Throughout history, there have never been very many successful youth uprisings. Most people have difficulty naming a youth revolt, much less being able to tell you whether or not it was actually successful. In today's media all we hear about is political revolts in the Middle East, especially with all of the political turmoil in Libya. In Little Brother, however, Doctorow decides to have a younger set, high school students more specifically, attempt a revolt against a particular authority. Although they do not succeed, it provides a good insight to Doctorow's opinion on whether or not there can be a successful youth revolt. Doctorow clearly shows that he believes that a youth movement cannot happen, as clearly shown by Marcus getting caught by the Department of Homeland Security in his book. However, by mentioning events like the Free Speech Movement, he shows that he believes that fighting for your freedoms is something worth fighting for.

taken from here