Scholars at Risk

"Advocates within the human rights movement have had remarkable success establishing new international laws, securing concrete changes in human rights policies and practices, and transforming the terms of public debate. The strategies these advocates have employed are not broadly shared or known. Campaigning for Justice addresses this gap to explain the how of the human rights movement. This book explores the strategies behind some of the most innovative human rights campaigns of recent years."

"This is the first ever comprehensive practical guide to human rights and video campaigning--Pictures from Abu Ghraib showed the power of the amateur image to grab the world's attention. The Asian tsunami, caught on camcorder, brought home the reality."

"The Activist's Handbook: Winning Social Change in the 21st Century details the impact of specific strategies on campaigns across the country, from Occupy Wall Street to battles over sweatshops, the environment, AIDS policies, education reform, homelessness, and more: How should activists use new media tools to expose issues and mobilize grassroots support? When should activists form coalitions, and with whom? How are students--be they DREAMers seeking immigration reform or college activists battling ever-increasing tuition costs--winning major campaigns? Whether it's by inspiring "fear and loathing" in politicians, building diverse coalitions, using ballot initiatives, or harnessing the media, the courts, and the electoral process towards social change, Shaw--a longtime activist for urban issues--shows that with a plan, positive change can be achieved."

"...Essential reading for anyone wishing to find empowerment and guidance, the stories of activists such as Michelle Carrera (Chilis on Wheels), activist poet Judy Grahn, Sarah Rafael García (Barrio Writers), vegan and ecofeminist writer Carol J. Adams, feminist anthropologist Ruth Behar, Sonya Renee Taylor (The Body is Not an Apology), Kamekə Brown (Farm Sanctuary), Steve Bell (Prison Library Project), Bamby Salcedo (TransLatin@Coalition) and many others will inspire, support, and ultimately, provide promise for a better world for all readers, whether new or seasoned to activism."

Named one of The Progressive magazine's Favorite Books of the Year An inside look at the organizers and artists on the front lines of political mobilization and social change "Ken [Grossinger] is one of the smartest strategists I know." --John Sweeney, AFL-CIO president, 1995-2009 An artist's mural of George Floyd becomes an emblem of a renewed movement for racial equality. A documentary film injects fuel into a popular mobilization to oust a Central American dictator. Freedom songs course through the American civil rights movement. When artists and organizers combine forces, new forms of political mobilization follow--which shape lasting social change. And yet few people appreciate how much deliberate strategy often propels this vital social change work. Behind the scenes, artists, organizers, political activists, and philanthropists have worked together to hone powerful strategies for achieving the world we want and the world we need. In Art Works, noted movement leader Ken Grossinger chronicles these efforts for the first time, distilling lessons and insights from grassroots leaders and luminaries such as Ai Weiwei, Courtland Cox, Jackson Browne, Shepard Fairey, Jane Fonda, Elizabeth Alexander, Bill McKibben, JR, Jose Antonio Vargas, and more. Drawing from historical and present-day examples--including Black Lives Matter, Standing Rock, the Hip Hop Caucus, the Legacy Museum, and the Art for Justice Fund--Grossinger offers a rich tapestry of tactics and successes that speak directly to the challenges and needs of today's activists and of these political times.

From Cairo to cyberspace, from Main Street to Wall Street, today's social movements have a creative new edge that’s blurring the boundaries between artist and activist, hacker and dreamer. But the principles that make for successful creative action rarely get hashed out or written down.

Until now.

Beautiful Trouble brings together ten grassroots groups and dozens of seasoned artists and activists from around the world to distill their best practices into a toolbox for creative action. Among the groups included are Agit-Pop/The Other 98%, Code Pink, The Yes Men/Yes Labs, The Center for Artistic Activism, SmartMeme, Beyond the Choir, Waging Nonviolence, The Ruckus Society, Association of Community Trainers and Nonviolence International.

Contributors include Rae Abelea, Phil Aroneanu, Peter Barnes, Jesse Barron, Andy Bichlbaum, Nadine Bloch, Kathryn Blume, L.M. Bogad, Josh Bolotsky, Mike Bonanno, Andrew Boyd, Molly Campbell, Doyle Canning, Chuck Collins, Samantha Corbin, Yutaka Dirks, Steve Duncombe, Mark Engler, Simon Enoch, Jodie Evans, John Ewing, Bryan Farrell, Janice Fine, Lisa Fithian, Cristian Fleming, Elisabeth Ginsberg, Stan Goff, Arun Gupta, Silas Harrebye, Judith Helfand, Daniel Hunter, Sidd Joag, John Jordan, Dmytri Kleiner, Sally Kohn, Steve Lambert, Todd Lester, Zack Malitz, Nancy Mancias, Duncan Meisel, Dave Oswald Mitchell, Tracey Mitchell, George Monbiot, Brad Newsham, Gaby Pacheco, Michael Pineschi, Mark Read, Patrick Reinsborough, Gideon Rosenblatt, Joshua Kahn Russell, Leonidas Martin Saura, Levana Saxon, Maxine Schoefer-Wulf, Nathan Schneider, Kristen Ess Schurr, John Sellers, Sean Sellers/Coalition of Immokalee Workers, Rajni Shah, Brooke Singer, Matt Skomarovsky, Andrew Slack, Phillip Smith, Matthew Smucker, Starhawk, Eric Stoner, Virginia Vitzthum, Harsha Walia and Jefferey Webber.

Beautiful Trouble puts the accumulated wisdom of decades of creative protest into the hands of the next generation of change-makers.

www.beautifultrouble.org