Brief: World Protests 2021-2022 By Isabel Ortiz, Sara Burke, Mohamed Berrada and Hernán Saenz Cortés People around the world are angry because governments and intergovernmental organizations have turned to austerity to address the rising cost of living. Failure of democracy and poor political representation top the list of grievances followed by demands for rights and economic security. People know their demands are legitimate; social movements for change continue to emerge in the face of repression.