where it counts, whether it’s on a wall or a flag.
8. Banners, posters, and displayed communications: Think your words don’t have power? Hang a banner like "Black Lives Matter" in the right place and watch how fast people start paying attention.
9. Leaflets, pamphlets, and books: Thomas Paine’s Common Sense was basically the internet before the internet—just good ideas spread far and wide to wake people up.
10. Newspapers and journals: When Nazis were running Europe, underground newspapers were lifelines. Be that bold in getting the truth out.
11. Records, radio, and television: Live Aid didn’t just play music—it saved lives. Use media like a weapon for good.
12. Skywriting and earthwriting: Writing in the sky? That’s bold. Taking your message so high no one can miss it is a power move.

Group Representations

13. Deputations: When you’ve got an issue with the law, bring your squad to meet with the big shots. A group of citizens looking a politician in the eye beats angry tweets any day.
14. Mock awards: The “Fossil of the Day” award embarrassed countries into taking action at climate talks. Use humor to shame those dragging their feet.
15. Group lobbying: AARP doesn’t just shake hands with Congress—they twist arms for seniors. When you’ve got a cause, get face-to-face with the decision-makers and make it count.
16. Picketing: Nothing says “we’re not backing down” like workers lining up outside the factory demanding better treatment.
17. Mock elections: When the system is rigged, throw a mock election to highlight just how messed up things are. If they won’t play fair, show the world what fair looks like.

Symbolic Public Acts

18. Displays of flags and symbolic colors: Fly your flag, whether it’s the American flag, a Rainbow flag, or a Gadsden flag. It shows what you stand for without saying a word.
19. Wearing of symbols: From ribbons to t-shirts, wearing your cause lets people know where you stand. It’s low-key but still powerful.
20. Prayer and worship: Prayer vigils aren’t just for the religious—they’re for anyone who believes in the power of collective will to bring change.
21. Delivering symbolic objects: Sending coat hangers to legislators to protest abortion laws or pocket Constitutions to remind them of their oaths—these acts pack a punch without a word.
22. Protest disrobings: The Quakers weren’t shy about stripping down to make their point. Sometimes, you’ve got to shock the system to wake it up.
23. Destruction of own property: When farmers dump milk or destroy crops, it’s not because they’ve given up. It’s because they’re saying, “If you won’t play fair, neither will we.”
24. Symbolic lights: Candlelight vigils can be quiet, but they’re bright enough to show the world you’re not going anywhere.
25. Displays of portraits: Carrying photos of victims of injustice is a gut punch to those responsible. It makes the loss real, right there, in their face.
26. Paint as protest: Greenpeace didn’t just climb smokestacks for fun. They painted them to remind the world what we’re all losing—our planet.
27. New signs and names: When activists rename streets after fallen heroes or dissidents, they aren’t just making a statement—they’re rewriting history.
28. Symbolic sounds: Bells ringing 350 times for climate action? Sometimes it’s the things you can’t ignore that get the message across.
29. Symbolic reclamations: From Alcatraz to the Bundy Ranch, reclaiming land sends a powerful message: "We’re taking back what’s ours."
30. Rude gestures: The middle finger isn’t just a crude gesture—it’s a protest in motion. Use it wisely.

Pressures on Individuals

31. “Haunting” officials: Want to hold someone accountable? Haunt them. Show up at every event they do and remind them of the issue they’re ignoring.
32. Taunting officials: Call them out. Make them squirm with mock awards and public shaming. If they’re corrupt, they deserve it.
33. Fraternization: Winning soldiers over to your side isn’t weak—it’s smart. Peace doesn’t mean alienating everyone in uniform.
34. Vigils: Hold vigils to keep the memories of victims alive and to demand justice. Silence speaks volumes.

Drama and Music

35. Humorous skits and pranks: The Yes Men didn’t just pull pranks—they exposed corruption through satire. Comedy cuts deeper than a knife when used right.
36. Performances of plays and music: Putting on a play like The Vagina Monologues brings attention to tough topics in a way that’s hard to ignore.
37. Singing: Civil rights activists didn’t just march—they sang “We Shall Overcome.” Music isn’t just noise; it’s a battle cry.

