To stand up for what you believe in, and to fight for what you love is the pure essence of being an individual. In the world's largest nation, during its largest social uprising in recent history, a single individual had forever manipulated the fate of his country. This is the role of the dissident, who expresses agapic love. To understand what an agapic dissident is, and how they are capable of bringing such a change, we will look at Thomas Jay Oord and his essay The Love Racket: Defining Love and Agape for the Love-and-Science Research Program, in conjunction with Charles M. Lichenstein's Introduction article to World Affairs Volume 154. It will then be necessary to examine actual, real life instances of agapic dissidence. First and foremost, we will look at the Tiananmen Tank Man, as observed by Pico Iyer, and his essay, The Unknown Rebel. Then we will look at Rosa Parks, and her miniscule actions, which gave rise to large advances for the rights of African Americans. Next, Julia Butterfly Hill "whose ability to live within the confines of a tree, has led to one of the most well-known acts of environmental activism" and her interview with Brian Awehali, will be analyzed. It will then be necessary to look at the outcomes of agapic dissidents within the realms of a population, and conceptualize how political altruism is synthesized and manipulated.
