When We Fight, We Win!

Twenty-First-Century Social Movements and the Activists That Are Transforming Our World

Real stories of hard-fought battles for social change, told by those on the front lines—with clear lessons and tips for activists on gaining power from the ground up

“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.” —Mumia Abu-Jamal, author and activist

In this visually rich and deeply inspiring book, the leaders of some of the most successful movements of the past decade—from the legalization of same-sex marriage to the Black Lives Matter movement—distill their wisdom, sharing lessons of what makes transformative social change possible.

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 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, Bill McKibben, Clayton Thomas-Muller, Karen Lewis, Favianna Rodriguez, Rea Carey, and Gaby Pacheco, among others—with narrative recountings of their inspiring strategies and campaigns alongside full-color photos. It includes a foreword by Rinku Sen and an afterword by Antonia Darder.

The recent nationwide explosion of protests has shown the power the people have when we join together with a common goal and compelling message. When We Fight, We Win! will give a whole generation of readers the road map to building resilient movements that can achieve real social justice.

Topics:

Praise

“Greg Jobin-Leeds and AgitArte shine a sparkling, movement-savvy light on the thinkers and doers who should be on TV but (almost) never are. A guide to making change that will leave you smarter, inspired, and more ready than ever to fight and win. Bravo.”
—Laura Flanders, GRITtv
“With words and graphics, this book not only captures the good spirits, inclusiveness, and smarts of contemporary movements but also taps the deep wisdom about the necessity of defiant struggle that the movements of today have inherited from the past. Read this book and take heart!”
—Frances Fox Piven, distinguished professor of political science, CUNY Graduate Center
“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
“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
“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

News and Reviews

The Leonard Lopate Show

Listen to author Greg Jobin-Leeds's interview on The Leonard Lopate Show

See more

Shelf Awareness

Shelf Awareness reviews When We Fight, We Win!

See more

Kirkus

Kirkus reviews Greg Jobin-Leeds's "helpful and instructive" When We Fight, We Win!

See more

Goodreads Reviews