{"id":31180,"date":"2019-10-30T18:56:52","date_gmt":"2019-10-30T18:56:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thevoiceoflondon.co.uk\/?p=31180"},"modified":"2019-10-30T18:56:52","modified_gmt":"2019-10-30T18:56:52","slug":"peaceful-protests-youths-say-yes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.westminster.ac.uk\/thevoiceoflondon\/peaceful-protests-youths-say-yes\/","title":{"rendered":"Peaceful protests? Youths say yes"},"content":{"rendered":"

As we near the end of the year, it\u2019s almost inevitable to be overwhelmed by the sheer number of protests that took place in such a short period of time. It certainly begs the question: how did young people become the highlight of every protest?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Today, people all around the world chose to tackle globally-thematic issues.<\/p>\n

From fighting for immediate climate action and economic stability to women\u2019s liberation, fairness in court trials and governmental bills, as well as countless calls for presidential resignations.<\/p>\n

From the East to the West, everyone nowadays empathises with the struggles of political corruption and economic discrimination.<\/p>\n

And the globalisation fight against climate change only brought people from different regions even closer together.<\/p>\n

If anything, protestors have definitely proven that they no longer fit the stereotypical label of \u2018rebels without a cause\u2019.<\/p>\n

Speaking on a more national level, many would agree that Brexit and climate action dominated this country\u2019s interest.<\/p>\n

Hundreds of thousands of people were reported to have attended both causes\u2019 protests.<\/p>\n

Signs were made, chants yelled, and peaceful protests accomplished (for the most part).<\/p>\n

Though some have called for stricter control, the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR) currently protects UK citizens\u2019 Right to Freedom of Expression, and Right to Peaceful Assembly, according to Articles 10 and 11, respectively.<\/p>\n

So, one might wonder: what were peaceful protests like in much earlier decades? And how do they compare to current protests?<\/p>\n

During the Middle Ages, an era where people mainly consumed news through word of mouth, protests were somewhat practical, as they were initiated spontaneously by shared public outrage about the most recent news story.<\/p>\n

Later, like newspapers, television, and radio slowly dominated societies, it became less accessible for communities to immediately revolt on unjust news, as the majority consumed news in the reserved territory of their homes.<\/p>\n

With the introduction of social media, and cyber-activism essentially, people found themselves once again sharing public space, in which they could rage, rebel, and riot together.<\/p>\n

It was both informative and misleading; inclusive and exclusive; respectful and offensive.<\/p>\n

Patricio Saavedra, a Ph.D. student who has researched protestors\u2019 violence in the UK, told Voice of London, \u201cSocial media plays a crucial role in protests not just as a place where people can have their say without necessarily participating in actual demonstrations but also as a tool that people may use to coordinate actions.<\/p>\n

The latter is crucial for leaderless movements where people use some apps as Telegram (e.g., Hong Kong), or Twitter and Whatsapp (e.g., Chile) to stay tuned about the future actions of the movement.\u201d<\/p>\n

The politicisation of social media as a public sphere quickly attracted the attention of its prime users, youths, who slowly become the prime participants of peaceful protests, too.<\/p>\n

In fact, this digital platform attracted the attention of all minorities that feel underrepresented. Its high accessibility put everyone on equal footing. And, naturally, young people want to make sure their voices are heard too.<\/p>\n

But are peaceful protests even that effective? Or is it wishful thinking?<\/p>\n

Well, Erica Chenoweth, a political scientist who has extensively researched the effectiveness of civil resistance in comparison to violent insurgencies, has the answer.<\/p>\n

In a TED talk, she did a few years ago where she shared that not only did her research suggest that nonviolent protests were twice as likely to succeed as violent ones, but that they also tended to be larger and much more representative.<\/p>\n

She remarked that nonviolent protests \u201ccan solicit more diverse and active participation from ambivalent people\u201d.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Watch her TED talk below:<\/strong><\/p>\n