Processions

38. Marches: Gandhi’s Salt March wasn’t just about salt—it was a fight for independence. Every step sends a message.
39. Parades: Pride parades don’t just celebrate—they push back against hate. Parades can be loud, proud, and political all at once.
40. Religious processions: Peaceful religious marches in conflict zones show that faith isn’t a weapon—it’s a shield.
41. Pilgrimages: The March on Washington wasn’t just a walk—it was a pilgrimage for justice and equality.
42. Motorcades: Slow motorcades clogging the streets aren’t just annoying—they’re a statement. Want to draw attention to fuel prices or road safety? Bring the traffic to a crawl.

Honoring the Dead

43. Political mourning: Protesters in Hong Kong wearing black to mourn the loss of democratic rights.
44. Mock funerals: A mock funeral held in 2018 for the death of net neutrality after it was repealed by the FCC.
45. Demonstrative funerals: Anti-apartheid activists holding funerals for those killed by police brutality in South Africa.
46. Homage at burial places: Memorials at the graves of civil rights leaders like Martin Luther King Jr., serving as ongoing protests against racial injustice.

Public Assemblies

47. Assemblies of protest or support: Standing Rock protests, where people gathered to support indigenous rights and block the Dakota Access Pipeline.
48. Protest meetings: The historic protests at Stonewall in 1969, where the LGBTQ+ community gathered to demand their rights.
49. Camouflaged meetings of protest: The secret gatherings of Polish resistance during Nazi occupation, disguised as social events.
50. Teach-ins: Teach-ins during the Vietnam War on college campuses, educating students about the true cost of the conflict.

Withdrawal and Renunciation

51. Walk-outs: Students walking out of schools nationwide in 2018 to demand gun control after the Parkland shooting.
52. Silence: The Silent Protest Parade of 1917, where 10,000 African Americans marched in silence in New York City to protest lynching and racial violence.
53. Renouncing honors: In 2003, actor Michael Sheen returned his OBE (Order of the British Empire) in protest of the British government's actions in Iraq.
54. Turning one’s back: Protesters at a 2015 rally for Freddie Gray in Baltimore turning their backs on city officials who they felt had betrayed them.

The Methods of Social Noncooperation

Ostracism of Persons

55. Social boycott: Irish land reformers boycotted Charles Boycott, the British land agent, after he evicted tenants during the Irish Land War.
56. Selective social boycott: In India, Dalits (formerly known as Untouchables) have used selective boycotts against upper-caste-owned businesses to fight caste discrimination.
57. Lysistratic nonaction: Based on Aristophanes’ play Lysistrata, women in Liberia refused sex with their husbands until the civil war ended in 2003.
58. Excommunication: Religious communities using excommunication to remove members who oppose the group’s beliefs, like the Amish do for those who break community rules.
59. Interdict: The Catholic Church in the Middle Ages would place entire regions under interdict, halting all religious services, as a way to exert pressure on kings or communities.

Noncooperation with Social Events, Customs, and Institutions

60. Suspension of social and sports activities: The boycott of the 1980 Moscow Olympics by over 60 countries to protest the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.
61. Boycott of social affairs: The NAACP’s boycott of segregated buses during the Montgomery Bus Boycott, which was a form of social and economic noncooperation.
62. Student strike: The 2019 Global Climate Strike where students around the world walked out of school to demand action on climate change.
63. Social disobedience: Breaking segregation laws in the American South during the Civil Rights Movement by using "whites only" facilities.
64. Withdrawal from social institutions: Members of India’s independence movement withdrew from British-run schools and courts during the 1920s.

Withdrawal from the Social System

65. Stay-at-home: Protesters in Myanmar staging stay-at-home strikes to resist the military coup in 2021.
66. Total personal noncooperation: Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny’s refusal to cooperate with his sham trial in 2021 by boycotting court proceedings.
67. “Flight” of workers: Workers in Nazi Germany fleeing into hiding to avoid being conscripted into forced labor.
68. Sanctuary: Churches in the U.S. providing sanctuary to undocumented immigrants in defiance of federal immigration laws.
69. Collective disappearance: The Argentine Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo "disappeared" by hiding their activities and identities while protesting the disappearance of their children during the Dirty War.
70. Protest emigration (hijrat): Jews emigrating from Nazi-occupied Europe to Palestine during World War II as a form of protest against anti-Semitic laws.

