Practical Radicals: Seven Strategies to Change the World

A clear, expert, and inspiring guide to social change, based on case studies of grassroots movements that won, from two leading community and labor experts

“Our movements must seek and win governing power to achieve our visions for a more just society. This book is a vital resource for progressives who want to win.” —Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), chair, Congressional Progressive Caucus

How do underdogs, facing far stronger opponents, sometimes win? In the tradition of Saul Alinsky’s Rules for Radicals and Sun Tzu’s The Art of War, Deepak Bhargava and Stephanie Luce’s Practical Radicals offers winning strategies, history, and theory for a new generation of activists.

Based on interviews with leading organizers, this groundbreaking book describes seven strategies to bring about transformative change. It incorporates stories of organizations and movements that have won, including Make the Road NY, the St. Paul Federation of Educators, the welfare rights movement, the Working Families Party, New Georgia Project, Occupy Wall Street, 350.org, the Fight for 15, and Gay Men’s Health Crisis. Two overarching case studies anchor the book: the brilliant techniques used by enslaved people and their allies to end slavery, and the sinister but effective ways elites imposed our current system.

Practical Radicals offers insights on strategy used by business, military, and political elites, addresses the challenges of overcoming conflict within organizations and movements, and concludes with a discussion of how our movements must adapt to meet new challenges in the twenty-first century.

A book for activists, organizers, and anyone hoping to win the fight for a better society, Practical Radicals is a deeply informed resource designed to help us win on the big issues of our time.

Deepak Bhargava has been an organizer and campaigner for over thirty years. A former distinguished lecturer at CUNY, president and executive director of Community Change, and senior fellow at the Roosevelt Institute, he is now president of the JPB Foundation. The co-editor (with Ruth Milkman and Penny Lewis) of Immigration Matters and co-author (with Stephanie Luce) of Practical Radicals (both published by The New Press), he lives in New York City.

Stephanie Luce is a professor of labor studies and sociology at CUNY and the author of numerous books, including Labor Movements: Global Perspectives, as well as the co-author (with Robert Pollin) of The Living Wage and co-author (with Deepak Bhargava) of Practical Radicals (both from The New Press). She lives in New York City.