There are lots of proactive steps people can take if they use a bit of imagination.

The best 'protest' I ever saw was by Glasgow City Council in Scotland. They did lots of things over the years to fight apartheid in South Africa. Then they decided to name a street in Glasgow after Nelson Mandela. The trouble was, the South African Embassy was on that street! From that moment, every letter which went to that Embassy had Nelson Mandela's name on it. 

Years later, after his release, he went to the city to thank them personally.