The Methods of Economic Noncooperation: Economic Boycotts

Actions by Consumers

71. Consumers’ boycott: The boycott of Nestlé in the 1970s and 1980s over its aggressive marketing of infant formula in developing countries, which led to malnutrition and infant deaths.
72. Nonconsumption of boycotted goods: Gandhi’s call for Indians to stop buying British goods during the struggle for independence.
73. Policy of austerity: Citizens of Iceland refusing to bail out foreign investors after the financial crisis of 2008, opting for economic self-restraint instead.
74. Rent withholding: Tenants in New York City withholding rent in 2019 to protest unsafe living conditions in their apartment buildings.
75. Refusal to rent: Discriminated groups refusing to rent property from landlords engaged in racial or class segregation, as part of anti-gentrification movements.
76. National consumers’ boycott: The Great American Boycott of 2006, where millions of immigrants in the U.S. protested by not shopping or working to show the economic impact of immigrants.
77. International consumers’ boycott: The boycott of South African products during apartheid, which pressured the regime to end racial segregation.

Action by Workers and Producers

78. Workmen’s boycott: Polish workers boycotted work under Soviet rule during the Solidarity movement in the 1980s.
79. Producers’ boycott: Farmers in India refusing to supply crops to markets during protests against government agricultural policies.

Action by Middlemen

80. Suppliers’ and handlers’ boycott: Unionized dockworkers in the U.S. refusing to load goods bound for apartheid South Africa in the 1980s.

Action by Owners and Management

81. Traders’ boycott: In Ireland, traders refused to sell British goods as part of the Irish independence struggle.
82. Refusal to let or sell property: French aristocrats refusing to sell their lands to revolutionary peasants during the French Revolution.
83. Lockout: American factory owners in the early 1900s using lockouts to break the back of striking workers’ unions.
84. Refusal of industrial assistance: U.S. coal miners in the early 20th century refusing to aid coal companies that employed strikebreakers.
85. Merchants’ “general strike”: Merchants in Iran shutting down their stores during the 1979 Iranian Revolution to protest the Shah’s regime.

Action by Holders of Financial Resources

86. Withdrawal of bank deposits: In Greece, citizens withdrew massive amounts of money from banks in protest of austerity measures in 2015.
87. Refusal to pay fees, dues, and assessments: U.S. labor unions refusing to pay fines or dues when courts ruled against their strikes.
88. Refusal to pay debts or interest: Homeowners in the U.S. refusing to pay mortgage debt during the 2008 financial crisis.
89. Severance of funds and credit: The U.S. severing financial aid to Egypt in protest of military actions in 2013.
90. Revenue refusal: British colonists in America refusing to pay taxes on tea imported from Britain, leading to the Boston Tea Party.
91. Refusal of a government’s money: During the Spanish Civil War, anarchists in Catalonia created their own currency and refused to use government-backed money.

Action by Governments

92. Domestic embargo: The U.S. embargo on Cuba, which began in the 1960s as part of Cold War strategy.
93. Blacklisting of traders: Countries in the European Union blacklisting companies that trade with illegal markets like arms smuggling or human trafficking.
94. International sellers’ embargo: The oil embargo by OPEC nations in 1973, which targeted countries supporting Israel in the Yom Kippur War.
95. International buyers’ embargo: The U.S. embargo on Iranian oil to pressure Iran over its nuclear program.
96. International trade embargo: The United Nations' trade sanctions against Iraq in the 1990s to force the country to disarm.

The Methods of Economic Noncooperation: The Strike

Symbolic Strikes

97. Protest strike: Fast food workers striking on May Day 2014 for a $15 minimum wage.
98. Quickie walkout (lightning strike): Italian air traffic controllers walking out in a quick strike to protest government pay cuts in 2020.

Agricultural Strikes

99. Peasant strike: Russian peasants in the 1917 Revolution striking to demand land reform.
100. Farm Workers’ strike: The United Farm Workers’ grape strike of the 1960s, which brought national attention to the conditions of farm workers.

Strikes by Special Groups

101. Refusal of impressed labor: Indigenous people in Central America refusing to work in colonial plantations during Spanish rule.
102. Prisoners’ strike: U.S. prisoners striking in 2018 to protest forced labor in prisons.
103. Craft strike: British weavers in the 19th century striking to protest unfair working conditions during the Industrial Revolution.
104. Professional strike: French doctors going on strike in 2022 to protest health system reforms.

