Our top stories of 2025

This article Our top stories of 2025 was originally published by Waging Nonviolence.

This year has seen the most egregious threats and attacks on our democracy and vulnerable communities in decades. But at the same time, courageous Americans have risen to meet the moment — organizing the largest protests in U.S. history.  

However, for much of the year, you wouldn’t know that if you only paid attention to the corporate media. For months, most other outlets bemoaned the lack of protest. If people bought this disempowering narrative — that few were standing up against our rapid authoritarian turn — it risked becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy. It was also dangerous because it was simply not true. 

We spent months publishing stories countering this widely-held perception, by documenting how nonviolent actions were proliferating in the spring. Rivera Sun’s exhaustive account of the movement over the first 50 days of the Trump administration was key. We also published a series of stories this year by Erica Chenoweth and their colleagues at the Crowd Counting Consortium with hard numbers on the historic size and scale of the resistance. This research played a critical role in changing the narrative, and was cited in the New York Times, Washington Post and even featured in a segment on MSNBC.  

Indivisible called Daniel Hunter’s article on how to respond if the Insurrection Act is invoked “one of the clearest roadmaps” when they launched their national campaign to help people across the U.S. prepare for the possible domestic deployment of the military. This organizing happened before Trump deployed the National Guard in many cities. When those deployments did occur, communities were more informed, better equipped to understand what was happening, and able to respond more effectively on the ground.

These stories dominate our most-read stories of the year (see the full list below), but they were just the tip of the iceberg. We also published on-the-ground reporting on movements for democracy, peace and justice from 17 countries, including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Palestine, Peru, South Korea, Turkey and Ukraine. 

2025 was our biggest year yet in terms of impact and readership, with nearly 2 million pageviews. None of this would have been possible without the support of our generous readers. We are so grateful. 

Without further ado, here are our top 10 stories of the year:

10. ‘Tesla Takedown’ underscores the importance of withdrawing consent
By Edward Hasbrouck
The growing protests at Tesla showrooms point to nonviolent tactics that can force change. (February)

9. The resistance reaches into Trump country
By Erica Chenoweth, Soha Hammam, Jeremy Pressman and Christopher Wiley Shay
The large and wide-reaching turnout of No Kings 2 was historic for the pro-democracy movement in the US. (October)

8. DOGE is hiring. The response did not disappoint.
By Rivera Sun
Humor and defiance have played an important role in bleak times throughout history. DOGE’s hiring site has become a focal point for this cathartic—and strategic!—outrage. (February)

7. Resistance to Trump is everywhere — inside the first 50 days of mass protest
By Rivera Sun
The actions of regular Americans are already having an impact as they bravely push back against the administration in a number of ways. (March)

6. New data shows No Kings was one of the largest days of protest in US history
By Erica Chenoweth, Soha Hammam, Jeremy Pressman and Christopher Wiley Shay
The historic number of these protesters and their expansive geographic spread are signs of a growing—and durable!—pro-democracy movement. (August)

5. What would a general strike in the US actually look like?
By Jeremy Brecher
General strikes have played a key role in overcoming tyrants throughout history, so it’s important to understand how we can organize one. (April)

4. We’re seeing the beginnings of mass noncompliance
By Daniel Hunter
Over a million federal workers refused to comply with Musk’s “five things you did last week” email ultimatum, showing what mass noncooperation can look like. (February)

3. American Spring? How nonviolent protest in the US is accelerating
By Erica Chenoweth, Soha Hammam, Jeremy Pressman and Christopher Wiley Shay
Contrary to conventional wisdom, the size and scale of anti-Trump protests this year have dwarfed those in 2017, and they have been extraordinarily peaceful. (June)

2. Resistance is alive and well in the United States
By Erica Chenoweth, Soha Hammam and Jeremy Pressman
Protests of Trump may not look like the mass marches of 2017, but research shows they are far more numerous and frequent — while also shifting to more powerful forms of resistance. (March)

1. What to do if the Insurrection Act is invoked
By Daniel Hunter
With the Insurrection Act looming, now is the time to learn how it might unfold and the strategic ways to respond — including the power of ridicule. (April)

There will be many more stories like these to come in 2026, thanks to generous readers like you!

This article Our top stories of 2025 was originally published by Waging Nonviolence.

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Source: https://wagingnonviolence.org/2025/12/our-top-stories-of-2025/