Book review: Blueprint for Revolution - light-hearted protest tips
Srdja Popovic was among the Serbian protesters who overthrew dictator Slobodan Milosevic and went on to train protest movements around the world. In Blueprint for Revolution, he describes his personal journey in a fun and funny way.
by Srdja Popovic
Random House
Srdja Popovic was among the Serbian protesters who overthrew dictator Slobodan Milosevic and went on to train protest movements around the world.
In Blueprint for Revolution, Popovic describes his "personal journey from a too-cool-to-care Belgrade guitarist to one of the leaders of Otpor!, the non-violent movement that toppled the Serbian dictator". The book is wonderfully contemporary European, full of knowing cultural references and witty asides. A really fun (and funny) read - and you can't say that for many books on politics.
His inspirations are J.R. R. Tolkien - "If I had to choose one book to call my scripture, it would be The Lord of the Rings" (activists are hobbits, ordinary folk allying with a motley collection of unusual suspects such as dwarves, elves etc, to take down the Dark Lord) - and Monty Python (dictators can't handle humour, and it makes being an activist fun). His other influence is non-violence guru Gene Sharp.
Although it's called a blueprint, Popovic shows respect for national roots and differences, building his case on his experiences in Serbia, and his subsequent career with Canvas (the Centre for Applied Non-violent Action and Strategies), training activists in some of the hottest political struggles around (Myanmar, Syria, Egypt).
Some of the ideas are particularly useful. Branding really matters: "We wanted Serbs to have a visual image they could associate with our movement." They went for a clenched fist - cheesy but effective, and it echoed partisans of the second world war. Struggle becomes a battle of the brands because "every dictator is a brand", and "we need a brand better than theirs".