Ordinary Industrial Strikes

105. Establishment strike: Coal miners’ strikes in the U.S. during the early 20th century, which led to significant labor reforms.
106. Industry strike: The U.S. auto workers’ strikes of 1936, which led to major changes in labor rights.
107. Sympathetic strike: The General Strike of 1926 in the UK, where workers in multiple industries struck in sympathy with coal miners.

Restricted Strikes

108. Detailed strike: Canadian teachers limiting their work to specific hours to protest underfunding.
109. Bumper strike: A strike tactic used in Poland where workers perform their tasks slowly to disrupt production.
110. Slowdown strike: Amazon workers in Germany conducting a slowdown strike to protest working conditions.
111. Working-to-rule strike: Airline pilots following every rule to the letter to slow down operations without technically going on strike.
112. Reporting “sick” (sick-in): Nurses in the U.S. staging a mass “sick-in” to protest unsafe working conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic.
113. Strike by resignation: The mass resignation of South African nurses in 2020 to protest poor pay and working conditions.
114. Limited strike: Healthcare workers limiting their strike actions to non-essential services during labor disputes.
115. Selective strike: U.S. fast food workers striking at select locations to pressure major corporations for wage increases.

Multi-Industry Strikes

116. Generalized strike: The 2019 Chilean general strike, where millions protested against economic inequality.
117. General strike: The Seattle General Strike of 1919, which shut down the city as workers protested for better wages.

Combination of Strikes and Economic Closures

118. Hartal: Indian independence leader Gandhi’s call for a hartal, or mass strike, to protest British rule in 1919.
119. Economic shutdown: Protesters in Venezuela blocking roads and shutting down businesses in 2017 to resist President Maduro’s policies.

The Methods of Political Noncooperation

Rejection of Authority

120. Withholding or withdrawal of allegiance: When American colonists pledged allegiance to the Continental Congress instead of King George III during the American Revolution.
121. Refusal of public support: U.S. citizens boycotting businesses that financially supported Donald Trump during his presidency.
122. Literature and speeches advocating resistance: Thomas Paine’s Common Sense pamphlet, which encouraged American colonists to resist British rule.

Citizens’ Noncooperation with Government

123. Boycott of legislative bodies: Irish MPs boycotting the British Parliament in 1919 as part of their campaign for independence.
124. Boycott of elections: Opposition groups in Venezuela boycotting national elections in 2018, claiming they were rigged.
125. Boycott of government employment and positions: The U.S. boycott of apartheid South Africa, where American universities and businesses refused to work with South African entities.
126. Boycott of government depts., agencies, and other bodies: Civil rights activists in the U.S. refusing to cooperate with local police departments that enforced segregation laws.
127. Withdrawal from government educational institutions: Native American students boycotting government-run boarding schools during the 1970s in protest of cultural erasure.
128. Boycott of government-supported organizations: U.S. organizations boycotting government contractors involved in unethical practices, like arms sales to oppressive regimes.
129. Refusal of assistance to enforcement agents: French citizens during WWII refusing to cooperate with Nazi officials.
130. Removal of own signs and placemarks: Hong Kong protesters in 2019 tearing down street signs to confuse law enforcement during anti-extradition bill protests.
131. Refusal to accept appointed officials: Local governments in Spain refusing to accept officials appointed by Francisco Franco’s regime after his rise to power.
132. Refusal to dissolve existing institutions: U.S. labor unions refusing to disband during the Red Scare despite government pressure.

Citizens’ Alternatives to Obedience

133. Reluctant and slow compliance: Workers following every safety regulation to the letter, effectively slowing down production as a protest against poor working conditions.
134. Nonobedience in absence of direct supervision: Dissidents in Soviet-controlled Eastern Europe quietly resisting Communist Party edicts when no officials were watching.
135. Popular nonobedience: Civil rights activists in the U.S. breaking segregation laws by sitting in "whites only" sections of public spaces.
136. Disguised disobedience: Writers and artists in authoritarian regimes hiding subversive messages in their work, such as Soviet-era dissidents smuggling criticism of the regime in art and literature.
137. Refusal of an assemblage or meeting to disperse: Protesters in Tiananmen Square in 1989 refusing to leave, despite government orders.
138. Sitdown: Striking workers in the U.S. auto industry during the 1930s sitting down at their workstations and refusing to leave.
139. Noncooperation with conscription and deportation: U.S. citizens during the Vietnam War burning draft cards in protest of forced conscription.
140. Hiding, escape, and false identities: Jews during the Holocaust using false papers and identities to escape Nazi persecution.
141. Civil disobedience of “illegitimate” laws: LGBTQ+ activists breaking sodomy laws in the U.S. before they were repealed in the 2000s.

