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How We Win: A Guide to Nonviolent Direct Action Campaigning
A lifetime of activist experience from a civil rights legend informs this playbook for building and conducting nonviolent direct action campaigns
In an era of massive worldwide protests for racial and economic justice, it is important to remember that marching is only one way to take to the streets. Protest must be supplemented with the sustained direct action campaigns that are crucial to winning major reforms.
Beginning as a trainer in the civil rights movement of the 1960s, George Lakey has spent decades helping direct action tactics flourish and succeed on the front lines of social change. Now, in this timely and down-to-earth guide, he passes the torch to a new generation of activists. Lakey looks to successful campaigns across the world to help us see what has worked, what hasn’t, and from choosing the right target to designing a creative campaign; from avoiding burnout within your group to building a movement of movements to achieve real progressive victories.
Drawing on the experiences of a diverse set of ambitious change-makers, How We Win shows us the way to justice, peace, and a sustainable economy. This is what democracy looks like.
In an era of massive worldwide protests for racial and economic justice, it is important to remember that marching is only one way to take to the streets. Protest must be supplemented with the sustained direct action campaigns that are crucial to winning major reforms.
Beginning as a trainer in the civil rights movement of the 1960s, George Lakey has spent decades helping direct action tactics flourish and succeed on the front lines of social change. Now, in this timely and down-to-earth guide, he passes the torch to a new generation of activists. Lakey looks to successful campaigns across the world to help us see what has worked, what hasn’t, and from choosing the right target to designing a creative campaign; from avoiding burnout within your group to building a movement of movements to achieve real progressive victories.
Drawing on the experiences of a diverse set of ambitious change-makers, How We Win shows us the way to justice, peace, and a sustainable economy. This is what democracy looks like.
240 pages, Paperback
Published December 4, 2018
58 people are currently reading
672 people want to read
About the author
George Lakey
27 books39 followersGeorge Lakey is the director of Training for Change. He began his career as a trainer at the Martin Luther King School for Social Change, and has since gone on to lead over 1000 workshops on five continents. He has run trainings for coal miners, therapists, homeless people, prisoners, Russian lesbians and gays, Sri Lankan monks, Burmese guerrilla soldiers, striking steel workers, South African activists, and others. Trained as a sociologist, he has taught at the college and graduate level and is the author of six books. He consults regularly with a wide range of nonprofit groups.
George has given leadership to a number of social change movements. In late 1989 he led a team of Westerners in Sri Lanka who for 24 hours a day accompanied human-rights activists at risk of assassination. He has done neighborhood organizing, once successfully preventing tree-cutting and another time creating a neighborhood festival to celebrate ethnic diversity. He co-founded the Movement for a New Society, which for nearly 20 years specialized in organizational innovation. He founded and directed the Philadelphia Jobs with Peace Campaign, a coalition of labor, civil rights, poverty and peace groups. He was a designer of and staffed the Campaign to Stop the B-1 Bomber and Promote Peace Conversion, which mobilized sufficiently to gain cancellation of the B-1 in 1977 and raise the visibility of the concept of economic conversion. He was director of A Quaker Action Group when it assisted Puerto Rican nationalists in stopping the U.S. Navy from using the inhabited island of Culebra for target practice. He was also a founder of Men Against Patriarchy, which organized pioneering projects for the early men's anti-sexism movement of the mid-'70s.
George has taught peace studies at Swarthmore and Haverford Colleges, Temple University and the University of Pennsylvania. At Penn he brought the program from 11 students in one class to 105 in three sections; the administration lauded the program for the way it reached out to students of color. He also created a group dynamics lab at Penn for training men in new leadership styles under a federal grant for feminist education.
George's sixth book is on organizational development: "Grassroots and Nonprofit Leadership: A Guide for Organizations in Changing Times" (1996). He is author or co-author of five previous books: "A Manual for Direct Action" (often called the "Bible" of direct action by Southern civil-rights activists of the '60s); "In Place of War, Moving toward a New Society"; "No Turning Back: Lesbian and Gay Liberation for the '80s"; and "Powerful Peacemaking: A Strategy for a Living Revolution." His publications have been translated into Swedish, German, Danish, French, Japanese and Thai.
