But would they need privacy, or could they use open communications instead? It's one thing when you know peoples rights are being violated somewhere, it's another if you can see that live on youtube.

I think if anything current tech would make civil rights movements easier. My example is last years revolution in Armenia. Police knew all of the initial group of protesters, and tapped all their phonecalls, but by decentralizing, by using low risk forms of protests (e.g. honking, blocking the streets by going back and forth on the crossing), by using constant live streams from everywhere, protesters managed to gain and demonstrate support of enough people that the old government had to give up.