America has a long tradition of popular protest and nonviolent civil disobedience.

American revolutionaries used tax and tea boycotts to mobilize colonists against the British.

Henry David Thoreau, author of Civil Disobedience, was jailed in 1846 for his refusal to pay taxes in protest of the Mexican war.

The women’s suffrage movement used silent vigils, mass demonstrations and hunger strikes in its struggle for the vote.

More recently, leaders like Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Cesar Chavez have been using nonviolent tactics to achieve their goals.

In fact, today Chavez announced a worldwide boycott of California grapes to force growers to provide better wages and conditions for farm workers.

A long tradition continues.