[D66] The Failure of Nonviolence: from the Arab Spring to Occupy

[R.O.]

Review: The Failure of Nonviolence: from the Arab Spring to Occupy | 
Warrior Publications


Review by Zig Zag, /Warrior Publications/, August 11, 2013

The basic premise of this book is that advocates of pacifism have lost 
the debate over tactics and strategies used by social movements, and 
only those that have used a diversity of tactics have been successful. A 
promising premise and even more promising title, considering the recent 
manifestations of revolt and protest that characterized the Arab Spring 
and Occupy movements, and the “official” pacifist narrative that 
portrays these as victorious examples of nonviolence. Since these two 
movements are both recent and have served as inspiring examples for a 
new generation (including, it could be argued, the Idle No More wave of 
protests), the task of unraveling the false narratives pushed by 
pacifists seems both timely and highly relevant.

Unfortunately, of the 306 pages that comprise this book, only about a 
dozen or so actually focus on the Arab Spring and Occupy. Instead, 
Gelderloos includes these mobilizations in a list of others, ranging 
from the 1990 Oka Crisis to the 2012 Quebec Student Strike, in the third 
chapter, “Revolutions of Today.” This list includes struggles that used 
a diversity of tactics (including violence), as well as those that 
imposed strict nonviolence, such as the so-called “Colour Revolutions” 
in the Ukraine, Georgia, and Serbia, during the early 2000’s.

On the other hand, an entire separate chapter is devoted to these 
“Colour Revolutions,” and another one for the Real Democracy Now 
movement in Spain during 2011-12 (the /indignados/, which inspired the 
Occupy Wall Street protests across the US). While these examples have 
lessons about the failures of nonviolence, the authoritarian nature of 
pacifist organizers, and the importance of elite support for pacifist 
“revolutions,” etc., I don’t think they are particularly strong 
examples, especially for a North American audience.

While it may be important to be aware of the “Colour Revolutions” and 
the Real Democracy Now in countering pacifist myths, I would have 
preferred to see a larger focus on the Arab Spring and Occupy as 
examples of pacifist failures. The Arab Spring, because it was an 
inspiring catalyst for other social movements (including Occupy), and 
because it saw such high levels of self-organization and violence 
directed against the state and its police forces, and Occupy because 
many of the readers of this book are most likely to have been involved 
to one extent or another and would therefore be able to intimately 
relate to the material being discussed.

In fact, Occupy gets only the briefest examination, a total of 1 and a 
half pages. There’s no factual information presented, not even the date 
that Occupy Wall Street began, how many people were involved, or how 
many were arrested. Nor is there any narrative of how Occupy spread from 
Wall Street across North America a month later, and how it was quickly 
dismantled by the slightest state repression. There’s no documentation 
of call outs, discussions or debates that occurred within the movement. 
Occupy Oakland, the most militant and probably one of the longest 
lasting, is mentioned in just one sentence. By not investigating Occupy 
more closely, Gelderloos misses a prime opportunity to show the failings 
of nonviolence in a movement many potential readers participated in, and 
for whom his critiques would have had far more relevance.

Aside from a minimal analysis of the Arab Spring and Occupy, perhaps the 
weakest chapter is “Who are the pacifists?” Here, Gelderloos focuses on 
advocates of pacifism who, presumably, have had a major role in 
spreading pacifist doctrine. There is no mention of Gandhi or Martin 
Luther King, the two greatest figureheads of pacifism and from whom all 
current pacifist doctrine originates. Instead there is a list most 
people would not be familiar with. These include intellectual Gene Sharp 
(founder of The Albert Einstein Institution, a “non-profit organisation 
dedicated to advancing the

Gene Sharp, university professor and professional pacifist; could he 
fight his way out of a wet paper bag? 
<https://warriorpublications.files.wordpress.com/2013/08/pacifist-gene-sharp-1.jpg> 


Gene Sharp, university professor and professional pacifist; couldn’t 
fight his way out of a wet paper bag and recommends you don’t either.

study of nonviolent action”), the US military, the Dalai Lama, 
multi-millionaire George Soros, pop stars Bono and Bob Geldof, 
journalist Chris Hedges, pacifist activist Rebecca Solnit, unnamed 
“movement musicians,” US Judge Ann Aiken (who sentenced Daniel MacGowan 
to seven years in prison for ecological sabotage), author and journalist 
Mark Kurlanksy (/Nonviolence: The History of a Dangerous Idea/) , and 
Christian pacifists that Gelderloos lumps together as “The Old School.”

It’s an odd list, to be sure. And while intellectuals such as Sharp, 
Kurlansky and Hedges should be highlighted, “movement musicians” is a 
dubious choice (3 pages focusing on folk punks who have a very limited 
audience) , as is Judge Aiken (after all, how much influence did her 
sentencing statement referring to Gandhi have in promoting pacifism in 
social movements?). Just one page is dedicated to the US military 
advocating, organizing and funding pacifist campaigns, and this is 
mostly in passing, with little documentation or investigation.

Despite these shortcomings, in my opinion, /The Failure of Nonviolence/ 
is an important book. The title itself is a powerful statement, even if 
the subheading (“from the Arab Spring to Occupy”) is somewhat 
misleading. For while the pacifist doctrine lost the debate nearly from 
its inception with Gandhi, and later King, many advocates and adherents 
of nonviolence continue to rely on a mythological history of pacifist 
victories. And this mythology, of course, is perpetuated by the ruling 
class through the corporate media and entertainment industries, 
educational institutions, and official histories. All in all, Gelderloos 
does a good job in providing an overview of the failures of nonviolence 
over the last 25 years or so, while highlighting the successes of 
movements that used a broader diversity of tactics. Now, as social 
tension and conflict continue to deepen, and as more and more people 
begin to question the legitimacy of the system itself, books such as 
/The Failure of Nonviolence/ are more important than ever in exposing 
the truth about pacifist doctrine and the necessity for real resistance 
movements to embrace a diversity of tactics.  I would also recommend 
another Gelderloos book, /How Nonviolence Protects the State/ (South End 
Press, 2007).

*  You can also check out the PDF zine /Smash  Pacifism/, produced by 
Warrior Publications, at this link:

https://warriorpublications.wordpress.com/2012/11/13/smash-pacifism-a-critical-analysis-of-gandhi-and-king/

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