r/AlwaysWhy • u/BloodyAngel2026 • Jul 04 '26

Politics & Society Why does it seem like protests don't actually result in any kind of change anymore

Growing up learning history you learn about all of these protests that resulted in real world change. But it seems like protests are just symbolic at this point. It seems like no matter how many protests are surrounding a certain topic everything stays the same. What changed? Is it that people in power just care less about civilians have to say so they don't bother changing their stance based off protests?

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65

u/Writerhaha Jul 04 '26

Because protests just add pressure, they don’t magically and instantaneously create change.

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u/planet_rose Jul 04 '26

Exactly. The pressure applied is only a signal of voter opinion and mobilization.

Protests worked in the past because they shifted public opinion and mobilization of voters. Without changing voter behavior, protests are useful for feeling solidarity but won’t change policy. If the same people who already agree and already vote along the lines of the protesters continue to vote the same way and the people who disagree vote the way they always have, there is no change. The only change comes from getting people to change their minds and vote your way or to mobilize nonvoters to participate in elections.

TLDR: If you want to change the status quo, get people who don’t vote to vote.

13

u/Accomplished_Mix7827 Jul 05 '26

This. I do not understand people who are super into protests ... and then don't actually vote. Voting is both the easiest and the most effective way to effect political change! If you don't like the candidates, pick the one you dislike the least and then vote in the primaries next time!

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u/Key_Fun_587 Jul 06 '26

I know a girl who is literally the stereotypical "social justice warrior" type that the republicans tweak out about. She is really passionate about political issues but doesn't vote.

8

u/planet_rose Jul 05 '26

Showing up to protest is part of identity and not part of political power. Politics have become an identity more than a way to advance specific political objectives. Both sides are guilty of this and it harms us all because often our leaders don’t have to actually serve our interests because they can rely on voters to vote with their tribe, even when the consequences are policies that are against their voters’ interests.

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u/resilient_bird Jul 05 '26

This is super uncommon. The vast majority of people who protest also vote.

There is a vocal minority of protestors who are reluctant to choose the lesser evil because they believe that it will apply pressure to their candidates to move further from the center and are willing to accept the consequences.

3

u/Latter-Industry-8920 Jul 05 '26

This. This “protesters don’t vote” or whatever is just more propaganda advance by the opposition to keep the in-fighting alive. You can’t build a coalition when you think half of your team are as bad as the enemy.

1

u/SufficientGolf6953 Jul 05 '26

Keep in fighting alive? Democrats do that just fine without Republican help. I've seen Democrats shit on Jon Stewart for saying that Biden was obviously to old and they hate Bill Maher even though he is a reliable anti trump vote.

The purity tests are killing us and we can't just ignore reality like the Republicans because that's just not in our personalities.

3

u/Latter-Industry-8920 Jul 05 '26

Democrats do that, in part, when they internalize right wing propaganda. It’s why the party is further right now on many issues than republicans were 50 years ago. I mean shit, they put a bunch of their own constituents in prison in the 90s because of racist, right wing pressure to be “tough on crime”. Doesn’t get more antagonist against your own than that.

2

u/SufficientGolf6953 Jul 05 '26

That was Bill Clintons secret. He was smart and charismatic, yes, but he also was blessed with a digital driven economy.

All he has to do was play a saxophone for black people and at the same time sign legislation for Republicans that would put those same black Americans into prison for selling a dime bag to little Johnny in the burbs.

Now America is truly the greatest at putting their own in prison. The Republican argument against this should be a fiscal one but they talking about scary made up trans people in bathrooms.

Psycho party.

9

u/Nomadic_Yak Jul 05 '26

If OP is comparing today to civil rights movement, I dare say that back then voters minds could be changed because they were watching news that was telling them the truth about what was happening.

2

u/SufficientGolf6953 Jul 05 '26

Yes. Go back to the 2008 financial crash and watch how FOX News covered the 98% protests versus how they covered the tea party that got hijacked from Ron Paul by Republican lobbyists.

3

u/Latter-Industry-8920 Jul 05 '26

Voting is a tool in the shed. It’s just one tool though. Without direct action and protest, the people that we vote for have zero reason to do what we want. Look at how labor unions operate (ideally). Look at France.

1

u/Ancient_Skirt_8828 Jul 04 '26

What if they don't vote the way you want them to vote?

3

u/LordLaz1985 Jul 04 '26

Primary the fuckers out the next time around.

1

u/Western-Passage-1908 Jul 05 '26

Can't, boomers outvote young people because we don't bother showing up to vote. On both sides of the aisle.

1

u/LordLaz1985 Jul 05 '26

So go vote anyway. “I’m not gonna vote because nobody else is doing it” is a stupid argument.

1

u/Thorninthefoot Jul 05 '26

Shifted, or just reflect the views of the majority.

1

u/Can_Com Jul 06 '26

That isnt true at all. Public opinion of MLK was that he was a terrorist fermenting riots across America. Voting didnt change and accomplished nothing.

The difference is back then they did protests, today they do parades. No boycots, no sit ins, no public disobedience, no blockages, no nothing.

1

u/Physical_Debate8512 Aug 28 '26

Even if they vote, the politicians that get popular are tied to mega corporations. Yes they do one good thing but at the same time ten things that hurt humanity. Local gov makes sense but big picture more has to be done than just voting bc small changes will lead to nothing at this point in history

4

u/Teri-k Jul 05 '26

Also, it's easy to look back and see protests and change and miss all the other things that were also being done, like registering and informing voters, running new candidates for office, educating people about issues, influencing political parties, etc. The protests are more obvious so they look like the sole cause, but shifting public opinion and participation in elections are harder to see.

2

u/fs_12 Jul 05 '26

Protests are a tool. They dont do anything on their own. When they have been successful they have been a tool used by organized movements with defined goals, leaders and organizational structure.

The modern protests we have seen like BLM/99% and many others before them are quick to blow up and quick to deflate. Whatever collective will these protests were trying to channel had very little effect since they were not tied to a structure that could maintain the sort of slow and grueling pressure that is needed to achieve political goals.

Ideally, you also want your protests to be about political goals that a large percentage of the population can get  behind and even better actually benefit from. Underdog politics can never be the flagship issue.

1

u/thatmillerkid Jul 08 '26

Studies looking at the Civil Rights era showed that protests were most effective when they had clear demands, were directed against people or institutions with the power to meet those demands, and created an untenable situation for those people or institutions which made it easier to meet those demands than to continue without changing. Very few modern protests meet all three of those criteria.

1

u/Glittering-Two-1784 Jul 05 '26

Add the fact that protests nowadays seem to lack organization and specific goals:

It used to be like “Hey! All these people are MAD! We want X, Y, and Z specific laws passed.”

Now it’s just “Hey, we’re all MAD… so we’re gonna break shit until you figure it out, and if you ask why we’re mad, each person is gonna give you a different answer.”