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Protest: Respect It Defend It Use It
An excellent introduction to the power of public dissent." -- Kirkus
"If supporting grassroots activists taught us anything, it is that when enough individuals come together, it is possible to take on a system." -- Yvon Chouinard
What would the world look like if we couldn’t express outrage against the systems we disagree with or support the changes we seek?
Our right to peaceful protest is under attack, and we must act now!
Respect It Defend It Use It offers a powerful look at the role peaceful activism has played in advancing the public good—and shines a light on the urgent need to protect this democratic right. This is not a how-to guide. Rather, it is a celebration of what collective action can achieve, an invitation to be inspired, and a reminder that each of us has the capacity to make a difference.
Featuring more than 40 iconic campaigns from around the world, Protest is a vivid testament to the power of public dissent. Guest essays from Jane Fonda, Tennessee Representative Justin Pearson, Dolores Huerta, Nemonte Nenquimo, and others reveal how protest shaped their own commitment to driving change. Through storytelling and first-hand reflection, listeners are invited to witness, reflect, and engage in peaceful activism—right here, right now.
Rivers that don’t catch fire. The freedom to marry whom we love. Clean air and water. Even weekends off. Peaceful protest—protected in the U.S., as in many countries, as a cornerstone of participatory democracy— helped bring about each of these victories. Free speech, dissent, and public mobilization are essential tools for advancing so many causes, including environmental protection, workers’ rights, human rights, self-determination, and climate, social, and racial justice.
Yet even as protest has delivered lasting progress—and perhaps because of it—the right to speak freely and organize is increasingly under threat. Crackdowns are no longer confined to authoritarian regimes; anti-protest sentiment is spreading across established democracies. Activists are being vilified, targeted, and even criminalized. In the U.S., anti-protest laws have been enacted in 49 states. SLAPP suits—meritless legal actions used to silence dissent—are on the rise. New legal concepts like “negligent protest” are being used to hold organizers liable for damages, while violent actions by anti-democratic forces are reframed or excused.
Published to coincide with the 250th anniversary of one of history’s most consequential acts of protest—the signing of the Declaration of Independence—this audiobook is an invitation. It invites listeners to learn about the creativity, courage, and impact of peaceful protest, to be inspired by those who came before, and to recognize that this essential democratic right belongs to everyone—now more than ever.
"If supporting grassroots activists taught us anything, it is that when enough individuals come together, it is possible to take on a system." -- Yvon Chouinard
What would the world look like if we couldn’t express outrage against the systems we disagree with or support the changes we seek?
Our right to peaceful protest is under attack, and we must act now!
Respect It Defend It Use It offers a powerful look at the role peaceful activism has played in advancing the public good—and shines a light on the urgent need to protect this democratic right. This is not a how-to guide. Rather, it is a celebration of what collective action can achieve, an invitation to be inspired, and a reminder that each of us has the capacity to make a difference.
Featuring more than 40 iconic campaigns from around the world, Protest is a vivid testament to the power of public dissent. Guest essays from Jane Fonda, Tennessee Representative Justin Pearson, Dolores Huerta, Nemonte Nenquimo, and others reveal how protest shaped their own commitment to driving change. Through storytelling and first-hand reflection, listeners are invited to witness, reflect, and engage in peaceful activism—right here, right now.
Rivers that don’t catch fire. The freedom to marry whom we love. Clean air and water. Even weekends off. Peaceful protest—protected in the U.S., as in many countries, as a cornerstone of participatory democracy— helped bring about each of these victories. Free speech, dissent, and public mobilization are essential tools for advancing so many causes, including environmental protection, workers’ rights, human rights, self-determination, and climate, social, and racial justice.
Yet even as protest has delivered lasting progress—and perhaps because of it—the right to speak freely and organize is increasingly under threat. Crackdowns are no longer confined to authoritarian regimes; anti-protest sentiment is spreading across established democracies. Activists are being vilified, targeted, and even criminalized. In the U.S., anti-protest laws have been enacted in 49 states. SLAPP suits—meritless legal actions used to silence dissent—are on the rise. New legal concepts like “negligent protest” are being used to hold organizers liable for damages, while violent actions by anti-democratic forces are reframed or excused.
Published to coincide with the 250th anniversary of one of history’s most consequential acts of protest—the signing of the Declaration of Independence—this audiobook is an invitation. It invites listeners to learn about the creativity, courage, and impact of peaceful protest, to be inspired by those who came before, and to recognize that this essential democratic right belongs to everyone—now more than ever.
Audible Audio
Published April 28, 2026
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About the author
Annie Leonard
20 books66 followersAnnie Leonard is the author and host of our very own The Story of Stuff. She is author of The Story of Stuff, the book, published by Free Press of Simon and Schuster on March 9, 2010.
Annie has spent nearly two decades investigating and organizing on environmental health and justice issues. She has traveled to 40 countries, visiting literally hundreds of factories where our stuff is made and dumps where our stuff is dumped. Witnessing first hand the horrendous impacts of both over- and under- consumption around the world, Annie is fiercely dedicated to reclaiming and transforming our industrial and economic systems so they serve, rather than undermine, ecological sustainability and social equity.
Annie is currently the Director of The Story of Stuff Project. Prior to this, most recently, Annie coordinated the Funders Workgroup for Sustainable Production and Consumption, a funder collaborative seeking to address the hidden environmental and social impacts of current systems of making, using and throwing away all the stuff of daily life.
She has also worked with GAIA (Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives), Health Care Without Harm, Essential Action and Greenpeace International.
