Social movements and protest politics

This fully revised and updated edition of Social Movements and Protest Politics provides interdisciplinary perspectives on the sociology of protest movements. It considers major theories and concepts, which are presented in a clear, accessible, and engaging format. The second edition contains new chapters on methods and ethics of social movement research, and legal mobilisation, protest policing and criminal justice activism, including calls to abolish or defund police made at protests during the COVID-19 pandemic. This edition introduces readers to the concept of the ⁰́₈post-protest society⁰́₉ wherein the right to protest is whittled away to near vanishing point, and authorities have considerable legal recourse to ban protests and render the tactics of protest movements ineffective. The book also looks at recent developments and novel social movements, including Black Lives Matter, Extinction Rebellion, Gilets Jaunes, #MeToo, and Hong Kong⁰́₉s Umbrella Movement, as well as the rise of contemporary forms of populism in democratic societies. The book presents specific chapters outlining the early origins of social movement studies and more recent theoretical and conceptual developments. It considers key ideas from resource mobilisation theory, the political process model, and new social movement approaches. It provides extensive commentary on the role of culture in social protest (including visual images, emotions, storytelling, music, and sport), religious movements, geography and struggles over space, media and movements, and global activism. Historical and contemporary case studies and examples from a variety of countries are provided throughout, including the American civil rights movement, Greenpeace, Pussy Riot, Indigenous peoples⁰́₉ movements, liberation theology, Indignados, Occupy, Tea Party, and Arab Spring. Each chapter also contains illustrations and boxed case studies to demonstrate the issues under discussion. Social Movements and Protest Politics will be an indispensable resource for undergraduate and postgraduate students in the social sciences and humanities wanting to be introduced to or extend their knowledge of the field. The book will also prove useful to university teachers and academic researchers, activists, and practitioners interested in the study of social, cultural, and political protest.

Intro -- Half Title -- Endorsements -- Title Page -- Copyright Page -- Dedication -- Contents -- Figures -- Boxes -- Acknowledgements -- Chapter 1. Introduction -- Can we be optimistic about protest politics and social movement radicalism? -- Social movements in society -- Policing the post-protest society -- Social movements and protest politics -- Note -- Chapter 2. Social movement research methods -- Introduction -- Theory building over methodology? -- Possibilities for academic-activist research -- Sociological interventions in collective action -- Elements of an expanding methodological repertoire: Protest surveys, interviews, bias, and sampling -- Social movement research ethics -- Conclusion -- Suggested readings -- Chapter 3. Origins of social movement studies -- Introduction -- Social psychology of crowds -- Collective behaviour theory -- Symbolic interactionism: Blumer's theory of social movements -- Smesler's structural-functionalism and the value-added model -- Evaluating Blumer and Smelser -- The enduring influence of collective behaviour theories and symbolic interactionism -- Social movements as dramas -- Rational choice theory and the free rider problem -- Critiques of rational choice theory -- Conclusion -- Note -- Suggested readings -- Chapter 4. Political opportunity, resource mobilisation, and social movement organisation -- Introduction -- Resource mobilisation theory -- Political process model -- Structure of political opportunities -- Opportunity structures in anti-corporate activism -- Repertoires of contention -- Cycles of protest -- How organised should a social movement be? -- Assessing social movement success -- The 'cultural turn' in resource mobilisation theory: Framing processes and collective action -- Conclusion -- Note -- Suggested readings -- Chapter 5. Social movements, old and new -- Introduction.

1. Introduction -- 2. Origins of social movement studies -- 3. Political opportunity, resource mobilization, and social movement organization -- 4. Social movements, old and new -- 5. Protest and culture -- 6. Religious movements and social movements -- 7. Struggles over space -- 8. Media and movements -- 9. Global activism -- 10. Conclusion.

This book offers a new and fresh approach to understanding social movements. It provides interdisciplinary perspectives on social and cultural protest and contentious politics. It considers major theories and concepts, which are presented in an accessible and engaging format. Historical and contemporary case studies and examples from a variety of different countries are provided throughout, including the American civil rights movement, Greenpeace, Pussy Riot, indigenous peoples movements, liberation theology, Occupy, Tea Party, and the Arab Spring.The book presents specific chapters outlining

"This book offers a new and fresh approach to understanding social movements. It provides interdisciplinary perspectives on social and cultural protest, and contentious politics. It considers major theories and concepts, which are presented in an accessible and engaging format. Historical and contemporary case studies and examples from a variety of different countries are provided throughout, including the American civil rights movement, Greenpeace, Pussy Riot, indigenous peoples movements, liberation theology, Occupy, Tea Party, and the Arab Spring. The book presents specific chapters outlining the early origins of social movement studies, and more recent theoretical and conceptual developments. It considers key ideas from resource mobilization theory, the political process model, and new social movement approaches. It provides an expansive commentary on the role of culture in social protest, and looks at substantive areas in chapters dedicated to religious movements, geography and struggles over space, media and movements, and global activism. Understanding Social Movements will be a useful resource for undergraduate and postgraduate students across disciplines wanting to be introduced to or extend their knowledge of the field. The book will also prove invaluable for lecturers and academic researchers interested in studying social movements"--