So, you want to change the world?

I'm fairly sure that we all want to change something about the world. It varies from person to person, both in the subject of our attention and our motivation to do something about it. However, is there any way that we can bring our good intentions to action?

We all certainly would like to make a change in the world.

Leave our mark on history so to speak.

If only it was that easy.

We hear every day about protesters being beaten down, and even more often we don't hear about the protests at all. It's discouraging to think about all the things we would like to do, and then think about the scarity of things actually happening. Indeed, we are often overwhelmed by how willing everyone is to ignore us. Even people who support our causes will often turn their backs and feel that we're being childish. Some will believe that we are fighting for a lost cause, and others will not want to risk their content livelihood on something as fickle as a protest.

Now there is still a very important question to be asked. Are they wrong to ignoring us? Are we doing something that we ought not be doing? Are we not doing something that we should be doing?

Perhaps we are.

Let's look at examples of successful protests throughout the years.

This first example is one that many of us will probably remember, as it took place not long ago:


The global strike against the war in Iraq.

When the USA declared its intention to attack the country of Iraq as a counterstrike against the 9/11 plane crashes, the world immediately flared up in protests. Not only was the link between Iraq and the 9/11 crashes unfounded, but it was only a small group that would need to be targeted. the Iraq government had been right not to allow the USA to enter and search for the supposed 'terrorists'. There were too many uninvolved innocents that would be assumed guilty. Yet, in spite of this, the USA decided to declare war.

Several million people began forming protests against this blatant hostility and unnecessary use of force. Europe, North Amercia, Asia, Austrailia; each continent had its own degree of anti-war sentiment. Together with by-and-large support from their own governments, these protests lasted for a while, though they ultimately did not stop the war, they can be traced back as an incentive for post-war aid to those countries that were effected by the actions of the USA.




A more youth oriented strike was the Newsboys strike of 1899 in New York City:

Newsboys were essentially homeless children who became a necessity for the newspaper companies as a means of mass distribution. The price of the papers was 50 cents for 100 papers to the newsboys, who then sold the papers for 1 cent each. Unfortunately, if they baught too many papers they were unable to do anything about it and lost money. Typically, a newsboy could make a 30 cent profit, leaving them with 20 unsold papers that they would have to simply throw away, as papers couldn't be resold.

Due to the increase in newspaper sales during the Spanish-American war, the publishers began selling the papers to the newsboys at a higher price, 60 cents, enabling the publishers to make an additional 10 percent profit, but causing the already homeless and poor newsboys to lose 10 percent of their own profit. 10 Percent that they could hardly live without.

The strike was run and maintained completely by the newsboys, forming the very first children's labour union. By refusing to circulate the papers and having several rallies in which they drew more paperboys to their cause, they effectively cutdown the circulation of the papers to a mere 1/3 of it's former amount. The publishing companies hired violent gangs to break up the rallies and protect the still-circulating newspaper deliverers. It was not a notably peaceful strike in that regard, but it was also not an anti-violence protest.

Eventually the newspaper companies agreed to allow the newsboys to sell the papers back to the company if they were left unsold, relieving the stress on the newsboys. The 'union' was disbanded once the demands were met.



What was it that allowed these strikes to take root; to hold their own against opressive forces and, in the end, lead to a change in the way things worked?

There are a number of things that we see in both cases.

First of all, there is a clear goal and focus of both of these strikes. There is no way that there can be a comprimise, even if they are ignored, they know what they want. Both the newboys and the Global anti-war protesters focused exactly on what they wanted, something completely reasonable and impossible to misinterpret. In the Global strike it was clearly the suppression of the USA which was acting outside of the United Nations and was clearly ignoring the rights of the innocent people in the country they would be warring against. In the case of the Newsboys it was even more specific. They wanted to not have their earnings taken away from them and wanted compensation for their hard work.

Second of all, there were many people who shared a similar sentiment. By being under single banner and not overcomplecating their demands, many people were inclined to join both of these strike movements. Whether it was the loss of already meagre profits or a demand not to start a pointless and inhumane war, people could, and did, sympathize with them.

Thirdly, they did not lose their drive for success. Though there seemed to be no improvement in the USA's attitude, the global protesters realized that they could not just fade away until the war had officially moved beyond all hope of aversion. In the Newsboys strike it was even more vital. The strikers and rallies were under not only critical, but also physical attack. What set them apart from other attempts at strike over the course of history is that they took hold of their rights and didn't falter in the face of adversity that they couldn't physically overcome without a lot of guts.


All three of these things are often missing, with the second reason being most often present, but completely ignoring the first and third. Because protests do not often have a clear goal, and the protests quickly crumple under adversity, there are few people who want to join them. Who wants to be part of a cause that doesn't know what it wants and doesn't have enough commitment to hold on even when things look like ther wont turn out.

Perhaps the Newsboys had an advantage over us, they didn't have anything else to worry about, so it was obvious that they wouldn't give in when the one thing they had was taken from them. However, I think that youth and adults alike could learn from them and the global protesters.

Have a clear goal that you want to achieve, find people who believe in what you want to fight for, and don't give in when you don't get what you want immediately.

Protests fail today because of all of these things, but the third is the most vital and least seen in the world today.



Even if someone doesn't agree with you, they might support you if you show that what your doing matters. If not necessarily to them, then at least to YOU.