Annie is currently on the boards of International Forum for Globalization and GAIA and has previously served on the Boards of the Grassroots Recycling Network, the Environmental Health Fund, Global Greengrants India and Greenpeace India. She did her undergraduate studies at Barnard College, Columbia University and graduate work in City and Regional Planning at Cornell, both in New York. She is currently based in the Bay Area, California.
from http://www.storyofstuff.com/annie.php
Annie has spent nearly two decades investigating and organizing on environmental health and justice issues. She has traveled to 40 countries, visiting literally hundreds of factories where our stuff is made and dumps where our stuff is dumped. Witnessing first hand the horrendous impacts of both over- and under- consumption around the world, Annie is fiercely dedicated to reclaiming and transforming our industrial and economic systems so they serve, rather than undermine, ecological sustainability and social equity.
Annie is currently the Director of The Story of Stuff Project. Prior to this, most recently, Annie coordinated the Funders Workgroup for Sustainable Production and Consumption, a funder collaborative seeking to address the hidden environmental and social impacts of current systems of making, using and throwing away all the stuff of daily life.
She has also worked with GAIA (Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives), Health Care Without Harm, Essential Action and Greenpeace International.
Annie is currently on the boards of International Forum for Globalization and GAIA and has previously served on the Boards of the Grassroots Recycling Network, the Environmental Health Fund, Global Greengrants India and Greenpeace India. She did her undergraduate studies at Barnard College, Columbia University and graduate work in City and Regional Planning at Cornell, both in New York. She is currently based in the Bay Area, California.
from http://www.storyofstuff.com/annie.php
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Review of advance copy
Protest: Respect It. Defend It. Use It.
by Annie Leonard and André Carothers
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
(I received an advance copy of this book.)
This is the book I didn’t know I needed right now — and I suspect I’m not alone.
Annie Leonard and André Carothers have created something that is part history, part photo essay, part love letter to everyone who has ever made a sign, locked arms with a stranger, or simply shown up. Protest profiles 42 campaigns spanning nearly three centuries, from Benjamin Lay’s 1738 confrontation with Quaker slaveholders to the 2025 Faith in Action movement. The range is breathtaking: Standing Rock, the first Earth Day, marriage equality, South African apartheid, youth climate strikes — each rendered through photographs, artifacts, and the kind of vivid storytelling that makes history feel urgent and personal.
What elevates this beyond a beautiful coffee-table book are the guest essays. Jane Fonda, Dolores Huerta, Tennessee Representative Justin Pearson, Nemonte Nenquimo, and others reflect on how protest shaped not just policy but their own moral commitments. These aren’t distant retrospectives — they read like conversations with people still in the fight. Robert Reich’s afterword is a rallying cry that lands exactly where it should.
Leonard and Carothers don’t shy away from documenting how threatened the right to protest has become, even in established democracies. Anti-protest legislation, SLAPP suits, the criminalization of organizers — the book names what’s happening clearly and without flinching. Timed to the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence — itself one of history’s most consequential acts of protest — the framing is deliberate and powerful.
If I have one wish, it’s for more attention to how protest is evolving in the digital age — the role of encrypted organizing, mutual aid networks, and the ways movements now build power between the marches. But that may be the sequel this book deserves.
This is not a how-to manual. It’s an invitation to remember what ordinary people, acting collectively, have made possible. Clean air. Weekends. The freedom to love whom we love. And it’s a reminder that those gains were never given — they were demanded.
Buy it for the activist in your life. Buy it for the person who isn’t sure their voice matters. Buy it for yourself. http://www.theprotestbook.com
by Annie Leonard and André Carothers
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
(I received an advance copy of this book.)
This is the book I didn’t know I needed right now — and I suspect I’m not alone.
Annie Leonard and André Carothers have created something that is part history, part photo essay, part love letter to everyone who has ever made a sign, locked arms with a stranger, or simply shown up. Protest profiles 42 campaigns spanning nearly three centuries, from Benjamin Lay’s 1738 confrontation with Quaker slaveholders to the 2025 Faith in Action movement. The range is breathtaking: Standing Rock, the first Earth Day, marriage equality, South African apartheid, youth climate strikes — each rendered through photographs, artifacts, and the kind of vivid storytelling that makes history feel urgent and personal.
What elevates this beyond a beautiful coffee-table book are the guest essays. Jane Fonda, Dolores Huerta, Tennessee Representative Justin Pearson, Nemonte Nenquimo, and others reflect on how protest shaped not just policy but their own moral commitments. These aren’t distant retrospectives — they read like conversations with people still in the fight. Robert Reich’s afterword is a rallying cry that lands exactly where it should.
Leonard and Carothers don’t shy away from documenting how threatened the right to protest has become, even in established democracies. Anti-protest legislation, SLAPP suits, the criminalization of organizers — the book names what’s happening clearly and without flinching. Timed to the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence — itself one of history’s most consequential acts of protest — the framing is deliberate and powerful.
If I have one wish, it’s for more attention to how protest is evolving in the digital age — the role of encrypted organizing, mutual aid networks, and the ways movements now build power between the marches. But that may be the sequel this book deserves.
This is not a how-to manual. It’s an invitation to remember what ordinary people, acting collectively, have made possible. Clean air. Weekends. The freedom to love whom we love. And it’s a reminder that those gains were never given — they were demanded.
Buy it for the activist in your life. Buy it for the person who isn’t sure their voice matters. Buy it for yourself. http://www.theprotestbook.com
Displaying 1 of 1 review