This study explores radical pacifists’ intellectual engagement with the black freedom movement by examining the New York-based magazine Liberation between 1956 and 1965. It argues that two priorities shaped Liberation’s responses to the movement: the concern to promote the philosophy and practice of nonviolent direct action, and the concern to advocate radical social change in the United States. Until 1965 Liberation promoted the civil rights movement as a potential catalyst for the nonviolent reconstruction of U.S. democracy. Liberation became a forum for exploring the common ground as well as the tensions between radical pacifist priorities and those of various black freedom activists. The tensions are particularly apparent in Liberation’s reflections on the challenges of linking peace activism with the freedom struggle in the early 1960s, and in its 1964-65 debate over civil rights leaders’ strategy of coalition with the Democratic Party in the context of the escalating war in Vietnam.

This study explores radical pacifists’ intellectual engagement with the black freedom movement by examining the New York-based magazine Liberation between 1956 and 1965. It argues that two priorities shaped Liberation’s responses to the movement: the concern to promote the philosophy and practice of nonviolent direct action, and the concern to advocate radical social change in the United States. Until 1965 Liberation promoted the civil rights movement as a potential catalyst for the nonviolent reconstruction of U.S. democracy. Liberation became a forum for exploring the common ground as well as the tensions between radical pacifist priorities and those of various black freedom activists. The tensions are particularly apparent in Liberation’s reflections on the challenges of linking peace activism with the freedom struggle in the early 1960s, and in its 1964-65 debate over civil rights leaders’ strategy of coalition with the Democratic Party in the context of the escalating war in Vietnam.

Nonviolent Change Journal helps to network the peace community: providing dialoguing, exchanges of ideas, articles, reviews, reports and announcements of the activities of peace related groups and meetings, reviews of world developments relating to nonviolent change and resource information concerning the development of human relations on the basis of mutual respect. The Nonviolent Change Journal is published by the Research/Action Team on Nonviolent Large Systems Change, an interorganizational and international project of The Organization Development Institute.

In the early 1960s, African-American residents of southwest Georgia cooperated with organizers from the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) to launch a freedom movement that would attempt to battle white supremacy and bring all Americans closer to their country's democratic ideals. Movement participants tried to overcome the fear ingrained in them by daily life in the Jim Crow South, and to reconstruct American society from within. Working within a tradition of black insurgency, participants attempted to understand the origins of the intimidation and powerlessness that they often felt, and to form a strong community based on mutual respect, equality, and trust. Black women played fundamental roles in shaping this movement and African-American resistance patterns more generally, and struggles such as the southwest Georgia movement reveal the ways in which black people have identified themselves as American citizens, equated citizenship with political participation, and reinterpreted American democratic traditions along more just and inclusive lines. This thesis begins with a narrative of the movement. It then moves on to discuss SNCC's efforts to build community solidarity and empower African-American residents of southwest Georgia, and to consider the notion that SNCC owed its success to the activism of local women and girls. Next, it proposes that in the southwest Georgia movement there was no clear distinction between public and private space and work, and it suggests that activism in the movement emerged from traditional African-American patterns of family and community organization. Finally, this thesis asserts that the mass jail-ins for which the movement became famous redefined and empowered the movement community. This analysis reconsiders the analytical categories with which scholars generally study social movements. Instead of employing a linear narrative structure that emphasizes formal political activity and specific tactical victories, this thesis suggests that political participation takes diverse forms and it highlights the cycles of community building and individual empowerment that characterize grassroots organizing. It underscores the sheer difficulty of initiating and sustaining a mass struggle, and argues that the prerequisite to forming an insurgent movement is the ability of individuals to envision alternative social and cultural possibilities. / Arts, Faculty of / History, Department of / Graduate

