Suchergebnisse

This book examines how white cisgender people respond to movements seeking racial and gender change in the U.S. Specifically, the authors examine how racial and gender privilege shapes the ways cisgender white people make sense of and respond to the political efforts of racial, gender, and other minority populations.

This book contends that the impasse of the Left today is in part, a result of an anarchist 'common sense' among activists. The author argues that the vital dynamics of anarchism and social movements need to be combined with a reappraisal of the Communist party and state. While cynicism towards capitalism and existing political institutions is plentiful, this book argues that the Left appears mired in a reactive politics of resistance, unable to formulate programmes for substantive social change. Drawing insights from the history of the Left, political economy, contemporary critical theory and an in-depth study of Occupy, the author provides concrete suggestions as to how the Left might 'claim the twenty-first century' and realise a more equitable social order. Social Movements and Democracy in the 21st Century challenges activists and scholars to rethink social movements and political organisation, and to actively work towards enduring social change. The book will be of interest to students and scholars of social movement studies, Left theory, critical theory, political sociology and Marxism, as well as anyone with an interest in 'political change'.

Acknowledgments -- Contents -- List of Tables -- 1: Introduction: Confronting the Crisis of Democracy -- The Crisis of Democracy and the Rise of Neoliberalism -- Chapter Content -- Note -- Part I: Situating Contestation -- 2: The Arc of Contention -- From the French Revolution to the First International -- The Paris Commune -- From the Second International to the Exhaustion of the Old Left -- New Social Movements and the New Left -- Contesting Neoliberalism -- Summary -- Note -- 3: Rethinking Social Movements -- North American Social Movement Studies -- European New Social Movement Studies -- The Activist Perspective -- Marxism and the Study of Social Movements -- Summary -- Notes -- 4: The Dynamics of Capital -- Capital's Key Dynamics -- From Keynesianism to the Financial Crisis of 2008 -- Summary -- Note -- 5: Reconceptualising Political Strategy -- Destabilising Marxism -- Multiplicity and Effective Political Action -- Populism and Antagonism -- On the Subjective Dimension of Revolt -- Exodus -- Summary -- Notes -- Part II: Contesting the Twenty-First Century: An Analysis of Occupy -- 6: Occupy, Democracy, and Enduring Change -- Methods -- Occupy's Economic Critique-The Economic Crisis Is also a Crisis of Democracy -- The Quest for Democracy -- General Assemblies -- Horizontalism -- To Make Demands? -- The Problem of Endurance -- Summary -- Notes -- 7: The Subject of Change -- Conceptualising Class -- Occupy and Class -- Tensions in the 99 Percent -- Summary -- Notes -- 8: Locating Effective Resistance -- Cyber-Optimism -- Cyber-Scepticism -- Occupy-Analogue or Digital? -- Occupy's Spatial Dimension -- Summary -- Notes -- Part III: Claiming the Twenty-First Century -- 9: Reconceptualising Effective Action -- Recovering the State -- Movements and Parties -- Moving Beyond Our "1848 Moment"-Communism and the Communist Party -- Summary -- Notes

"Womanhoods and Equality in the United States explores how the idea of equality has evolved along with the debates that have animated contemporary American women's history. This book argues that "womanhood" is neither a unified concept nor monolithic experience but rather a multifaceted notion. This collection thus looks at this plural dimension of womanhood-womanhoods-with a special focus on equality as a common goal. The authors question what equality means depending on many factors such as race, class, sexuality, education, marital or parental status, physical appearance, and political orientation, and address timely issues including abortion rights, Black womanhood, and sexual violence on college campuses. Womanhoods and Equality in the United States is an essential resource for academics and students in gender studies, American socio-cultural history, and the sociology of social movements"--

"Cultures of Defiance and Resistance is an eye-opening account of the 'Antis' - those who stand in opposition to received wisdom and power, who resist the science of climate change, who reject vaccinations, who want to ban GMOs, and those who have resisted what they see as political or cultural oppression, such as Black Lives Matter, Occupy Wall Street, and the Tea Party" --

This year is the 50th anniversary of two monumental pieces of legislation: the Wilderness Act and the Civil Rights Act. Though these two laws exist within different arenas of public affairs, both have had significant effects on American society. The Wilderness Act was signed into law in 1964 with almost unanimous support, at a time when American society overwhelmingly supported its passage. Since 1964, wilderness has been criticized as an elitist ideal representing a small interest group in the United States. As our country becomes increasingly diverse, and public lands protection loses popular support, making wilderness more relevant to minority populations is vital. This project examines the social constructs of wilderness in the United States in response to a changing demographic on our public lands. In this project, I aim to 1) evaluate current recreation trends of African Americans in the United States, 2) discuss criticisms of wilderness and how a focus on the social foundations of the wilderness movement can help to ameliorate those criticisms, and 3) propose changes to future wilderness education in order to increase relevance of the wilderness idea. Research for this project focused on recreation trends, history of the wilderness movement, and modern wilderness criticisms and commentary. I collected interviews from nine individuals whose work involves the link between wilderness and society through management, education, outreach, and stewardship. Collectively, this project aims to suggest tools for wilderness education that will make wilderness, both in theory and in practice, accessible to a broader populace, hopefully increasing its relevance and assuring its existence into the future.

This year is the 50th anniversary of two monumental pieces of legislation: the Wilderness Act and the Civil Rights Act. Though these two laws exist within different arenas of public affairs, both have had significant effects on American society. The Wilderness Act was signed into law in 1964 with almost unanimous support, at a time when American society overwhelmingly supported its passage. Since 1964, wilderness has been criticized as an elitist ideal representing a small interest group in the United States. As our country becomes increasingly diverse, and public lands protection loses popular support, making wilderness more relevant to minority populations is vital. This project examines the social constructs of wilderness in the United States in response to a changing demographic on our public lands. In this project, I aim to 1) evaluate current recreation trends of African Americans in the United States, 2) discuss criticisms of wilderness and how a focus on the social foundations of the wilderness movement can help to ameliorate those criticisms, and 3) propose changes to future wilderness education in order to increase relevance of the wilderness idea. Research for this project focused on recreation trends, history of the wilderness movement, and modern wilderness criticisms and commentary. I collected interviews from nine individuals whose work involves the link between wilderness and society through management, education, outreach, and stewardship. Collectively, this project aims to suggest tools for wilderness education that will make wilderness, both in theory and in practice, accessible to a broader populace, hopefully increasing its relevance and assuring its existence into the future.

A world dominated by America and driven by cheap oil, easy credit, and conspicuous consumption is unraveling before our eyes. In this powerful, deeply humanistic book, Grace Lee Boggs, a legendary figure in the struggle for justice in America, shrewdly assesses the current crisis-political, economical, and environmental-and shows how to create the radical social change we need to confront new realities. A vibrant, inspirational force, Boggs has participated in all of the twentieth century's major social movements-for civil rights, women's rights, workers' rights, and more. She draws from seven