On AlterNet: activism

Stories, blog posts, and videos tagged as "activism"

The Future of Pot: Is Legalization Around the Corner In Colorado and Washington?

Steven Wishnia, AlterNet. January 31, 2012.

While Americans are becoming increasingly aware of prohibition's consequences, the legalization movement still has many obstacles to overcome.

Laughing at Pot Advocates? What's so Funny About Drug War?

Scott Morgan, Stop the Drug War's Speakeasy Blog. January 27, 2012.

Despite progress in the mainstream, there is a tragic tendency among the press to burst out laughing at the idea of fixing our disastrous drug laws.

What if Citizens United Actually United the Citizens?

Ilyse Hogue, The Nation. January 22, 2012.

This past week saw a flurry of progressive victories that could upset the conventional wisdom about a post–Citizens United world.

The Very Different "Occupations" That Led to 2011's Global Uprising

Tom Engelhardt, TomDispatch.com. December 18, 2011.

The protests around the world this year were preceded, in the last twenty years, by some very different kinds of occupations.

Biometric Door Locks and Bulletproof Windows: How Occupy Wall Street Is Scaring the Heck out of the 1%

Sarah Jaffe, AlterNet. November 1, 2011.

Are the sustained protests in Manhattan's Financial District and around the country getting to the wealthy bankers who are being targeted?

Hemp Warrior: Marijuana Activist Dana Beal Had a Heart Attack, Died, Came Back, and Beat His Pot Rap

Anthony Papa, AlterNet. October 31, 2011.

Beal, a founder of the Yippees and organizer of the Global Marijuana March, was busted for weed and had a heart attack on his way to prison. Then, a judge voided his sentence.

400% Rise in Anti-Depressant Pill Use: Americans Are Disempowered -- Can the OWS Uprising Shake Us Out of Our Depression?

Bruce E. Levine, AlterNet. October 26, 2011.

Is it time to repoliticize a great deal of our despair, and reconsider the old-fashioned antidepressant of political activism?

Pearl Jam's 20th Anniversary: Two Decades of Activism, Strong Spirits and Inspiration

Julianne Escobedo Shepherd, AlterNet. October 13, 2011.

Cameron Crowe's documentary shows a band without compromise.

Fighting for Americans' Right to Dissent: A Review of 'Hell No'

Mandy Van Deven, AlterNet. October 12, 2011.

Authors Michael Ratner and Margaret Ratner Kunstler examine the detrimental impact that criminalizing lawful dissent has had on social movements.

Immortal Technique on Occupy Wall Street: "Some of You Billionaires Are Going to Have to Go Bankrupt"

Kristen Gwynne, AlterNet. October 12, 2011.

Speaking with the rapper in downtown New York about the growing movement.

8 Activist Rappers Representing Occupy Wall Street and Other Progressive Causes

Julianne Escobedo Shepherd, AlterNet. October 11, 2011.

A handful of awesome hip-hop artists are doing something about their values.

How Anti-Authoritarians Can Transcend their Sense of Hopelessness and Fight Back

Bruce E. Levine, AlterNet. September 28, 2011.

How can anti-authoritarian critical thinkers rise above their pessimism and really fight for change?

Vision: 5 Ways Young Americans Can Fight Back Against Student Loan Debt, the Drug Industry, and More

Rae Gomes, AlterNet. September 26, 2011.

Young people may feel helpless about the corporatocracy, but they have the potential to overcome many barriers.

The Meaning and Importance of Dissent

Michael Ratner, Margaret Ratner Kunstler, AlterNet. September 26, 2011.

In their new book, Ratner and Ratner Kunstler discuss Americans' right to protest -- and how those rights are often trampled on by the U.S. government.

Vision: 3 Ways to Be an 'Interrupter' and Curb Racism, Street Harassment and Animal Cruelty

Brittany Shoot, AlterNet. September 21, 2011.

Bystanders can help build more supportive communities by interrupting everyday incidents that cause discord and create unrest.

Occupying Wall Street on September 17: Hacktivists, Anarchists, Students--and You?

Nathan Schneider, Waging Nonviolence. September 14, 2011.

Few groups taking part are more organized than US Day of Rage, which is organizing actions not just in NYC, but in Austin, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle as well.

The 9/11 Story I Choose to Tell: We All Belong to Each Other

Rinku Sen, ColorLines. September 7, 2011.

This is the lesson of 9/11 for me. I can’t call myself a person who values inclusion and compassion and then pick and choose those whom I accept.

Actions in DC and on Wall Street Signal Rise of the 'American Autumn'

Nathan Schneider, Waging Nonviolence. September 7, 2011.

Although "Seize DC" was postponed, September and October will bring an occupation of Wall Street, more tar sands protests, and the October 2011 action in DC.

A Letter From Prison: Tim DeChristopher Speaks Out

Tim DeChristopher, Grist.org. August 30, 2011.

"What one person can do is to plant the seeds of love and outrage in the hearts of a movement," writes DeChristopher.

Hacktivism's Global Reach, From Targeting Scientology to Backing Wikileaks and the Arab Spring

Amy Goodman, Democracy Now!. August 16, 2011.

Background on the increasingly visible group... plus an interview with a disguised member, "X."

Do We Need a Militant Movement to Save the Planet (and Ourselves)?

Tara Lohan, AlterNet. August 6, 2011.

Derrick Jensen, Lierre Keith and Aric McBay call for new strategy to stave off environmental catastrophe.

10 Years + Counting: Artists Challenge the Dangerous Path Taken By America in the Years After 9/11

Julianne Escobedo Shepherd, AlterNet. August 1, 2011.

An arts group attempts to transform a national tragedy into a way to take back America. You can join, too!

Doom Is Not Inevitable: Hope Is Out There, We Just Have to Work For It

Rebecca Solnit, TomDispatch.com. July 31, 2011.

They may not make it into mainstream news, but hard working activists who understand that hope is not guaranteed continue to give us reasons to be optimistic.

Beware of the "Coordinated Strategy" to Roll Back Our Right to Protest

Paul Jay, The Real News Network. July 28, 2011.

The Center for Constitutional Rights' Michael Ratner discusses his new book, and the North America-wide strategy to take away the right to mass protest.

Why Was This Political Activist Blacklisted From U.S. Airspace and Kicked Off Her Flight?

Raquel Gutiérrez, Comment Is Free. July 26, 2011.

The plane Raquel Gutiérrez was traveling in was turned out of U.S. airspace last week.