Browse Cases

Showing 1-25 of 144 results

British Ramblers campaign for greater access to right of ways and the right to roam (1985-2000)

Country
United Kingdom
Time period
Fall, 1985 to 30 November, 2000
Classification
Change
Defense
Cluster
Democracy
Environment
Total points
9 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Zach Lytle, 16/05/19

The enclosure system involved fencing off plots of arable land. The land would then be deeded to an individual or group of owners who could use it as they saw fit. Despite slowly losing access to the commons, commoners preserved their access to rights of ways (the right to pass through someone else’s or public property on a specific path), even those now enclosed on private land, through the countryside. Foot paths, roads, carriageways, and trails were considered highways to which all individuals had the right of way.

Armenians protest for resignation of Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan, 2018

Country
Armenia
Time period
31 March, 2018 to 8 May, 2018
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Economic Justice
Total points
10 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Nerissa Nashin, 28/04/2019

Since gaining independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, Armenia has spent almost two decades as a quasi-authoritarian state with the ruling Republican Party controlling most of its political, economic, and social institutions. Serzh Sargsyan became President in 2008 and under his rule, Armenia endured slow economic growth, high unemployment rates, and corruption.

Congolese protest for end to President Kabila's presidency, 2016-2019

Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Total points
4.5 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Khan B. Shairani 17/05/2019

Following the assassination of his father, Joseph Kabila took power and the position of President of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) on 26 January 2001. He subsequently won re-election in December 2011, with charges of an illegitimate election surrounding the outcome. On 17 January, 2015, students began mass protests over an announcement that President Kabila would remain in power until the government completed a census. This began the nonviolent protest movement to remove President Kabila from office and prevent him from remaining in power for a third term.

Citizens of South Korea campaign for investigation of the Sewol ferry accident, 2014-2017

Country
South Korea
Time period
10 May, 2014 to 16 April, 2015
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Human Rights
Total points
9 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Seimi Park, 23/03/2017

On the morning of 16 April 2014, as the MV Sewol was traveling its usual route, from Incheon, South Korea to Jeju, South Korea, the ferry capsized, killing 304 of the 476 passengers onboard - most of whom were high school students on a class field trip. As the boat was sinking, Captain Lee Joon-seok and his crew told passengers to stay seated, while they fled the scene and were among the first to be rescued by the Korean Coast Guard.

Australian citizens force end to nation’s military participation in Vietnam War through Vietnam Moratorium Campaign 1970-1971

Country
Australia
Time period
8 May, 1970 to 1 June, 1971
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Human Rights
Peace
Total points
10 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Shayla Smith 22/02/2017

Australian citizens offered little opposition to their country’s early involvement in the Vietnam War. Opposition came from groups like Youth Campaign Against Conscription (YCAC), founded in 1964, and Save our Sons (SOS), founded in 1965. Other early dissenters included: trade unionists, religious groups, and those affected by the National Service Act.     

Harvard University Dining Services workers strike and win higher salary, 2016

Country
United States
Time period
5 October, 2016 to 26 October, 2016
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Human Rights
Total points
9 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Ploy Promrat 08/02/2017

In 2016, Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts was one of the most elite universities in the United States. It had the largest endowment of any university in the country at $35.7 billion. However, despite the wealth of the university, its treatment of its employees, specifically dining services employees, came into question in 2016. Starting in early June 2016, the dining services workers of Harvard began a series of negotiations with the university in order to demand a higher yearly salary.

Bahrainis protest for democracy, February-March 2011

Country
Bahrain
Time period
14 February, 2011 to 16 March, 2011
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Human Rights
Total points
3.5 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Caroline Dreyfuss, 01/11/2015

Inspired by the protests in Egypt and Tunisia in 2011, Bahrainis rose up against the monarchy in February and March of 2011. Initiated by activists and propelled by the “February 14th Revolution in Bahrain” Facebook group, the protests had clear goals: disband the Bahraini National Assembly, abrogate the current constitution, and form a Constituent Assembly to draft a new constitution. They demanded the new constitution stipulate that an elected parliament hold legislative authority  and that an elected Prime Minister exercise executive authority.

Guatemalans Force Corrupt President and VP to Resign, 2015

Country
Guatemala
Time period
April, 2015 to September
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Total points
10 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Irina Bukharin, 25/10/2015

From 1960 to 1996, Guatemala was embroiled in a civil war fought between the government of Guatemala and the rural poor.  In the early 1980s, under the leadership of military dictator Efraín Ríos Montt, the Guatemalan military massacred 250,000 indigenous Mayans leaving deep wounds in Guatemalan society, which have contributed to the high murder and crime rates that continued to plague the country.  Additionally, the government was famously corrupt; one non-governmental organization asserted that up to thirty percent of the annual national budget was lost to corruption.

