Die-in

Die-in at the Queer Liberation March, 2019, in Manhattan
Die-in protest against 2003 invasion of Iraq in Sheffield, England, United Kingdom.
Die-in by I BIKE Dublin at Dublin City Council, 2019, in Dublin

A die-in, sometimes known as a lie-in, is a form of protest in which participants simulate being dead.[1] Die-ins are actions that have been used by a variety of protest groups on topics such as animal rights,[2] anti-war, against traffic violence,[3] human rights,[4] AIDS,[5] gun control,[6] racism,[7] abortion, and environmental issues.[8] Often, protestors occupy an area for a short time instead of being forced to leave by the police.

In the simplest form of a die-in, protesters simply lie down on the ground and pretend to be dead, sometimes covering themselves with signs or banners.[8] The point of a die-in is to disrupt the flow of people on a street or sidewalk to grab the attention of passers-by.[9]

In more complex forms, fake blood or blood-stained bandages are sometimes used, as well as simulated death throes and writhing from the protesters in an attempt to make the deaths appear more realistic. In other cases, protesters have surrounded the "bodies" in chalk outlines reminiscent of the troped outlines around murder victims. This has been done as an attempt to symbolize that the organization being protested against has "murdered" people.[5] Sometimes, part of the protesting group makes speeches about what is being protested while the rest of the group lies on the ground.[9]

  1. ^ Blythe, Anne. "Former N.C. resident takes a stand against easy gun access". News Observer. The News & Observer Publishing Company. Archived from the original on 16 February 2013. Retrieved 16 January 2013.
  2. ^ The DxE Die-In - Killing is no Kindness (raw footage), 21 October 2013, archived from the original on 2021-12-12, retrieved 2019-10-23
  3. ^ History of Cycling in the Netherlands
  4. ^ Porta, Donatella Della; Peterson, Abby; Reiter, Herbert (2006). The Policing of Transnational Protest. Ashgate Publishing. p. 92. ISBN 978-0-7546-2676-3.
  5. ^ a b Reed, Thomas Vernon (2005). The Art Of Protest: Culture And Activism From The Civil Rights Movement To The Streets Of Seattle. U of Minnesota Press. p. 195. ISBN 978-0-8166-3770-6.
  6. ^ Washington, Jesse. "In gun debate, two sides speak different languages". Associated Press. Retrieved 16 January 2013.
  7. ^ Mirzoeff, Nicholas D. (2015-08-10). "#BlackLivesMatter Is Breathing New Life Into the Die-In". The New Republic. ISSN 0028-6583. Retrieved 2022-02-10.
  8. ^ a b Smith, Sharon J. (22 February 2011). The Young Activist's Guide to Building a Green Movement and Changing the World. Random House. p. 117. ISBN 978-1-60774-016-2.
  9. ^ a b Andersen, Mark; Jenkins, Mark (2003). Dance of Days: Two Decades of Punk in the Nation's Capital. Akashic Books. p. 170. ISBN 978-1-888451-44-3.