About Book

In Have Repertoire, Will Travel, Selina R. Gallo-Cruz explores how nonviolence has become a globally circulating repertoire of contentious political performance. She argues that nonviolence is not just a set of tactics but a patterned form of protest that has been systematized and institutionalized via the efforts of social movement emissaries, favorable global models of state and civic participation, and diffusion through international norms. The work traces the historical evolution of nonviolent repertoires (from early conceptualizations, through post-World War II systematization) and examines how nonviolent protest movements adopt, adapt, and sometimes entrench particular scripts, strategies, and forms across diverse contexts. It also attends to the tensions and trade-offs inherent in institutionalization: how formalization and global norms can both enable and constrain practices, possibly lead to co-optation or demobilization. The book is organized into sections on collective action repertoires as performances, global emergence of repertoires, detection of global repertoires, the rise of nonviolence on the global stage, and on the implications of globalization and institutionalization for the future of nonviolence.The book is very relevant in an era marked by global protests (e.g. for climate justice, racial justice, gender equality), increasing global communication and diffusion of tactics (social media, transnational NGOs), and simultaneous threats from authoritarian backlash, polarization, and institutional capture. Understanding how nonviolence travels—its strengths and vulnerabilities—is essential for activists, scholars, policy-makers seeking to foster effective, resilient movements. In contexts where protest tactics are copied across borders, this work offers insight into what works, what becomes symbolic vs substantive, and how institutionalization can both support and inhibit grassroots resistance. Community engagement could include training or workshops for civil society organizations examining their own protest repertoires; comparative dialogues among movements in different countries to share adaptations; building curricula in peace & conflict studies that incorporate case studies of global repertoires; public seminars that critique co-optation or critique when nonviolent forms are institutionalized into rituals without substance; and network-building among emissaries and movement actors to maintain reflexivity about the forms they adopt.Have Repertoire, Will Travel is a strong, timely, and intellectually rigorous contribution to the literature on nonviolence and social movements. It offers both diagnosis and caution, illuminating the dynamics of repertoire diffusion, institutionalization, and performance. For scholars and practitioners interested in the global politics of protest, nonviolence, and movement strategy, it is a valuable resource that expands understanding of how nonviolence functions in transnational spaces.The main strength is its conceptual clarity: Gallo-Cruz defines “repertoire” in the contentious performance sense and shows how global nonviolence is more than moral ideal—it is an organized, diffused, patterned practice. The historical breadth gives context, and the attention to both successes and failures (especially challenges posed by institutionalization) adds nuance. Weaknesses include that, given its brevity (94 pages), the work may not deeply examine many empirical case studies or offer extensive comparative data across all regions; some readers might wish for more in-depth empirical grounding or field research in under-studied regions. Also, because it is part of the “Elements” series, the format implies introduction and conceptual framing more than exhaustive treatment; thus, certain arguments may be less fleshed out or provisional. Relative to other works like Erica Chenoweth & Maria Stephan’s Why Civil Resistance Works, or Charles Tilly/ Sidney Tarrow on repertoires of contention, this book complements rather than competes—with its emphasis on globalization, institutionalization, and performance, it adds newer dimensions to existing scholarship. In terms of scholarly depth, it is solid; in accessibility, it is good, particularly for readers already familiar with social movement theory; in impact, it has strong potential, especially for bridging theory and practice in global contexts.