WHY ARE WE PROTEST?

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The path to a better life, for you, for me, and for the world, intersects at a single point: change. But the road to change isn’t a garden path with a single turn where flowers bloom after a few steps. It often feels endless. The further you go, the thicker the fog becomes, and the rougher the road gets. You fall, you’re shaken. The handcuffs placed on your tongue by those who fear change also freeze your thoughts. You try to run, they trip you. When you try to catch your breath, they push you from behind. They’ll do everything they can to make you give up because deep down, they fear you might actually succeed.

Change isn’t easy. But staying the same isn’t easy either. And neither is staying silent in the face of injustice and lawlessness. Change takes courage. It takes patience. Maybe it starts with just one person, but in time, it needs unity. Protests are part of this journey toward change.

What is a protest?

It can be defined as an action taken by individuals or groups to demonstrate their rejection of a situation, policy or practice. These actions can take different forms, from peaceful marches to strikes, social media campaigns to acts of civil disobedience.

Protesting is accepted as a fundamental right. In most democratic countries, the right of individuals and groups to protest peacefully is protected by constitutional or legal guarantees under freedom of expression and assembly.

Timeless Protest

A timeless understanding of protest aims to sustain the struggle without being confined to a specific event or moment. Because it isn’t tied to fashion or trends, it remains relevant and carries an inclusive impact.

Protest should be seen not just as a temporary reaction but as a long-term tool for raising awareness and consciousness. For it to leave a lasting mark, a protest must become a way of life, one that continues even when the public agenda shifts.

Media attention may move on, but injustice often remains.

Why Are We Reacting?

Why Doesn't Prev Stay Silent?

As we state in our manifesto, “At Prev, we believe that fashion can be not only beautiful, but also kind.” As we strive to turn our future in the direction of sustainable fashion, we stand against the discrimination and destruction of the environment and humanity, especially animal exploitation. We create a space for those whose stories are suppressed, ignored and ignored.

Why Do We Speak Up?

Throughout history, we’ve seen that big social changes have come about through protest. Women’s rights, labor rights, environmental movements… All of them were won because they resisted and raised their voices.

We know that remaining silent in the face of injustice, in a way, accepting it. And we understand the importance of standing against what’s wrong and being a voice for the unheard.

Because we know that change doesn’t have to mean something bad.

Nothing fixes itself. Both social and personal transformation begin when people speak up. Even a small act of protest can spark great change. The voice your neighbor raises today might empower you tomorrow.

To protest environmental destruction, the climate crisis and the exploitation of nature is to protect our future. Challenging the careless policies of big corporations and governments means becoming the voice of the earth.

A brave stance inspires others. Contrary to what many believe, even one person can make a difference.

How Can We Respond?

Awareness is everything. We can commit ourselves to becoming more conscious of injustices, and to helping others become more aware as well.
We should rethink the way we consume. We can choose ethical brands that do not harm the environment, to people, or animals.
We can distance ourselves from fast consumption as much as possible and make an effort to stand by the producer.
We can use art as a tool to express our thoughts and take a stand—through writing, music, visual arts, or fashion—and support those who do.
Today's world, social media can be louder than the streets. We must react online but we must also make sure to reflect our values in everyday life. While social media may seem like the easier option, peaceful protest, our constitutional right, remains one of the most powerful ways to be heard and to demand change.

Types of Protest

March: These are peaceful protests, where people walk together along a designated route, often carrying banners and chanting slogans. They make a sense of unity and give strength in numbers to those who share the same goal.
Sit-ins: Protesters sit in one place and refuse to get up. It may be a passive form of resistance, yet its impact can be profound.
Strikes: These are when workers stop work in order to have their demands realized. It’s a temporary Suspending activities disrupts production and affects the economy, making it a powerful method.
Boycotts: Protests by not using or buying a product, service or organization. It effectively demonstrates how large and unified the opposing voice is.
Hunger Strikes: Individuals or groups voluntarily refuse to eat in order to make their wants heard. It has a strong impact on society.
Online Protests: These are actions carried out on digital platforms such as signing online petitions and organizing social media campaigns. Higher participation can be achieved as people who cannot go out on the streets can also participate.
Motorcades: Driving in a coordinated convoy along specific routes to make a statement. These protests often disrupt traffic, drawing public and media attention.
Occupations: Occupation of an area or a piece of property for a long period of time. By preventing the normal use of the area, they force attention and potential action.
Banner Drops & Posters: Hanging banners or posting signs in public spaces to spread a message or situation. It’s an effective way to reach people who might otherwise remain unaware and ensures constant visibility.
Art Protests: Using spaces like theater, music, visual art, or fashion, to make a statement. Even if not always immediately impactful, these protests draw attention and intensify voices in unique and lasting ways.