On the personal side, George is a Quaker, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather in an interracial family. He received the national Giraffe Award (1992) for "sticking his neck out for the common good," and the Ashley Montague Peace Award (1998) from the International Conference on Conflict Resolution.
George has given leadership to a number of social change movements. In late 1989 he led a team of Westerners in Sri Lanka who for 24 hours a day accompanied human-rights activists at risk of assassination. He has done neighborhood organizing, once successfully preventing tree-cutting and another time creating a neighborhood festival to celebrate ethnic diversity. He co-founded the Movement for a New Society, which for nearly 20 years specialized in organizational innovation. He founded and directed the Philadelphia Jobs with Peace Campaign, a coalition of labor, civil rights, poverty and peace groups. He was a designer of and staffed the Campaign to Stop the B-1 Bomber and Promote Peace Conversion, which mobilized sufficiently to gain cancellation of the B-1 in 1977 and raise the visibility of the concept of economic conversion. He was director of A Quaker Action Group when it assisted Puerto Rican nationalists in stopping the U.S. Navy from using the inhabited island of Culebra for target practice. He was also a founder of Men Against Patriarchy, which organized pioneering projects for the early men's anti-sexism movement of the mid-'70s.
George has taught peace studies at Swarthmore and Haverford Colleges, Temple University and the University of Pennsylvania. At Penn he brought the program from 11 students in one class to 105 in three sections; the administration lauded the program for the way it reached out to students of color. He also created a group dynamics lab at Penn for training men in new leadership styles under a federal grant for feminist education.
George's sixth book is on organizational development: "Grassroots and Nonprofit Leadership: A Guide for Organizations in Changing Times" (1996). He is author or co-author of five previous books: "A Manual for Direct Action" (often called the "Bible" of direct action by Southern civil-rights activists of the '60s); "In Place of War, Moving toward a New Society"; "No Turning Back: Lesbian and Gay Liberation for the '80s"; and "Powerful Peacemaking: A Strategy for a Living Revolution." His publications have been translated into Swedish, German, Danish, French, Japanese and Thai.
On the personal side, George is a Quaker, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather in an interracial family. He received the national Giraffe Award (1992) for "sticking his neck out for the common good," and the Ashley Montague Peace Award (1998) from the International Conference on Conflict Resolution.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
August 24, 2019
I had the pleasure of working with the author on a book (Facilitating Group Learning) years ago. He is really wonderful, and one of the pleasures of this book is what a good storyteller he is. That is, the stories are great, but he is also really good at telling them economically and getting the point across. So the book is very practical, but also very good reading. I'll share one example: In the beginning of Chapter 19, he talks about civil rights leaders A. Philip Randolph and Bayard Rustin in the early 1960s. On page 169 he notes: "Their goal of a national movement against racism with masses of blacks in motion, and a growing number of white allies, was in sight. They believed, however, that racism couldn't be abolished without addressing economic injustice. I heard Rustin say, over and over, 'If we don't use this moment to get the economy changed, in fifty years we'll still have ugly racism.' Today we live with his predicted outcome."
It would have been worth reading the whole book for that sad and powerful story alone. But there's much more, so please check it out.
I'm going to read his book "Viking Economics" next, as it tells the story of how the people of the Scandinavian countries overthrew their 1% and became the successful social democracies they are.
It would have been worth reading the whole book for that sad and powerful story alone. But there's much more, so please check it out.
I'm going to read his book "Viking Economics" next, as it tells the story of how the people of the Scandinavian countries overthrew their 1% and became the successful social democracies they are.
January 24, 2020
Activism is not my jam, so when my book group selected this book, I fully expected to have to claw my way through it, gnashing my teeth all the while, but it wasn't like that.
