Lead a movement through an era of authoritarian consolidation.
People in harder situations than this have figured it out by working together. Hundreds of movements have faced authoritarian takeovers, state violence, economic coercion — and shifted the balance of power. The odds were often long. They studied, they organized, and many of them won. Movements whose organizers studied civil resistance succeeded at significantly higher rates than those that didn't.
What's happening in the United States is unprecedented in its speed — the V-Dem Institute found the U.S. lost its liberal democracy status for the first time in over 50 years — but one thing may work in favor of resistance: the breadth of who's being targeted. This isn't a situation where most people can stay out of politics and be fine. The regime is going after immigrant communities, corporations, universities, military leaders, trans people, the press, and its own party members simultaneously. That breadth is creating the conditions for the broadest possible coalition — and Chenoweth's data consistently shows that broader participation is the single strongest predictor of success.
The challenge is real: nonviolent campaign success rates have fallen from 65% in the 1990s to less than 34% since 2010 (Chenoweth, The Future of Nonviolent Resistance, 2020). Campaigns have become smaller, more reliant on mass demonstrations, and shorter — launching before they've built staying power. This game is a tool for sharpening strategic thinking and sparking conversation about how to do better. It is not a map of the territory. It was built with AI assistance and may contain errors. It does not yet model AI-related factors, geopolitical dynamics, or economic disruption.
Sources: V-Dem Democracy Report 2026; M. Gessen (NYT 2025, 2026); Chenoweth (2020, 2022); Pinckney & Trilling (2024); Levitsky & Ziblatt; Snyder; Batura; Hold the Line Guide; NDI-PRVT Guide. Corporate campaign research compiled with AI assistance (may contain errors).