Cohousing-L Mailing List: How to conquer tyrants

[Sharon Villines (sharon]

(Reminding everyone this is on topic because cohousing is the perfect place to 
learn democracy.)

I was Googling tyrants and dictators, looking for experiences of defeating 
tyrants. I found a wonderful publication I hadn’t heard of before — Waging 
NonViolence. And then the perfect article.

"Lessons from Gambia about Defeating Petty Tyrants.” 

It is an interview with a leader of the movement that toppled a dictator in 
Gambia who used Trump’s tactics — Building the illusion of being a successful, 
powerful person who is acting in everyone’s best interests.

https://wagingnonviolence.org/2024/09/lessons-from-gambia-about-defeating-petty-tyrants/

The interview explains how dictators operate in Africa (and everywhere else) 
and 3 points to defeat them:

1. EMPHASIZE SAFETY
We don’t need martyrs. They won’t help. Everyone should be safe first.

2. EXPOSE HOW PEOPLE ARE BEING HURT
In Africa, the tyrants literally kill people in the streets. Trump and Musk are 
ruining people economically. Make the stories personal and true.

3. DEMYSTIFY THE TYRANT’S IMAGE
Show that neither the tyrant nor his claimed power are mysterious or 
overwhelming. Publicize their lies and how petty and self-interested they are.

A key characteristic of the far right thinking is how wrong and simplistic it 
is.  To counter it, the left often makes it more complicated. Then the people 
don’t understand it. 

The people feel like they understand Trump. They relate. 

But only because they relate to the image he projects, not to the facts.

Sharon
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Sharon Villines
Takoma Village Cohousing, Washington DC
http://www.takomavillage.org