Orientador: Rafael Salatini de Almeida / Resumo: O presente projeto procura estudar e debater o tema relacionado à antinomia permanente entre, de um lado, a paz e pacifismo, e, de outro, a guerra e a violência. Assim, partir da doutrina da não-violência em face do conflito político permeado pelos Estados contra seus cidadãos, mesmo perante organizações ditas democráticas, procuraremos compreender os temas da paz e da não violência e sua conformação nos escritos de Gene Sharp. Assim, levantando-se a discussão acerca de um direito humano de resistência não-violenta, tomando por referência a doutrina da desobediência civil e culminando em um direito humano de todos os povos de revolução, todavia, realizável por meios pacíficos. As práticas filosóficas da não-violência, propostas por Gandhi e outros pacifistas, se transformam em teoria política de resistência e em ação coletiva de confrontação e de lutas. Porém, enquanto toda revolução pressupõe violência e uso da força, a prática da não-violência como referencial de um agir político, na esfera nacional e internacional, se mostra como grande potencial de adesões e de conquistas, obtendo cada vez mais o apoio social. Somente se entendendo os estudos políticos e humanitários relacionados à paz e ao pacifismo, conseguiremos mensurar o alcance das teorias e doutrinas de não-violência. Estes se mostram fundamentais para a discussão e análise dos métodos de luta e revolução não-violentos propostos por Gene Sharp. O estudo e a proposta tomam por ponto de convergência desses institutos... (Resumo completo, clicar acesso eletrônico abaixo) / Abstract: This project seeks to study and debate the theme related to the permanent antinomy between peace and pacifism, and on the other hand war and violence. Thus, from the doctrine of nonviolence in the face of political conflict permeated by states against their citizens, even before so-called democratic organizations, we will seek to understand the themes of peace and nonviolence and their conformation to the writings of Gene Sharp. Thus, raising the discussion about a human right of nonviolent resistance by reference to the doctrine of civil disobedience and culminating in a human right of all peoples of revolution, yet achievable by peaceful means. The philosophical practices of nonviolence proposed by Gandhi and other pacifists become political theory of resistance and collective action of confrontation and struggle. However, while every revolution presupposes violence and the use of force, the practice of nonviolence as a reference for political action and at the national and international levels is shown to be a great potential for adhesions and achievements, increasingly obtaining social support. Only by understanding the political and humanitarian studies related to peace and pacifism can we measure the extent of nonviolence theories and doctrines. These are fundamental for the discussion and analysis of the methods of nonviolent struggle and revolution proposed by Gene Sharp. The study and proposal take as a point of convergence of these institutes of pacifism and nonviol... (Complete abstract click electronic access below) / Astratto: Questo progetto mira a studiare e discutere il tema relativo all'antinomia permanente tra pace e pacifismo, e d'altra parte guerra e violenza. Quindi, dalla dottrina della nonviolenza di fronte al conflitto politico permeato dagli stati contro i loro cittadini, anche prima delle cosiddette organizzazioni democratiche, cercheremo di comprendere i temi della pace e della nonviolenza e della loro conformazione agli scritti di Gene Sharp. Quindi, sollevando la discussione su un diritto umano di resistenza non violenta facendo riferimento alla dottrina della disobbedienza civile e culminando in un diritto umano di tutti i popoli della rivoluzione, eppure raggiungibile con mezzi pacifici. Le pratiche filosofiche di nonviolenza proposte da Gandhi e altri pacifisti diventano teoria politica di resistenza e azione collettiva di confronto e lotta. Tuttavia, mentre ogni rivoluzione presuppone la violenza e l'uso della forza, la pratica della nonviolenza come riferimento per l'azione politica e a livello nazionale e internazionale ha dimostrato di essere un grande potenziale per adesioni e risultati, ottenendo sempre più supporto sociale. Solo comprendendo gli studi politici e umanitari relativi alla pace e al pacifismo possiamo misurare l'estensione delle teorie e delle dottrine della non violenza. Questi sono fondamentali per la discussione e l'analisi dei metodi di lotta e violenza nonviolenta proposti da Gene Sharp. Lo studio e la proposta prendono come punto di convergenza questi is / Doutor

In this thesis I look at the Arkansas Project and more specifically the racial dynamics within the project and the surrounding communities in Arkansas where SNCC engaged to assist the residents fight for their civil rights. In addition, I analyze how the differences in the urban and rural communities were affected by the racial dynamics of the project's leadership. The Arkansas project was led by William Hansen, a white man, which made him and the project unique from not only other SNCC projects, but other civil rights organizations. This distinction made the strategy that had to be implemented with the project staff internally and also externally in the Arkansas communities different because his race had to be taken into consideration for all purposes. Another aspect that came into play in Arkansas was the fact that some of their activities occurred in urban communities and others occurred in rural communities. These difference in communities affected not only how the local blacks received the SNCC volunteers, but also affected how local whites received the SNCC volunteers. Although the fact that the Arkansas Project had a white field director made it unique and the racial dynamics worthy of scholarly investigation, Bill Hansen's racial identity was far from the only reason that the organization's work in Arkansas is historically significant. This thesis also looks at the important activities in which SNCC engaged and impacted because of their presence in Arkansas. Of those activities, SNCC impacted the creation of several local groups where local citizens helped to fight for their civil rights, in fighting for their civil rights, those groups engaged in sit-ins, protests, and fighting legal battles in court where some of their cases made it all the way to the United States Supreme Court and impacted the civil rights movement in the south. Two important legal cases that had ramifications for the civil rights movement beyond the state that originated in Arkansas. The cases of Lupper v. State of Arkansas and Raney v. Board of Education made it all the way to the United States Supreme Court out of Arkansas. They helped shape the civil rights movement because Lupper helped clarify sit-in cases and the constitutionality of the arrests. The arrests were deemed unconstitutional because the Civil Rights Act of 1964 forbade discrimination in places of public accommodation and allowed peaceful attempts to be served like any other member of the public from punishable activities in spite of the fact the activities occurred prior to the date of its enactment. In addition, Raney helped define desegregation efforts in the south as many states attempted to avoid the Brown v. Board of Education decision by implementing "freedom of choice plans." Freedom of choice plans were state attempts to circumvent the Brown decision by making the students and their family choose which school they would attend. These cases helped shape the civil rights movement and dealt with sit ins and integrating schools. This thesis provides an important addition to the scholarship about SNCC and SNCC's Arkansas Project.

