Synopses & Reviews
Real stories of hard-fought battles for social change, with clear lessons and tips for activists to build powerful movements.
"At the cliff edge of history is as good a place as any to mine insights that can benefit all those brave enough to try making the kinds of changes that have been deemed impossible." — Rinku Sen
Same-sex marriage, #BlackLivesMatter, the DREAM Act, the People’s Climate March, End the New Jim Crow, Occupy Wall Street, the fight for a $15 minimum wage — these are just a few of the remarkable movements that have blossomed in the past decade, a most fertile and productive era of activism. Now, in a visually rich and deeply inspiring book, the leaders and activists of these and other movements distill their wisdom, sharing lessons of what makes — and what hinders — transformative social change.
Longtime social activist Greg Jobin-Leeds joins forces with AgitArte, a collective of artists and organizers, to capture the stories, philosophy, tactics, and art of today’s leading social change movements. When We Fight, We Win! weaves together interviews with today’s most successful activists and artists from across the country and beyond — including Patrisse Cullors-Brignac, Bill McKibben, Clayton Thomas-Muller, Karen Lewis, Favianna Rodriguez, Rea Carey, and Gaby Pacheco, among others — with narrative recountings of strategies and campaigns alongside full-color photos. It includes a foreword by Rinku Sen and an afterword by Antonia Darder.
When We Fight, We Win! will give a whole generation of readers the chance to celebrate and benefit from a remarkable decade of activism — a decade that shows just how ripe these times are for social transformation.
Review
"When We Fight, We Win! is a love note to activists who are working hard to transform themselves and the world around them. Read for inspiration, direction, and celebration of the good work we’re advancing in hard times." Adrienne Maree Brown, co-editor of Octavia’s Brood: Science Fiction Stories from Social Justice Movements
Review
"As protests and demonstrations sprout across the land, young organizers and activists need to know why and how movements are sustained and how they grow. That resource has arrived. It’s a slim volume, chock-full of artwork, entitled When We Fight, We Win!.... It discusses victories and losses, high points and depths, lessons learned, and missed opportunities. The core of its message is that social movements really matter, and when they are smart, adaptive, determined, and focused, they can win against tremendous odds. For such movements change minds, they transform consciousness, and they build social power that their opponents cannot resist. They echo, in action, the words of one of the greatest black leaders in American history, Frederick Douglass, who said, 'Without struggle, there is no progress.'" Mumia Abu-Jamal, author and activist
Review
"When We Fight, We Win! portrays vividly, and creatively, how alone we may seem small, but together we can become a powerful force to make a better world. A timely and impressive work." Noam Chomsky, MIT professor of linguistics, emeritus
About the Author
Greg Jobin-Leeds is co-chair of the Schott Foundation for Public Education. He has helped launch many high-impact social change organizations and lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Deymirie Hernández, José Jorge Díaz, and José "Primo” Hernández are members of AgitArte, an artist and organizing collective that facilitates projects of cultural solidarity with workers and marginalized communities that is based in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and Boston, Massachusetts.