Finally, a Worthy Successor to Saul Alinsky’s Rules of Radicals.
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.
—Margaret Mead
In the aftermath of the 2024 election–no matter which side won–American democracy needs political activism.
That’s how it’s always been.
Every major advance in American democracy resulted from political activism. The crusade to abolish slavery. Women’s right to vote. Labor organizing. The modern social safety net. Civil rights. Wars in the Middle East, Ukraine, and beyond. Nuclear proliferation. Gay rights. The environment. The climate crisis.
To be sure, the formal structures of politics—parties, interest groups, elected officials, the judiciary, the bureaucracy, economic and social crises—played important roles. But activism has always been an essential driver for reform. Without political and social movements, the mainstream actors would not have been pushed to do the right thing.
Whether Trump or Harris wins in 2024, activists are needed to promote the life-or-death causes of the twenty-first century. Wars across the world. Climate crisis. Voting rights—and other basic civil rights. Women’s rights. Gay rights. Threats to the constitution. Nuclear proliferation. Police brutality. Institutional racism. Immigration. Labor. Taxes. The hollowed-out economy. Environmental justice.
What activists need—as well as students, politicos, journalists, and ordinary citizens—is a concise, rigorous “field guide” that describes all the core actions needed for effective grassroots activism.
That field guide is here. It’s called, simply, Rules of Activism.
Political activism is demanding work. It’s not enough to post grievances—or even rally millions into the streets. Real change requires intensive organizing at the grassroots. And it requires direct action—sometimes rude and pushy confrontations that offend people’s sensibilities.
If you do all that, you can change the world.
The Book’s Plan of Attack
Rules of Action identifies 15 distinct i]necessities for politicl and social movement— distinct actions that organizers must take to launch and carry out effective campaigns and movements.
You can see a table of contents for Rules of Activism here.
Each chapter is organized into three parts:
- Case study: A concise but vivid description of a specific movement, its people and challenges, which illustrates the “rule” of the chapter. Put together, these case studies provide a parallel history of America.
- Analysis: A breakdown of the principles behind the case study, backed by the vast literature on political and social movements. Step by step, this section breaks down the inner logic of activism.
- Coda: A concluding section that makes a clinching point or elaborates on a theme from the case study and analysis.
In each chapter, the reader gets a vivid sense of how activism works—a look “under the hood” to understand why and how ordinary citizens band together to promote democratic causes.
Here’s what early readers say about Rules of Activism.
Nonviolent movement building is one of the greatest of 20th-century inventions, a way for the powerless to stand up to the powerful. But we don’t study it systematically—there’s no West Point for activists. That makes a book like this, rich in detail and history, tremendously useful to everyone trying to make change happen.
—Bill McKibben, founder of climate crisis group 350.org and author of The End of Nature
Wow! It’s superb! Timely, readable, clear, extensive, a mix of theory and wonderfully textured examples and case studies. Reading through it, I realized that in my neck of the woods, academic political theory, there is a dearth of literature on activism as such, and certain no comprehensive field guide. Oh, there have been some abstruse theoretical renderings, but nothing with a go-to, can-do comportment that doesn’t compromise one’s intellectual chops … I don’t think they make the transition from theory to action in the way that you have.
—John Seery, professor of political science at Pomona College and author of Political Theory for Mortals
Independent, anonymous reviewers agree.
The book reminded me of the niche that Saul Alinsky’s work has filled for more than 50 years—and it’s well worth updating. Rules for Radicals was often the first exposure to activist literature that young people read, and it offered simple and usable lessons. But Alinsky’s approach was based on community organizing in Chicago. Euchner’s interests are somewhat broader, and his lessons should be relevant to a broader scope of activism.
Charles Euchner’s “field guide” on political activism offers a very engaging, insightful, and user-friendly synthesis of a vast body of previous theory and research. Euchner is a gifted writer who knows how to explain major concepts well and to hook readers with captivating narratives. … My hunch is that this book has the potential to be particularly helpful and interesting to Gen Zers who are quite activist in orientation (think March for our Lives, Black Lives Matter, Dreamers, and the Sunshine movement), but also generally lack a strong understanding of important historical parallels.
This book situates individuals in groups, organizations, movements and emphasizes the “long struggle” and capacity building for movements to get off the ground. It delivers the critical message that movements are more than high-profile leaders and bundles of aggrieved people. The book is well-tailored to student interests. The cases covered are relevant and interesting for students eager to understand how activism can make a difference.