In 1965, the U.S. government helped the Indonesian military kill approximately one million innocent civilians. This was one of the most important turning points of the twentieth century, eliminating the largest communist party outside China and the Soviet Union and inspiring copycat terror programs in faraway countries like Brazil and Chile. But these events remain widely overlooked, precisely because the CIA's secret interventions were so successful. In this bold and comprehensive new history, Vincent Bevins builds on his incisive reporting for the Washington Post, using recently declassified documents, archival research and eye-witness testimony collected across twelve countries to reveal a shocking legacy that spans the globe. For decades, it's been believed that parts of the developing world passed peacefully into the U.S.-led capitalist system. The Jakarta Method demonstrates that the brutal extermination of unarmed leftists was a fundamental part of Washington's final triumph in the Cold War.

From 2010 to 2020, more people globally participated in protests than at any other point in human history. Why did so few get what they wanted? From the so-called Arab Spring to Gezi Park in Turkey, from Ukraine's Euromaidan to student rebellions in Chile and Hong Kong, the 2010s was undoubtedly the era of mass protest. Over four years, Vincent Bevins travelled the world to interview 100s of people who took part, asking activists how the failure to leverage these movements into lasting change often allowed the far right to hijack power, and why protestors instead saw their countries change in all the wrong ways. IF WE BURN is a meticulous investigation into the era of global protests that demonstrates how participants interacted with and educated one another internationally, ultimately tying their fates together. They aimed to upend governments and restructure society, but many instead laid the groundwork for a crackdown on their rights and liberties.In this ground-breaking study of an extraordinary chain of events, protesters and major actors offer urgent lessons for those who wish to understand today's geopolitical situation and create a better future.