Radical Rants

 The Strategy of Struggle

All around the world — and right here at home — people are rising. Communities are organizing, marching, calling out injustice, and standing firm in the face of increasing authoritarianism. The courage, creativity, and commitment we see in these movements is nothing short of inspiring.

But if we’re honest with ourselves, we know courage alone won’t be enough.

Too often, nonviolent resistance is seen as something spontaneous — reactive, even idealistic. We assume that if enough people show up, if we speak truth to power loudly enough, if we refuse to back down, that somehow victory will follow.

But imagine a military general preparing for battle by simply rallying the troops and hoping for the best. No maps beyond the level of individual battles. No objectives. No coordination on a broad scale. Just passion and determination. 

To win, generals study the political environment, the strength and weaknesses of the adversary, the resources at hand, and the likely moves and countermoves. They define objectives, phases, logistics, and exit strategies. They analyze terrain, assess enemy capabilities, and they map out communications, supply lines, morale. 

In other words, they develop a grand strategy.

The same should be true for us because nonviolent struggle aims to dislodge deeply entrenched entitlements, and shift the balance of power. In short, it seeks to remove power from the oppressive regime and wield it for the people.

Gene Sharp understood this. One of the most influential thinkers on nonviolent resistance, he wrote, “Nonviolent struggle is not just a moral alternative. It is a technique of combat.” And like any technique of combat, it requires planning, discipline, and strategy. Sharp did not romanticize resistance. He studied it — meticulously — and identified nearly 200 methods of nonviolent action. But he didn’t stop at tactics. He asked a deeper question: How do these tactics add up to strategic success?

Because strategy turns resistance into power.

This is not to dismiss the extraordinary work already being done. Far from it. Organizers and movement builders are doing the heavy lifting of building community, raising awareness, and mobilizing action — often at great personal risk. That work is essential.

But what we need now is to level up — to move from powerful moments to powerful movements. To move from scattered resistance to unified campaigns that are far clearer about where they’re going and how to get there.

Unlike violence, nonviolent resistance doesn’t rely on fear or destruction to force compliance. Its power comes from something even more potent: the withdrawal of cooperation. That power must be cultivated, coordinated, and focused with precision. That means building campaigns with clear objectives, sequencing tactics to escalate pressure, preparing for repression, managing morale, and mapping the interlocking pillars that hold up the regime you aim to bring down.

Nonviolent resistance is not magic. It is organized power.å

Look at the Polish Solidarity movement. Look at Serbia’s Otpor. Look at the civil rights movement in the United States. These weren’t random outbursts of protest. They were campaigns — carefully structured, strategically executed. They studied their opponents. They chose their battlegrounds. They built parallel institutions and trained their participants in nonviolent discipline. And when one crisis after another unfolded, they were ready.

Today, as authoritarianism rises around the world — and in our own country — we must reject the myth that nonviolence is merely reactive, or moral, or passive. It is none of those things. It is proactive, tactical, and fiercely intelligent. 

This is not about criticizing our movements. It’s about empowering them. It’s about recognizing that we have more power than we realize — and that when we wield it strategically, it becomes transformative.

Let’s honor the courage already shown building campaigns that not only disrupt injustice, but dismantle the systems that sustain it. Let’s move with the discipline, vision, and power that the times require.

We must think like strategists. And we must organize like our future depends on it.

Because it does.