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Free America Walkout

Noncooperation

Traning

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What We’re Up Against

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In the US, we’ve seen this kind of authoritarianism before.

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Agree (10)

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Trump has full authoritarian control of the country.

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Authoritarianism emerges from inequality.

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Voting and the courts will be enough to kick out Trump.

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We can do this.�(No judgement. Just an honest assessment �about how you’re feeling right now.)

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What is Authoritarianism

Misuse of Power

Slow and quiet advance

They can emerge over years of small battles weakening the foundations of democracy, culminating in a period of rapid democratic losses and decline.

The misuse of the power to advance the personal and/or partisan desires. Though can emerge ‘legally’ through democratic elections, leaders subvert democratic norms and institutions to stay in power.

A system: not just a person

Organizations and institutions provide autocrats with social, political, economic, financial, moral, cultural support

U.S. version has long roots

Has a long history in the US, grounded in racism & white supremacy.

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What Do Authoritarians Do

Deploy Military Domestically

Federal Law Enforcement Overreach

Direct Investigations Against Critics

Give License to Lawbreaking

The Autocrat Won’t Leave

Regulatory Retaliation

From The Authoritarian Playbook

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How Change Happens

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Pillars of Support

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Pillars of Support

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“By themselves, rulers cannot collect taxes, enforce repressive laws and regulations, keep trains running on time, prepare national budgets, direct traffic, manage ports, print money, repair roads, keep markets supplied with food, make steel, build rockets, train the police and army, issue postage stamps or even milk a cow. People provide these services to the ruler through a variety of organizations and institutions. If people would stop providing these skills, the ruler could not rule.

— Gene Sharp, The Politics of Nonviolent Action

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Noncooperation

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Social Noncooperation

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Visionary Noncooperation

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Economic Noncooperation

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Social Noncooperaion

Visionary Noncooperation

Economic Noncooperation

Raising awareness.

Marches and rallies.

Creating pressure on those doing wrong.

Mutual aid.

Creating alternative institutions..

Visioning a better society.

Removing money from enablers.

Boycotts.

Strikes.

WALKOUTS.

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Walk-Outs: �A Structure Test

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Why walkout?

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★ We walk away from fascism. ★

★ We walk towards a Free America. ★

★ We fight for a future that belongs to us all. ★

★ Everybody in, nobody out. ★

★ Welcome to the Free America Walkout ★

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Walk-outs are a practice to help us get to mass moncooperation.

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FLINT 1936

Auto workers in Flint, Michigan occupied General Motors factories for 44 days, refusing to leave even as courts, police, and the National Guard moved against them. The strike’s success hinged on extraordinary solidarity inside and outside the plants.

Workers rotated shifts, shared food, and maintained discipline. Families and community supporters—especially the Women’s Emergency Brigade—ran supply lines, blockaded police, and kept morale high. Other auto plants honored the strike, preventing GM from shifting production elsewhere.

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MEMPHIS 1968

In 1968, more than 1,300 Black sanitation workers in Memphis, Tennessee went on strike after two workers, Echol Cole and Robert Walker, were crushed to death in a garbage truck. The city treated the deaths as routine, reflecting years of dangerous conditions, poverty wages, and racial humiliation.

The strike quickly became a mass movement. Workers marched daily under signs reading “I AM A MAN.” Black churches served as organizing hubs. Community members provided food and housing. When the city attempted repression, national civil rights organizations joined in solidarity, including Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who came to Memphis to support the strike.

Despite arrests, violence, and a citywide injunction, workers held firm. After 65 days, they won union recognition, wage increases, and safer conditions.

University of Memphis Libraries/Special Collections/Memphis Press-Scimitar

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STRIKES UNDERMINE PILLARS OF SUPPORT

Business

Civil Service

Security Forces

Education

Media

Faith

REGIME

civil service doesn’t operate without labor

Business doesn’t work without workers

President Trump is going to do outrageous things. But outrageous things don’t necessarily mean that people will “rise up.” They have to be prepared and organized to rise up.

Let’s look at two nuclear disasters to understand this:

In 1979, the Three Mile Island reactor nearly melted down — risking millions of lives. But it didn’t just trigger fear; it sparked massive protest, deepened the anti-nuclear movement, and brought in new activists. This wasn’t just about the event — it was about the infrastructure of movement already in place, ready to act.

Contrast that with an earlier, nearly identical crisis at the Fermi nuclear plant near Detroit. It, too, nearly melted down — but hardly anyone noticed. Why? Because there was no visible movement, no voices to explain the danger, no ready-made community to take action.

People are more likely to rise up in those moments if we have:

Organized networks for rapid-response (a broad network, a highly concentrated bold crew ready for escalated direct action, or ideally both)
Prepared simple messages that speak to mainstream values
Create a space for people to “get the facts” — so they aren’t relying solely on state information
Prepared key institutionalists or others with perceived expertise to act
Offer a noncooperation tactic that matches the moment (sending out a request for petitions or sharing talking point memos will not be that).

This workbook focuses primarily on that last component.

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Practice Recruitment to Walk-out

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Why do people obey?

Habit

Adapted from Gene Sharp, author of �The Politics of Nonviolent Action

Fear (being fired, repressed)

Moral obligation (to obeying authority)

Self interest (hoping it works for us)

Identify with the ruler (emotional connection)

We don’t care

Lack of confidence (we don’t trust ourselves)

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What works to convince people to join?

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Closing

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What do you want future generations to say about how you met this moment in history?

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Learn More �about Walk-out

FreeAmeri.ca

https://www.freeameri.ca/

Tools to:

Host an Action
Find a local Action
Partner with us

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Learn More �about Noncooperation

Freedom Trainers

freedomtrainers.net

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This presentation template is free for everyone to use thanks to the following:

SlidesCarnival for the presentation template

Pexels for the photos

Happy designing!