The 3.5% Protest Rule Is a Dangerous Fantasy — Here’s What Resistance Actually Requires

The 3.5% figure keeps getting passed around as if it’s a formula for regime change. It’s not. It’s a retrospective pattern from a dataset of 20th-century movements—not a strategy, and not a rule. In this video, we break down why the misuse of the 3.5% number has become a crutch for liberal movements unwilling to confront what real resistance actually requires: disruption, cost, time, and pressure. 

Prague in 1968. Ireland in 1916. The Black Lives Matter protests in 2020. All of them either met or surpassed the 3.5% threshold. None of them toppled power on participation alone. Mass isn’t enough. Visibility isn’t leverage. And protest isn’t resistance. Let’s talk about why. 

Activism   Politics
Politics
Noam Chomsky
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