Nepalese Maoists strike for integration of Maoist Soldiers into Nepal's security forces, 2009

Country
Nepal
Time period
May, 2009 to May, 2010
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
National/Ethnic Identity
Total points
6 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Molly Murphy 25/10/2015

The ten year civil war in Nepal that claimed over 13,000 lives ended in 2006 when Maoist insurgents gave up their armed revolt in order to integrate themselves socially and politically. At the end of the war, more than 19,000 former Maoist combatants remained sequestered in barracks controlled by the U.N. Part of the peace agreement called for their gradual integration into Nepal’s security forces, but army chief Rookmangud Katawal, who strongly opposed the integration of politically indoctrinated enemy soldiers, blocked this process.

South Korean media workers resist privatisation of television networks, 2008-2009

Country
South Korea
Time period
26th December, 2008 to 8th January, 2009
Classification
Defense
Cluster
Democracy
Total points
9 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Dong Shin You, 19/04/2015

Following President Lee Myungbak’s inauguration in February 2008, media workers criticised his policies on the press. The workers accused Lee of attempting to exert greater control over the media by handpicking the chair of the national broadcasting committee and YTN, a prominent television network in South Korea, and by pressuring the executive of the Korean Broadcasting System (KBS) to resign.

Senegalese successfully protest proposal of change to Constitution, 2011

Country
Senegal
Time period
June 16th, 2011 to June 23rd, 2011
Classification
Defense
Cluster
Democracy
Total points
10 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Timothy Hirschel-Burns 03/23/2015

Abdoulaye Wade became the democratically elected President of Senegal in 2000. The country was one of Africa’s most stable democracies, and had never experienced a coup. During his term as President, the Constitution was changed to limit Presidents to two terms. In 2009, Wade announced that he would not run for a third time. However, his government still suffered from low popularity. Frequent power outages, government scandals, and economic problems bred popular discontent.

Iranians protest election results, 2009

Country
Iran
Time period
June 12th, 2009 to August 5th, 2009
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Total points
1.5 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Timothy Hirschel-Burns 3/8/2015

Iranians turned out in large numbers to elect their President on 12 June
2009.  The candidates included the incumbent and favorite of the
religious authorities, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, as well as three
challengers: Mir-Hossein Mousavi, Mohsen Rezaee, and Mehdi Karroubi. 
Authorities announced results just two hours after polls had closed,
with Ahmadinejad receiving 62.63% of the vote, Mousavi 33.75%, Rezaee
1.73%, and Karroubi 0.85%.

Burkina Faso protesters remove Blaise Compaore from power, 2014

Country
Burkina Faso
Time period
October 21st, 2014 to October 31st, 2014
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Total points
8.5 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Timothy Hirschel-Burns 03/02/2015

In October 2013, Blaise Compaoré had ruled Burkina Faso for 27 years.  However, the Constitution would have prevented him from running for President again in the 2015 elections.  Compaoré had manipulated term limits in the past before, and he survived soldiers’ mutinies and popular protests calling for his resignation in 2011.  In October 2014, he planned to change the Constitution to allow him to run for office again.

Turkish People prevent shopping mall from replacing Istanbul's Gezi Park, 2013

Country
Turkey
Time period
28th May, 2013 to 2nd July, 2013
Classification
Defense
Cluster
Environment
Democracy
Total points
9.5 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Dong Shin You, Timothy Hirschel-Burns 15/02/2015

Recep Tayyip Erdogan was first inaugurated as prime minister of Turkey in 2003 and enjoyed wide popular support, contributing to successive elections as prime minister. Erdogan gathered 47% of the vote in 2007, and he came into office in 2011 with 49.95% of the popular vote. However, public dissent began to rise against the increasingly authoritarian and anti-secular Turkish government. The government passed education bills reinforcing Islamism in high schools and elementary schools in 2012, and the sale and consumption of alcohol was banned on college grounds in 2013.

Philadelphians prevent deportation of Honduran immigrant through church sanctuary, United States, 2014-15

Country
United States
Time period
November 2014 - January 2015, 2014 to 2015
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Human Rights
Total points
9 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Clare Perez, 2/11/2015

The New Sanctuary Movement (NSM) was established  to build a community
that does not discriminate based on faith, ethnicity, class, and to end
injustices against immigrants regardless of their legal or illegal
status. They are a national movement of civil disobedience trying to
pressure President Obama to reform immigration laws.   Their movement
goals include pushing Obama to end all deportations, regardless of
“origin, status, criminal convictions, sexual or gender identity,
socioeconomic status, marital status, or previous deportation order”

Pakistan's Azadi March to Overthrow Prime Minister, 2014

Country
Pakistan
Time period
Augut 14th, 2013 to December 17th, 2014
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Total points
2.5 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Jasmine Rashid 2/12/15

The government of Pakistan under Nawaz Sharif was widely mistrusted by
its people. Prior to the parliamentary election in May of 2013, Sharif
had already declared himself Prime Minister of Pakistan before citizens
had even voted. In 2014, former national cricket
player-turned-politician Imran Khan led a campaign that made six demands
in response to the widely shared notion that Sharif had rigged the 2013
elections in his favor. These demands included a “vote recount in four
National Assembly constituencies of Pakistan; establishment of an

Ukrainians bring down Yanukovych regime, 2013-2014

Country
Ukraine
Time period
November, 2013 to February, 2014
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Total points
10 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Guido Girgenti, 21/04/2014

In 2004 the Ukrainian people heard reports that Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych rigged the presidential elections so he could step in as Ukraine’s new president. The people’s campaign of strikes and protests forced a re-run election that was fairly contested, and was won by opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko. [Ukrainians overthrow dictatorship (Orange Revolution), 2004.]