Protests That Changed History

1. Hollywood Writers and Actors Strike (2023, USA)

As artificial intelligence grows and spreads, some jobs are starting to disappear. One of them is writing. In April 2023, writers from the Writers Guild of America went on strike because of low money, bad work conditions, and AI being used in their jobs. Later in July, the actors' group called SAG-AFTRA also joined the strike for similar reasons. Because of the strikes, many movies and TV shows stopped, and the entertainment world was badly affected.

Outcomes and Impact:

In September 2023, a deal was reached between WGA and the studios. Writers secured higher pay and safeguards against the unregulated use of AI.
In November 2023, SAG-AFTRA reached a similar agreement.

2. Montgomery Bus Boycott (1955–1956)

This was a protest against unfair treatment of black people, and it became an important moment in the fight for their rights in the U.S. It started on December 1, 1955, with a black woman named Rosa Parks. She got arrested because she didn’t want to give her bus seat to a white person.

Back then, buses were segregated in Montgomery, Alabama. Black passengers had to sit at the back of the bus and if there was no room for whites, they had to get up and give up their seats. Rosa Parks was the first one to stand up against it. She refused to give up her seat to a white passenger and was arrested for her actions. This mobilized black community leaders and an organization called the Montgomery Improvement Association (MIA) was formed. Martin Luther King Jr. was appointed as the head of the organization and on December 5, 1955, the black community in Montgomery began boycotting buses.

With this boycott, blacks refused to ride the buses for months. Instead they walked, shared taxis or traveled in their own cars. The bus companies suffered huge financial losses. The boycott lasted 381 days and finally the US Supreme Court ruled that segregation on buses in Montgomery was unconstitutional (1956).

Thus, racial segregation on buses was banned.

3. "Women’s Day Off" (Kvennafrídagurinn) – Iceland, 1975

Women in Iceland went on strike October 24, 1975 to protest gender and wage inequality. At the protest, called 'Kvennafrídagurinn' or 'Women's Day', women demanded equal rights and fair wages.

Even Iceland is a small country with less people, the rally what was done by 25.000 women was actually by 90 percent female people, which it was like 10 percent from the all population of country at that time."

Women not only stopped going to paying works and also did not do their usual things like cleaning house and child care. A lot of work has stopped. Fish making factories was closed, news papers wasn’t printed, and the school and the kindergarten didn’t work. This show how much women are important for Iceland money and people things.

Right after the strike in 1976, the parliament in Iceland made a new rule that said men and women should have the same rights. This also helped Vigdís Finnbogadóttir become the first woman in the world to be voted as a president in 1980.

The strike was a big moment for women's rights in Iceland and made other people in different countries start their own protests too.

4. Indian Farmers Protest (2020-2021)

Indian Parliament passed three farming law that peoples not like, starting big protest in all India on September 2020. Farmer saying these law gonna make farming more private, big companies take control and small farm men get in trouble.

Farmers, mostly from Punjab, Haryana and other state like Utta Pradesh, start walking to Delhi and protest go all over India very fast. In protest, they make camp near Delhi and sit there for many month. Even after talking lots with government, farmers do not change their mind, they want all laws gone. After almost one year of protest not stopping, in November 2021, Prime Minister Modi say the farm laws is now taken back, and protest is done. The farmer protest, with so many peoples, was maybe biggest in India ever. It show how when many people come together, they can keep their jobs and rights safe.

Conclusion: The Protest is an Attitude, a Timeless Movement

Being a protest isn’t just an instant reaction, but living in a constant state of consciousness and awareness. The important thing is to take a protest stance that is not temporary but timeless. Because values such as justice, freedom, nature and change are concepts that will never go out of fashion.