Action by Government Personnel

142. Selective refusal of assistance by government aides: U.S. State Department employees refusing to work on deportation cases under the Trump administration as a form of protest.
143. Blocking of lines of command and information: French Resistance fighters during WWII sabotaging German communication lines to disrupt Nazi command structures.
144. Stalling and obstruction: Bureaucrats in authoritarian regimes deliberately slowing down governmental processes to frustrate leadership, as seen in Nazi Germany’s occupation of France.
145. General administrative noncooperation: Local governments in Catalonia refusing to enforce Spanish government mandates after the 2017 independence referendum.

Judicial Noncooperation

146. Judicial noncooperation: U.S. judges striking down laws they see as unconstitutional, such as during the Trump administration’s travel ban.
147. Deliberate inefficiency and selective noncooperation by enforcement agents: Police in Hong Kong during the 2019 protests slow-walking their response to pro-democracy activists.
148. Mutiny: The Russian Navy mutinied in 1905, refusing to follow orders from the Tsar and joining revolutionary forces.

Domestic Governmental Action

149. Quasi-legal evasions and delays: U.S. states using legal loopholes to delay the implementation of federal laws they disagreed with, such as desegregation.
150. Noncooperation by constituent governmental units: U.S. cities refusing to enforce federal immigration policies under the Trump administration.

International Governmental Action

151. Changes in diplomatic and other representations: Now, you're not a government, obviously. But lobbying your government and others to do things is in the mix. The U.S. withdrawing its ambassador from Venezuela to protest the legitimacy of President Maduro’s government.
152. Delay and cancellation of diplomatic events: The U.S. delaying diplomatic talks with North Korea in response to missile tests.
153. Withholding of diplomatic recognition: The U.S. and other countries refusing to recognize Taiwan as a separate state under pressure from China.
154. Severance of diplomatic relations: The U.S. cutting diplomatic ties with Cuba in 1961 following the Cuban Revolution.
155. Withdrawal from international organizations: The U.S. temporarily withdrawing from UNESCO to protest its policies regarding Israel.
156. Refusal of membership in international bodies: Taiwan being refused membership in the United Nations due to pressure from China.
157. Expulsion from international organizations: South Africa being expelled from the Commonwealth of Nations during apartheid.

The Methods of Nonviolent Intervention

Psychological Intervention

158. Self-exposure to the elements: Climate activists like Greta Thunberg camping out in freezing temperatures to protest inaction on climate change.
159. The fast
     a) Fast of moral pressure: The hunger strike by Indian activist Irom Sharmila, who fasted for 16 years against the Armed Forces Special Powers Act in India.
     b) Hunger strike: Irish Republican Army members, like Bobby Sands, going on hunger strike in 1981 to protest British rule in Northern Ireland.
     c) Satyagrahic fast: Gandhi fasting multiple times during the Indian independence movement to stop violent uprisings among his supporters.
160. Reverse trial: The People’s Tribunal on the Iraq War, where citizens put world leaders "on trial" for crimes related to the conflict.
161. Nonviolent harassment: Protesters in Belarus shadowing government officials during the 2020 elections to document abuses of power.

Physical Intervention

162. Sit-in: The Greensboro sit-ins in 1960, where African American students peacefully occupied segregated lunch counters.
163. Stand-in: Civil rights activists in the 1960s standing outside white-only movie theaters to demand desegregation.
164. Ride-in: Freedom Riders in the U.S. riding segregated buses to protest Jim Crow laws.
165. Wade-in: African Americans entering "whites-only" beaches in the South during the 1960s to challenge segregation.
166. Mill-in: Workers occupying mills and factories, such as during the Flint sit-down strike in the 1930s.
167. Pray-in: African American civil rights activists in the U.S. holding prayer meetings in segregated churches.
168. Nonviolent raids: The 2016 Dakota Access Pipeline protests, where protesters raided construction sites to stop the pipeline from being built.
169. Nonviolent air raids: Activists in Austria flying drones to drop protest leaflets over government buildings.
170. Nonviolent invasion: The 2019 storming of Area 51, where people gathered nonviolently to protest government secrecy.
171. Nonviolent interjection: Activists in France blocking the construction of new airports by physically placing themselves in the way.
172. Nonviolent obstruction: Extinction Rebellion activists blocking bridges in London to call attention to climate change.
173. Nonviolent occupation: The Occupy Wall Street movement in 2011, where protesters camped out in New York’s financial district to protest economic inequality.