George Lakey presents a practical guide for doing activism without being that guy on the news holding a Molotov cocktail. Using examples from history, he sets out guidelines that emphasize non-violence, vision, strategic planning and unity.
It turns out that many of the things that I negatively associated with activism aren't effective and aren't methods that Lakey recommends.
The one nit I'll pick is that more than once, the author presents an issue as a problem without explaining why he believes it is problem. I understand doing this for social issues that have been talked about for decades, but for newer issues, it's helpful to have even a small amount of context.
If activism is your thing, read this book.
George Lakey presents a practical guide for doing activism without being that guy on the news holding a Molotov cocktail. Using examples from history, he sets out guidelines that emphasize non-violence, vision, strategic planning and unity.
It turns out that many of the things that I negatively associated with activism aren't effective and aren't methods that Lakey recommends.
The one nit I'll pick is that more than once, the author presents an issue as a problem without explaining why he believes it is problem. I understand doing this for social issues that have been talked about for decades, but for newer issues, it's helpful to have even a small amount of context.
If activism is your thing, read this book.
January 5, 2020
There are some interesting anecdotes but the book can benefit from a thorough edit.
Taken as a manual, it needs to be a lot more structured and organised eg with additional graphs, data and a lot more explanation of the tools in order for readers to be able to benefit from it.
If considered as a piece of prose, it’s also not compelling or motivational enough.
Taken as a manual, it needs to be a lot more structured and organised eg with additional graphs, data and a lot more explanation of the tools in order for readers to be able to benefit from it.
If considered as a piece of prose, it’s also not compelling or motivational enough.
June 21, 2019
Insightful and empowering. I appreciated the honest and practical nature of this book and found it a refreshing addition to a class syllabus.
October 10, 2020
Very straightforward and useful guide on creating social change!
June 6, 2023
George Lakey’s How We win is a manual for activists challenging societal structures which oppress people and damage the environment. Don’t expect to read it through once, it’s more for reference and practice.
Naturally, because he is an American and most of his work has been undertaken there, it relates mainly to that context, but his advice is transferable, if sometimes a little opaque, because it assumes the reader will be familiar with that context.
I expect to refer back to it time and time again, especially chapter 18, where the content and language is very dense.
On second reading, I was again particularly struck by his Chapter 18 analysis of how class attributes affect activism and how class diversity might make activism more effective. This chapter alone justifies the price of the book….
Chapter 19 highlights the importance of what we now call intersectionality. It’s no good tackling racism in isolation from economic justice (as Bayard Rustin identified in the 1960s).
On p174: beware the pitfalls of being co-opted.
And finally: what is the vision (we won’t get in the van unless we know where it’s going)?
Naturally, because he is an American and most of his work has been undertaken there, it relates mainly to that context, but his advice is transferable, if sometimes a little opaque, because it assumes the reader will be familiar with that context.
I expect to refer back to it time and time again, especially chapter 18, where the content and language is very dense.
On second reading, I was again particularly struck by his Chapter 18 analysis of how class attributes affect activism and how class diversity might make activism more effective. This chapter alone justifies the price of the book….
Chapter 19 highlights the importance of what we now call intersectionality. It’s no good tackling racism in isolation from economic justice (as Bayard Rustin identified in the 1960s).
On p174: beware the pitfalls of being co-opted.
And finally: what is the vision (we won’t get in the van unless we know where it’s going)?
November 9, 2019
George Lakey is a veteran activist, who has participated in, contributed to and learned from movements for social change all over the world. In this book, he shares (occasionally with the help of other activists like Daniel Hunter and Eileen Flanagan) what he has learned over the decades what makes for effective social movement strategies. While written in very plain language, peppered with stories from his and others' experiences, he offers great practical advice at how a group moves from just having isolated actions to long-running, sustainable social movements that bring about substantive change. I plan to take this book to my meetings of justice organizations to help us re-think our work.
