Protest, and what not

What is protest? Protest is a human beings innate desire to attempt to enact a desired change in the world. Protest can come in many forms and fashions; surely everyone has seen or encountered some device of protest, whether viewing it on the television, reading it in the newspaper, or perhaps "live and in person" as the protest is occurring. Most of the more famous protests, however cumbersome, are connoted with some form of violence- whether initiated from the opposition or from the protesters. It seems that once words have lost their effect, the final resort to impose will upon others is with physical force.
But where does protest come from? At its most basic level, it is a motive within an individual who believes that his/her interpretation of some policy, entity, law, rule, or any other captivating agent is better than that of those currently with the jurisdiction to create. It is spawned from an idea to improve a condition facilitated by change.
My favorite example of protest is that of Vietnamese Mahayana Buddhist monk Hòa thượng Thích Quảng Ðức, as I had mention in class but couldn't remember his name. Honestly, though, that's a hard name to remember, and it's nothing close to looking like English. The fact that he could believe in an idea-something completely intangible- enough to willfully give his life for it is humbling.