Spanish Indignados protest austerity measures, 2011

Country
Spain
Time period
13 May, 2011 to 4 August, 2011
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Economic Justice
Total points
3.5 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Zachary Arestad, 21/10/2013

The economic crisis which began in 2008 hit Spain harder than any other country in the European Union. They set eurozone records in 2011 with 21.3% unemployment and 43.5% youth unemployment. In an attempt to put a stop to the rapid collapse of the Spanish economy, the government passed sweeping employment changes in 2010. These changes made it easier for employers to hire and fire workers and increased the retirement age from 65 to 67.

Omanis make economic gains, press for democracy 2011

Country
Oman
Time period
17 January, 2011 to 14 May, 2011
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Economic Justice
Total points
8 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Michael Alex Hall, 01/08/13

The Arab Awakening came to the Middle Eastern country of Oman with a peaceful protest in the capital Muscat on 17 January, 2011. This campaign consisted of several groups that worked towards both individual and collective goals. The campaigners had many demands including: government reforms, an increased minimum wage, lower unemployment rates, and higher education rates.

Hondurans campaign for the return of former President Zelaya, 2009-2011

Country
Honduras
Time period
28 June, 2009 to 28 May, 2011
Classification
Defense
Cluster
Democracy
National/Ethnic Identity
Total points
7 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Nick Palazzolo, 11/05/2013

The constitution of Honduras, established in 1982, did not provide structures for popular democratic participation. In June 2009, President Manuel Zelaya called for a referendum on whether a constituent assembly should look to rewrite the constitution or not. He had been elected in 2005 as a cattle-rancher conservative but moved to the left and allied himself with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. He maintained that he wanted to guarantee wider and fairer representation to all Hondurans.

Pakistanis march on Islamabad against government corruption, 2012-2013

Country
Pakistan
Time period
23 December, 2012 to 17 January, 2013
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Total points
3 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Fatimah Hameed, 09/05/2013

Tahir-ul Qadri is a Pakistani law professor, politician, and Sufi scholar.  After serving as an elected Member of the National Assembly of Pakistan, Qadri resigned in 2004, claiming disappointment and frustration with regard to corruption and lack of accountability in President Pervez Musharraf's government.  In the next year, Qadri engaged in a self-imposed exile to Toronto, Canada, where he continued to practice as an Islamic scholar. 

Maldivians demand resignation of the president, 2011

Country
Maldives
Time period
1 May, 2011 to 7 February, 2012
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Economic Justice
Total points
10 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Alexis Dziedziech 4/27/13

The Republic of the Maldives is a chain of islands in the Indian Ocean southwest of Sri Lanka.  The country is threatened by becoming completely covered by the sea because of climate change.  

Guatemalans refuse to serve in civil patrols, 1988-1993

Country
Guatemala
Time period
March, 1988 to 1993
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Human Rights
Peace
Total points
8 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Sarah Gonzales, 09/04/2013

From 1961 to 1996 Guatemalans endured a bloody civil war.  During this conflict the military-controlled government fought the leftist guerillas or the Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity (URNG).  These groups fought each other for political control.  The extreme violence pushed many indigenous Guatemalans high into the country’s highlands or displaced them as refugees into other countries.

Peace activists occupy “Camp Casey” to demand truth about Iraq War, United States, 2005

Country
United States
Time period
5 August, 2005 to 31 August, 2005
Classification
Change
Cluster
Democracy
Peace
Total points
7 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Amy Robertson, 2/4/2013

On 4 April 2004, Casey Sheehan, an American soldier, was killed in the Iraq War. Upon hearing the news, his mother Cindy Sheehan was completely devastated and questioned the value of the war. 

Ugandans protest rising fuel prices ("Walk to Work"), 2011

Country
Uganda
Time period
February 2011 to June 2011, 2011 to
Classification
Change
Cluster
Economic Justice
Human Rights
Democracy
Total points
4 out of 10 points
Name of researcher, and date dd/mm/yyyy
Joseph Kiranto, 29/03/2013

The Walk to Work was a campaign that happened in Uganda led by the leader of The Forum for Democratic Change, Kizza Besigye. Its main goal was to curb the high cost of living as result of high food and fuel prices.  

This campaign started after the general election in February 2011 and ended in June 2011. Though the leader of opposition lost the election in Uganda, this campaign propelled his “cause to the top of the agenda and won him far greater popularity than during the general election.