Since the civil rights era, the doctrine of nonviolence has enjoyed
near-universal acceptance by the US Left. Today protest is often
shaped by cooperation with state authorities--even organizers of
rallies against police brutality apply for police permits, and
anti-imperialists usually stop short of supporting self-defense and
armed resistance. How Nonviolence Protects the State
challenges the belief that nonviolence is the only way to fight for a
better world. In a call bound to stir controversy and lively debate,
Peter Gelderloos invites activists to consider diverse tactics,
passionately arguing that exclusive nonviolence often acts to
reinforce the same structures of oppression that activists seek to
overthrow.
