Madison journalist and author John Nichols reflected on the state of politics in Wisconsin and the February labor protests Thursday, saying citizens participated in the beginning of an international movement.

Nichols, associate editor of the Cap Times and contributor to The Nation magazine, showcased his book, “Uprising: How Wisconsin Renewed the Politics of Protest, from Madison to Wall Street,” citing the spring protests at the Capitol as his inspiration during a lecture held Thursday. Nichols said the book details how protestors from all over Wisconsin demonstrated what the Founding Fathers meant by “freedom of assembly.”

He addressed the audience, many of whom were wearing “Recall Walker” badges, as “the people who form the storyline of the book.”

“This is the place that has done something amazing, with the whole world watching, and [this book] will show you the transformation from a local struggle into an international moment,” Nichols said.

He compared Wisconsin to freedom movements in Egypt and Tunisia, in which large-scale protests against the government erupted last year around the same period of time.

Nichols said the people in Wisconsin learned something important when they watched former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak step down after protestors demonstrated persistently against him over months.

Although Nichols said he respects the electoral system and the importance of elections, he said elected officials should be responsible to the people and should respect the citizens who had elected them.

“The person who is elected does not become the king for four years,” he said.

He said many of the streets in Madison, such as Jenifer Street and Mifflin Street, which the protesters walked, were named after the signers of the Constitution.

Nichols said he believed it was important for citizens to continue the legacy of the Founding Fathers by using their right of assembly to fight injustice.

In addition, Nichols said the participation of young people, including high school and college students, was also significant in the movement and they recognized the democracy in the United States was at stake.

When asked by one member of the audience whether he would be interested in running for public office, Nichols said a citizen is the most powerful figure.

“I am not willing to surrender the power of citizenship,” he said.

In an interview with The Badger Herald, Timothy Riley, a Madison attorney who attended the lecture, said he has been involved in the opposition against Gov. Scott Walker for a few years.

Riley said he is against Walker’s lack of respect public sector workers, his propaganda against teachers and how he has defunded education.

“[Walker] is nothing more than a career politician,” Riley said.

Marv Vike, president of American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 1077, said in an interview with The Badger Herald that he slept for 12 nights last year at the capitol and is one of the people to who Nichols dedicated his new book.

Vike said although he was representing a labor union, he was also concerned about all other public workers and teachers who were involved.

“I am expecting to read what I lived,” he said.