Social Intervention

174. Establishing new social patterns: The LGBTQ+ community creating "safe spaces" in the 1980s to counteract widespread discrimination and violence.
175. Overloading of facilities: U.S. civil rights activists during the Freedom Summer of 1964 overwhelming segregated institutions by registering thousands of African American voters.
176. Stall-in: Protesters in 1964 staging a traffic slowdown in New York City by driving at a snail’s pace during the World’s Fair to highlight civil rights issues.
177. Speak-in: Students and professors in the U.S. holding teach-ins during the 1960s to educate people on the realities of the Vietnam War.
178. Guerrilla theater: The San Francisco Mime Troupe performing politically charged plays in public spaces during the 1960s.
179. Alternative social institutions: The Black Panther Party establishing free breakfast programs for children in the 1960s as part of their community outreach.
180. Alternative communication system: Pirate radio stations broadcasting uncensored news in countries with repressive regimes, such as in 1960s Cuba.

Economic Intervention

181. Reverse strike: Workers in Argentina taking over factories and running them as cooperatives during the economic crisis of 2001.
182. Stay-in strike: French students occupying their schools in 1968 to protest against outdated education systems and authoritarianism.
183. Nonviolent land seizure: Indigenous groups in Brazil occupying farmland illegally cleared by loggers to protect the rainforest.
184. Defiance of blockades: Palestinian fishermen defying Israeli naval blockades to access their fishing grounds in the Gaza Strip.
185. Politically motivated counterfeiting: During WWII, the Allies printed fake German marks to destabilize the Nazi economy.
186. Preclusive purchasing: Abolitionists in the U.S. buying up slaves to set them free before the Civil War.
187. Seizure of assets: French Resistance fighters seizing Nazi-held assets during WWII to finance the underground movement.
188. Dumping: Farmers in India dumping milk on the streets in 2020 to protest unfair agricultural policies.
189. Selective patronage: Consumers boycotting businesses that contributed to climate change and favoring eco-friendly alternatives.
190. Alternative markets: Farmers’ markets providing a local alternative to corporate food distribution systems in the U.S.
191. Alternative transportation systems: Bicycle-sharing programs in Europe providing transportation alternatives to oil companies during environmental protests.
192. Alternative economic institutions: Workers in Argentina creating cooperatives during the 2001 economic crisis to operate abandoned factories.

Political Intervention

193. Overloading of administrative systems: Protesters in the U.S. during the Trump administration filed thousands of Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to overwhelm government agencies.
194. Disclosing identities of secret agents: U.S. anti-war activists in the 1970s exposing undercover CIA agents involved in illegal domestic spying. Careful with this one, though. Because this can get folks hurt. 
195. Seeking imprisonment: Suffragettes in the early 20th century purposefully getting arrested to bring attention to their cause.
196. Civil disobedience of “neutral” laws: Protesters in the U.S. refusing to disperse during curfews set in place during Black Lives Matter protests.
197. Work-on without collaboration: European workers under Nazi occupation intentionally worked slowly to sabotage German military efforts.
198. Dual sovereignty and parallel government: The Catalan government in Spain attempted to establish a parallel system of government after their independence referendum in 2017.

Look, these 198 methods aren’t the whole story. People have been coming up with ways to push back since the dawn of time, and they’re not done yet. There are plenty of other tactics that haven’t been named or categorized, and you can bet there will be new ones popping up as long as there’s something worth fighting for. Nonviolent protest, noncooperation, and intervention? Those are just the big categories. The specifics are endless, and they’re only limited by your creativity.

But here’s the thing—don’t just throw tactics at the wall and hope something sticks. The real power comes from using the right method at the right time. You’ve got to know what kind of pressure you’re applying and why. It’s not about random acts of defiance; it’s about strategy. Plan your moves, pick your methods carefully, and then hit them where it hurts.