October 11, 2020
1,000/5 STARS - URGENT READ. EXTREMELY PRACTICAL.
Good heavens, this is a ripe topic ahead of the 2020 US Presidential election. I can't describe this book any better than the author himself:
"If your goal is to make major, structural changes in your society... the practices and values embedded in this book... will help make that a reality.
"My hope is that you, if you are not already acting boldly, will experience the joy and empowerment I have found by my decision to act in history rather than watch it go by."
LET'S RISE!
Good heavens, this is a ripe topic ahead of the 2020 US Presidential election. I can't describe this book any better than the author himself:
"If your goal is to make major, structural changes in your society... the practices and values embedded in this book... will help make that a reality.
"My hope is that you, if you are not already acting boldly, will experience the joy and empowerment I have found by my decision to act in history rather than watch it go by."
LET'S RISE!
November 29, 2018
One of the most practical and well-organized manuals I've seen on the topic, and in clear clean prose for once.
January 16, 2019
This was absolutely fantastic. Well written, interesting, approachable, a totally necessary book for this moment in history... This book made me feel empowered and encouraged and much more informed.
June 1, 2020
A one stop guide on how to successfully run non violent campaigns. Really interesting book which includes discussion with fellow respected campaigners, looking to change the world
January 18, 2021
"My hope is that you, if you are not already acting boldly, will experience the joy and empowerment I have found by my decision to act in history rather than watch it go by. This book best describes the best practices I know for how people can work together to make a difference... There's never been a better moment to respect our selves, heighten our learning curve, in step up. Isn't that what love looks like in threatening times?"
This book is a quick read and packed with inspiring stories, and cautionary tales and tidbits of practical wisdom. This book is exactly what we need in 2021.
This book is a quick read and packed with inspiring stories, and cautionary tales and tidbits of practical wisdom. This book is exactly what we need in 2021.
October 31, 2019
I decided I did not want to organize NVDA so halfway through, I lost impetus to finish this excellent book on nonviolent direct action campaigns.
If I ever return to that pursuit, I will definitely go back to this book. Lots of great information. Of particular interest for follow-up is the Earth Quaker Action Team (EQAT), of which George Lakey is a member and with which he did many of his actions.
If I ever return to that pursuit, I will definitely go back to this book. Lots of great information. Of particular interest for follow-up is the Earth Quaker Action Team (EQAT), of which George Lakey is a member and with which he did many of his actions.
July 23, 2019
An incredibly thoughtful guide for anyone frustrated by the current state of affairs who wants to affect real change in their communities. Lakey offers a wide variety of tools for direct action campaigns, while encouraging readers to adapt these tools and tap into their own creativity to solve the problems facing their communities. This book restored my hope for the future.
January 8, 2025
This is an important and useful book, filled with stories of past campaigns that were successful and unsuccessful. Lots of advice and instructions, resources, etc. It is more than I foresee myself ever getting into, but the main ideas applied to even small campaigns without the need for non-violent disruption or civil disobedience tactics.
November 9, 2020
Very helpful for understanding and designing non-violent direct-action events, including target, demand, message and allies. There's also a handy set of guidelines for participation in non-violent actions on page 201.
January 25, 2024
This is the first book I've read on NVDA since I've joined the climate activism movement. It was very enlightening and provided a lot of food for thought. I listened to the audio version of the book, but for a manual like this it would have been better reading as a physical copy.
June 4, 2025
This book is indispensable for those who are stepping up and experimenting with the power of direct action. Lakey has packed this book full of poignant thoughts, resources, and ideas for beginning organizers to take and run with.
February 24, 2021
So much information!
Really insightful on how campaigns work and what actually works as well.
Really insightful on how campaigns work and what actually works as well.
May 3, 2021
excellent book / handbook on how to organise a campaign. Full of useful advice and ideas.
June 22, 2024
Great summary and resources for how to be successful with nonviolent campaigns. Really appreciate the way it’s written and the incorporation of other voices.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews