Browse Cases

Showing 176-200 of 360 results

Burmese citizens campaign for democracy, 1988

Country
Burma
Myanmar
Time period
March, 1988 to November, 1988
Classification
Change
Cluster
Human Rights
Economic Justice
Democracy
Total points
6 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Sarah Noble, 09/06/2009

By the year 1988, political, social and economic life in Burma was under the repressive military rule of the Burma Socialist Program Party (BSPP), headed by General Ne Win.  Since the military coup in 1962, the Burmese had been subjected to extreme socioeconomic isolation and heavy state control that extended from the media and universities to social events and monasteries. Although citizens, and in particular students, protested throughout the 60’s, violent repression was enough to cease all opposition until 1987 when unrest began to stir once again within the Burmese population.

Chileans overthrow Pinochet regime, 1983-1988

Country
Chile
Time period
May 11, 1983 to October, 1988
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Human Rights
Total points
9 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Shandra Bernath-Plaistad and Max Rennebohm, 31/10/2008 and 07/09/2011

On September 11, 1973, a military coup forced the democratically elected Chilean President Salvador Allende out of power.  After the coup Augusto Pinochet established himself as the leader of Chile and set up a military dictatorship with the heavy involvement of his army.  During this regime, Pinochet used repressive measures to suppress opposition to his rule, and supported politics that divided any opposition groups.  Pinochet moved the country’s economic system away from socialist policies towards a market economy, gaining the support of the pro-capitalist portions of the

Bolivian workers overthrow president, 1983-1985

Country
Bolivia
Time period
February, 1983 to July, 1985
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Economic Justice
Total points
6 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Blaine O'Neill, 12/10/2010

Social protest has played an important role in Bolivia's recent political history. Ever since the national revolution of 1952, civil society has found success in turning to forms of mass participatory direct action for meaningful social change, largely responsible for the removal of unpopular Presidential administrations from office.

African Americans boycott buses for integration in Montgomery, Alabama, U.S., 1955-1956

Country
United States
Time period
1 December, 1955 to 20 December, 1956
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Human Rights
Total points
10 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Carl E. Sigmond, 29/08/2011

The yearlong boycott of Montgomery, Alabama’s city buses by between 40,000 and 50,000 African American residents was in the works for years before it began in December 1955. At that time in Montgomery, as well as in many cities across the southern United States, laws required African Americans to sit at the back of buses and yield their seats to white passengers if no other seats were available.

California inmates hunger strike to end "gang member" label by prison, 2001-02

Country
United States
Time period
July, 2001 to November, 2002
Classification
Change
Cluster
Human Rights
Total points
3 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Carl E. Sigmond, 26/08/2011

Approximately 700 male prisoners held in solitary confinement in the Security Housing Unit (SHU) at Pelican Bay State Prison in Crescent City, California, and approximately 300 male prisoners held in similar conditions at the Corcoran State Prison in Corcoran, California staged a hunger strike in the first two weeks of July, 2001 to protest their living conditions.

Zambians campaign for independence, 1944-1964

Country
Zambia
Time period
1944 to 24 October, 1964
Classification
Change
Defense
Cluster
Democracy
Human Rights
National/Ethnic Identity
Total points
10 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Aden Tedla, 26/01/2011

In order to strengthen their hold on political and economic power, the white settlers of British-controlled Northern Rhodesia sought to unite the British colonial territories of Northern Rhodesia, Southern Rhodesia, and Nyasaland during the late 1930s and 1940s.  This was a response to the growing strength of African organizations (e.g.

African Americans threaten march on Washington, 1941

Country
United States
Time period
January, 1941 to June 25, 1941
Classification
Change
Cluster
Economic Justice
Human Rights
Total points
9 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Adriana Popa, 12/09/2010

The 1941 March on Washington campaign, precursor of the 1963 March on Washington, was an important moment in the struggle for civil rights in the United States. The proposal for a nationwide mass demonstration for a greater black share in the defense effort had been put forth in January 1941, but it wasn’t until the spring of 1941 that A. Philip Randolph, founder of the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters (BSCP), called for a march on Washington, D. C., to challenge the discrimination that African Americans were faced with in the national defense industry.

Memphis, Tennessee, sanitation workers strike, 1968

Country
United States
Time period
February 12, 1968 to April 16, 1968
Classification
Change
Cluster
Economic Justice
Human Rights
Total points
9 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Kylin Navarro, 12/09/2010

On February 12, 1968, sanitation workers in Memphis, Tennessee, began a labor strike to protest unfair wages, unsafe working conditions, and the city’s refusal to recognize their sanitation workers union.

Wichita students sit-in for U.S. Civil Rights, 1958

Country
United States
Time period
July 19, 1958 to August 11, 1958
Classification
Change
Cluster
Human Rights
National/Ethnic Identity
Total points
9 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Matthew Heck, 12/09/2011

Race relations in the United States had been tense for decades before the 1950s.  The tension was especially obvious in the political, economic, and social realm where African-Americans were unable to vote in many states, had previously been considered property by white Americans, and were frequently segregated in restaurants, libraries, movie theatres, or almost any place where African-Americans might interact with whites.

Tallahassee, Florida, students sit-in for U.S. Civil Rights, 1960

Country
United States
Time period
February, 1960 to December, 1960
Classification
Change
Cluster
Human Rights
Total points
3 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Jeewon Kim, 12/09/2010

Prior to the Tallahassee student sit-ins of 1960, the Tallahassee Bus Boycott took place in 1956, patterned after the Montgomery Bus Boycott that started with the refusal of Rosa Parks to surrender her bus seat to a white person. Tallahassee was sometimes called the “little Mississippi” where segregation was prominent.

Tallahassee black community boycotts buses for desegregation, 1956-57

Country
United States
Time period
May 27, 1956 to January, 1957
Classification
Change
Cluster
Human Rights
Total points
8 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Hanna King, 12/9/2010

On May 27, 1956, Wilhelmina Jakes and Carrie Patterson, two female students at all-black Florida A+M University in Tallahassee, Florida, paid their ten-cent fares and boarded a segregated city bus. They sat in seats normally occupied by white people, because the back of the bus, where black patrons were expected to sit, was very crowded. When the driver asked them to move, they refused, citing the standing-room only conditions of the back of the bus, and their own fatigue. They offered to leave if their fares were refunded.

Orangeburg, South Carolina, students sit-in for U.S. civil rights, 1960

Country
United States
Time period
February, 1960 to March, 1960
Classification
Change
Cluster
Human Rights
Total points
4 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
William Lawrence, 12/09/2010

In 1960, Orangeburg, South Carolina was a town of 13,852 people.  Although the African-American population numbered only around 5,000 and declining, racial tension in the town was high due to a series of protests and boycotts in 1955-56.  Two all-black colleges, South Carolina State College (SCSC) and Claflin College, were home to plenty of potential activists.  When students in Greensboro sat-in for racial integration on February 1, students in Orangeburg eagerly followed suit.  They formed the Orangeburg Student Movement Association (OSMA) to coordinate actions between

São Tomé and Principe health workers strike for higher wages, 2000

Country
Sao Tome and Principe
Time period
October, 2000 to November, 2000
Classification
Change
Cluster
Economic Justice
Total points
7 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Lindsay Carpenter, 2/8/2011

The year 2000 was full of strikes for São Tomé and Principe.
In early 2000, the civil service went on strike demanding an increase in
minimum wage, which they eventually obtained in April. In October 2000, the
teachers’ union in São Tomé and Principe went on strike with 20 demands,
including an increase in wages.

Malawians bring down 30-year dictator, 1992-1993

Country
Malawi
Time period
March, 1992 to June, 1993
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Human Rights
Total points
10 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Lindsay Carpenter, 2/8/2011

By the early 1990s, President Hastings Kamuzu Banda of the
Malawi Congress Party (MCP) had been president of Malawi for thirty years, ever
since the country transitioned out of colonial rule. At the time, Malawi was a
single-party state in which political parties were illegal.

U.S. farmworkers in California campaign for economic justice (Grape Strike), 1965-70

Country
United States
Time period
September, 1965 to July 29, 1970
Classification
Change
Cluster
Economic Justice
Total points
9 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Lindsay Carpenter, 3/8/2011 and Maurice Weeks, 14/8/2008

Before the grape strike in 1965, the average annual income
of a California farmworker was less than $1,400. In addition, variations in
weather or market patterns could lessen this amount. Working conditions were
also poor, as many workers did not have access to a sufficient amount of food
or sanitary facilities.

Confederation of Ethiopian Labour Union (CELU) general strikes for wages and union rights, 1974

Country
Ethiopia
Time period
March, 1974 to March 12, 1974
Classification
Change
Cluster
Economic Justice
Total points
9 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Lindsay Carpenter 3/8/2011

For seven years prior to 1974 university students initiated protests against specific policies of the government of Emperor Haile Selaisse, protests which grew into a campaign for democracy.  (See in this database "Ethiopian students protest against Emperor Selaisse's regime, 1967-1974.") The government responded with violent repression and opposition grew to the point that the student movement more or less merged with a broader campaign against dictatorship led by the workers.

Bukidnon residents protest logging activity in the Philippines, 1987-1989

Country
Philippines
Time period
January, 1987 to September, 1989
Classification
Change
Cluster
Environment
Total points
8 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Nathalie Schils, 02/08/2011

After President Ferdinand Marcos declared martial law in 1972, concessions and rights were granted to numerous major forest companies in the Philippines.  Certain islands saw more than 70% of their natural forests destroyed, including the Bukidnon province on Mindanao Island, which retained less than 20% of its natural forests by the 1980s.  The environmental impact of major deforestation includes increased run-off and erosion, which can deplete local harvests and lead to greater flooding.  

Taiwanese student sit-in for human rights (The Wild Strawberry Movement), 2008

Country
Taiwan
Time period
November 6, 2008 to January 4, 2008
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Human Rights
Total points
7 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Lindsay Carpenter, 27/7/2011

On November 3, 2008, Chen Yunlin arrived from China on a visit to Taiwan to meet with President Ma Ying Jiao. His visit was met with protests led by the DPP (Democratic Progressive Party), which resulted in violent clashes with the police. In reaction to the protests, police closed major highways, forbade citizens from publicly waving the national flag or saying “Taiwan does not belong to China,” hindered citizens filming around the hotel where Chen was staying, shut down a nearby music store, and executed a number of other repressive actions.

College of the Holy Cross students campaign against war and racism, 1968-1969

Country
United States
Time period
January, 1968 to December, 1969
Classification
Change
Cluster
Human Rights
Peace
Total points
6 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Patrick Curran, 4/11/2011

Similar to action taken on college and university campuses throughout the 1960s in the United States, students at the College of the Holy Cross also took a stand against the Vietnam War.  Students first organized to protest the presence of recruiters for Dow Chemical Company (a manufacturer of napalm) in O’Kane Hall on campus in January 1968.

Seattle students and parents boycott schools for integration, 1966

Country
United States
Time period
23 February, 1966 to 1 April, 1966
Classification
Change
Cluster
Human Rights
National/Ethnic Identity
Total points
4 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Hanna King, 21/11/2010

In 1966, the Civil Rights movement was in full swing in the Southern and Eastern parts of the United States, but it was just beginning to reach Seattle, Washington. De facto segregation in housing meant that the public schools were effectively segregated as well, with North End schools serving predominantly white students, and South End schools serving predominantly African-American and Asian-American students.

Seattle's Franklin High School students sit-in for reinstatement and civil rights, 1968

Country
United States
Time period
12pm March 19, 1968 to 4pm March 19, 1968
Classification
Change
Defense
Cluster
Human Rights
National/Ethnic Identity
Total points
6 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Hanna King, 15/11/2010

In 1968, the Civil Rights movement was in full swing in the Southern and Eastern parts of the United States, but it was just beginning to reach Seattle, Washington. Buoyed by a series of speeches given by Stokely Carmichael, a group of black students from the University of Washington founded a Black Student Union (BSU), to advocate for the rights of black students at the university and area high schools.

Black University of Washington students campaign for inclusion, United States, 1968

Country
United States
Time period
January, 1968 to May, 1968
Classification
Change
Cluster
Human Rights
Total points
10 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Hanna King, 31/10/2010

The 1960s was a time of national turmoil for the civil rights of African-Americans, and Seattle was no exception. However, up until 1968, Seattle’s civil rights movement was subdued, compared to the fervor and tension of campaigns in other cities.

Indians force Coca-Cola bottling facility in Plachimada to shut down, 2001-2006

Country
India
United States
United Kingdom
Time period
September, 2001 to September, 2006
Classification
Change
Cluster
Environment
Total points
7 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Nathalie Schils, 11/07/2011

In 1998, Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Pvt Ltd, a subsidiary of the multinational beverage company, was granted a license to operate a bottling plant in Plachimada, a small village in the state of Kerala in southern India.  Within two years of the plant's opening in 2000, indigenous people living near the plant, known as the Adivasi people, began protesting the bottling plant's presence in their community.  The local population complained that Coca-Cola was lowering the water table and polluting surface and groundwater within the plant site and in the local community.

Puerto Ricans protest United States Navy presence on Vieques Island, 1977-1983

Country
Puerto Rico
United States
Time period
1977 to 1983
Classification
Change
Cluster
Economic Justice
Environment
National/Ethnic Identity
Total points
5 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Nathalie Schils, 07/07/2011

Vieques is a fifty-two square-mile island located eight miles off the east coast of Puerto Rico.  Home to 10,000 citizens, it is a part of Puerto Rico and therefore a non-sovereign territory of the United States. This status grants American citizenship to its residents and allows them to serve and be drafted into the armed forces, but does not give them political representation in the U.S. Senate or allow them to vote in presidential elections. Since 1938, the U.S.

Puerto Ricans force United States Navy out of Vieques Island, 1999-2003

Country
Puerto Rico
United States
Time period
April, 1999 to May, 2003
Classification
Change
Cluster
Environment
Human Rights
Peace
Total points
8 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Nathalie Schils, 07/07/2011

Since 1938, the United States Navy has occupied a significant portion of the Puerto Rican island of Vieques, a fifty-two square-mile island eight miles east of the mainland of Puerto Rico.  By the end of the twentieth century, the U.S. Navy controlled over 70% of the island.  Thousands of the island's 10,000 inhabitants had been forcibly removed from their homes and relocated to the center portion of the island, surrounded by training grounds, weapons depots, and bomb sites on both sides.  According to the U.S.