Drop protest, we're told (7)
I believe the answer is:
descent
'drop' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'protest we're told' is the wordplay.
'protest' becomes 'dissent' (synonyms).
'we're told' shows a homophone (sound like).
'dissent' is a homophone of 'DESCENT'.
(Other definitions for descent that I've seen before include "Downward slope" , "Drop" , "Downward journey" , "Ancestry -- downward movement" , "Ancestry - downward move" .)