From the video "We were warriors".

From behind the stools, white men start taunting the mixed row of mostly black students who had the audacity to sit there. "He's so dark the whole room is darkened." "Nobody ain't gonna sit beside them dirty niggers." Those on the swiveling seats at the counter answer only with an unshakable look of dignity.  Frustrated, the men from behind start pushing and shoving. Still no response from those on the stools. Then they launch the attack: hurling obscenities, throwing milk shakes and live cigarette buts, grabbing and punching. Lenses capture the scene. The whole world watches in shock.

From the days of the Home Rule struggle in India to large-scale actions by the environmental and alter-globalization movements, nonviolent action has involved various forms of training in the political art and practical skills of nonviolent conflict for social change. This month's online dialogue will focus on the vital importance of training for nonviolent action. Training ourselves on tactical and strategic nonviolent action is essential to maximize possibilities and results. What does this kind of training entail? Join experienced nonviolent action trainers in sharing methods, resources and experiences from around the world. You'll have the opportunity to share your experiences as well as gain ideas and tools to apply to your efforts.

A mock tribunal is not a kangoroo court. The more your mock tribunal adheres to recognized standards of a fair trial, and resembles the existing proceedings in your country, the more credibility the endeavour can earn.

We have explained previously how citizen-based mock tribunals make good use of premonitory power, discussed the impact of repressed testimonies towards making truth and reconciliation possible, and covered 14 things to think about before you organize a mock tribunal.

In this last piece on paralegal forums, we turn to practical advice on conducting non-governmental "trials", with some ideas for follow-up activities that can prolong and widen the tribunal's impact.

Photo cc: JaHoVil

When faced with problems such as weak or no enforcement of human rights law, or even the lack of proper national legal instruments, how can you determine whether a mock tribunal is the right tactic for you? What factors should you weigh in before you decide?

And if you thought a citizen-based tribunal could be a useful tactic, how would you go about organizing it? What are some of the steps involved in setting up such a large-scale, public event? For instance, how should you choose those who will play a direct part in it, especially judges (or commissioners)?

In A Mock Tribunal to Advance Change, Mufuliat Fijabi has helped us answer those questions. The following checklist includes some of her advice, and other tips.

You can quickly scan through the list to see what organizing a tribunal entails. The checklist includes 11 "before you organize" items, and 3 "early prep" tasks.

photo cc: mick y

When whole systems were erected for the sole purpose of repressing and silencing you, how do you recover your voice?

On far too many continents, in far too many remote villages, tumultuous townships and forgotten urban alleyways, whole generations have witnessed their pregnant daughters being raped as evening entertainment for armed men, have survived the terror of disappearances in the dead of the night, and have seen the charred bodies of their sons in bombed car carcasses.

Where can these communities turn for a silver lining of justice, a possibility to heal and recover, a sense that the future may be livable?

When the level of atrocities finally recedes, what great big tide can come to cleanse with salty waters the bruised bodies and tortured souls left as wrecks on the shores of history?

Truth be told. Reconciliation is hard. But the only thing harder than that, apparently, is a lifetime of bitterness and hatred, being eaten away with fantasies of revenge, and the unspeakable grief that secret crimes beget.

So you've taken the time to survey your social landscape. Your organization has figured which constituencies are your natural friends and which are your opponents, and the various groups in between. You have run the Spectrum of Allies. Now what?

How do you decide what to do? How do you identify the key constituencies on which to focus your limited energies?  If winning means moving different segments in your general direction, however slightly, how can you collectively develop tailor-made arguments and tactics that target these particular slices of the social pie you want to pull over to your side?

Here's a recently developed workshop exercise, a shiny new strategy tool to help your gang define next steps in campaign design. It includes step-by-step instructions, so you can facilitate the tool with some confidence in your group.

Click for full view. Original graphic from Movement for New Society.

"It might have been prudent at the beginning to identify potential groups that would oppose the movement, and solicit their support, but we did not anticipate such opposition."

— Emile Short in Powerful Persuasion 

“The media”, I asked, “where should we put the media?”

“Somewere in the middle”, said someone in the group. “No, the media's more like a hostile neutral”, said another.

As I moved the marker across a crescent shape drawn on the flip chart, we settled on a wedge between Neutrals and Opponents.

Nonviolent Peaceforce members Bella Desai and Eldred de Klerk during the 2005 Sri Lankan elections. Photo: Bob Fitch.

In case you are just catching up, we ran a dialogue on unarmed accompaniement from January 23 to 29, 2008. And what an outstanding exchange it's been. It started with a few questions, to which our generous resource people provided a wealth of answers. If you haven't had a chance to follow, I would hate for such gold nuggets to be lost on you.

So I have compiled a list of highlights from the dialogue. The list is subjective, but hey, that's what you get for relying on other people's reading... 

The excertps were edited for conciseness (from 28,000 words down to 2,000, it's a sizeable summary still), and I corrected a few typos. I also added emphasis to allow you to scan quickly.  Do feel free to explore further if you want; the names link back to the specific posts. 

Oh, and some of the very best resources and training guides on protective accompaniment were also interspersed in the conversation. So yes, I have compiled a list.  

No. You don't have to thank me. I'm here for you. ;-)

photo: Benoît Aquin

One goal of the New Tactics Project is to help us adapt action methods in innovative ways. As we look to various tactics, the main focus remains on "transferability", the capacity to bring and apply a given tactical framework to a different issue or situation.

It's hard.

Most activists do not even think twice about "transferability' when they choose to organize a march or a boycott. But when it comes to more complex tactics, most people can't bring themselves to envision it in a different context. Yet, every tactic is transferable. 

Because I have had some experience with the nonviolent raid as intervention tactic, some fairly recent, I thought it might be useful to show a few examples of how this tactic can be, and was, transferred across different campaigns on a number of issues. The goal of the exercise is to spark our imagination.