Peter Gelderloos. How Nonviolence Protects the State

In his new book, Peter Gelderloos describes the history of social protest across the globe, recounting states' attempts to subjugate and suppress activists just when they were closest to victory, and debunking the myth that only "peaceful," "nonviolent" social struggle is possible. Using examples from India's liberation from colonial oppression, the struggle of Native Americans, the civil rights movement in the United States, environmental activism, and anti-war campaigns, the author carefully and accurately demonstrates the techniques used by proponents of nonviolence to dampen the potential of protest.

By arguing that non-violence is ineffective, patriarchal, deceptive, and racist, Gelderloos suggests using a variety of tactics rather than limiting struggle methods to pickets and signature drives.

Especially now, after the disappearance of the "deceived voters" movement and the numerous failures of local protests, this book is worth reading for anyone who took to the streets of Russian cities and protested in the 2000s and early 2010s.