This ethnohistorical study returns to a historical site of Black education, The Mississippi Freedom Schools (MFS) of 1964, to excavate conceptions of teacher education and Black education held by the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) a predominantly Black social movement organization. The MFS served as an alternative site of education for Black children across the state of Mississippi that, unlike public school, placed the lives of Black children and the movement for Black liberation at the center of learning. Through an analysis of digital archival documents, secondary sources, and interviews this dissertation is segmented into two sections of historical findings. Part I begins with a series of narratives recounting a racialized history of teacher education, the journey of Black education in America, and the origin of SNCC. The second section details the foundational values of teacher education, answers the question, “What counted as teacher education?”, and derives the essential components of Black education all held by SNCC. By illuminating these conceptions this study aims to inform and transform the trajectory of not only how teachers are prepared to teach Black children, but also inform the broader field of education as it relates to education policy, curriculum, and teacher education program design. This study found that the foundational values of teaching and teacher education held by SNCC required teachers to interrogate and confront their deepest perceptions of Black folk, demands that teachers release ego and hero archetypes, and that teacher education actively disrupt traditional teacher-student binaries. Additionally, this study found that SNCC believed that a shattering of perceived realities and ideological foundations, a theoretical understanding of the Black American experience, and a knowledge of both the historical and current context of Mississippi counted as teacher education. Lastly, this dissertation found, according to SNCC, Black education served as a confirmation of youth’s lived experiences in an inequitable society, to demystify the functions of society that leads to oppression, aimed to dispel anti-Black myths and supplement the erasure of Blackness in school curriculum, and worked to cultivate an activist mindset and skillset.

The use of nonviolent tactics has become the most common way to achieve change. The field of civil resistance has been predominantly focussed on the dynamics related to the outcome, however, about the types of organisational structures that are most effective, is no general consensus, yet. This thesis will try to fill this research gap by combining insights from organisational science, social movement studies, and civil resistance literature. The research question that is posed is: How does the organisational structure affect the outcome of civil resistance campaigns? A theoretical typology is created, proposing a four-fold classification system based on two relational characteristics, namely (1) the extent to which relations are either formal or informal, and (2) the extent to which the relations are hierarchical or lateral. A distinction is made between four quadrants with four different types of structures that affect four critical factors that affect the outcome of civil resistance campaigns: mass mobilisation, loyalty shifts, tactical diversity, and resilience. A ‘nested analysis’ approach is used combining quantitative and qualitative methods of research. After having conducted the analysis, the study showed that organisational structures affect the outcome of civil resistance campaigns in several ways. However, the main findings that were expected to be found did not yield significant evidence, as such the formulated hypothesis can ultimately be rejected. The results of the quantitative analysis show that the odds of success are 2.98 times larger in campaigns with formal organisational structures compared to informal structures, and the odds of success are 17.7 times larger in cases with centralised structures compared to clustered structures. Overall, centralised structures have the highest odds of success. Furthermore, the qualitative analysis suggests that unity, trust, and organisational capacity affect the likelihood that civil resistance campaigns achieve success. Future research should focus to further develop this theoretical model, assess the interaction between structural conditions and type of organisational structure adopted by civil resistance campaigns, and the impact that ICTs have on mobilising processes and organisational structure of civil resistance campaigns.

The Islamic movement study mostly focused on radical, extremist, violent, or military aspects. The current research was carried out to examine the nonviolent elements of the Islamic movement. Based on the ethnographic photo research conducted in the Ethiopian Muslims Protest, the Islamic movements nonviolent aspect investigated. The Ethiopian Muslims were organized social media-led protests called Let Our Voices be Heard for their religious rights between 2011 and 2015. The study first examined where this Let Our Voices be Heard protest fits in civil resistance studies. Second, it investigated Facebook's role in initiating, organizing, and sustaining the nonviolent Islamic movement in Ethiopia. Using Johnston's defining terms of social movement theory, the Let Our Voices be Heard protest tested. The result shows that the protest well fit with the dimensions and components of social movement theory. The result indicates that the Let Our Voices be Heard protest exemplifies nonviolent Islamic movement in the Eastern Africa region, Ethiopia. The study further shows that Facebook, when used for a common goal, is a robust platform for successfully mobilizing nonviolent Islamic movements.

The Islamic movement study mostly focused on radical, extremist, violent, or military aspects. The current research was carried out to examine the nonviolent elements of the Islamic movement. Based on the ethnographic photo research conducted in the Ethiopian Muslims Protest, the Islamic movements nonviolent aspect investigated. The Ethiopian Muslims were organized social media-led protests called Let Our Voices be Heard for their religious rights between 2011 and 2015. The study first examined where this Let Our Voices be Heard protest fits in civil resistance studies. Second, it investigated Facebook's role in initiating, organizing, and sustaining the nonviolent Islamic movement in Ethiopia. Using Johnston's defining terms of social movement theory, the Let Our Voices be Heard protest tested. The result shows that the protest well fit with the dimensions and components of social movement theory. The result indicates that the Let Our Voices be Heard protest exemplifies nonviolent Islamic movement in the Eastern Africa region, Ethiopia. The study further shows that Facebook, when used for a common goal, is a robust platform for successfully mobilizing nonviolent Islamic movements.