Stuart Hall (3 February 1932 – 10 February 2014) is acknowledged as one of the founding figures of British Cultural Studies. His extensive academic work on topics such as race ; ethnicity and identity reflects his own position as a diasporic intellectual. His contribution to the study of popular culture is determined by the importance of his political character in every social act ; his non-deterministic view of Marxism ; and is especially determined by his insistence on playing an active role beyond academia in order to contribute to the transformation of hegemonic structures. The following biography aims to give a focused view of his personal history and its direct influence on his key theoretical reflections.
Eine neue Art von sozialen Bewegungen führt nicht nur Individuen aus der breiten Masse in neue politische und soziale Themen ein und stärkt ihre politische Partizipation, sondern befähigt sie, zu lernen, sich auszutauschen und zu organisieren, um sich so dafür einzusetzen, dass die politischen und gesellschaftlichen Institutionen im Sinne ihrer Interessen arbeiten. Diese Hypothesen sollen dabei helfen, eine Antwort auf folgende Forschungsfrage zu finden: Wie unterstützen digitale Technologien die Entwicklung von organischen intellektuellen? Um die oben genannten Hypothesen zu validieren, wurde ausgehend von den von Manuel Castells und Antonio Gramsci vorgestellten Konzepten eine qualitative Analyse der Ergebnisse semi-strukturierter Interviews aus vier verschiedenen Ländern auf vier Kontinenten durchgeführt. Die Forschungsarbeit untersucht zentrale Charakteristika der digitalen Umgebung globaler Web-Bewegungen. Zum einen bezieht sich dies aufgängige Kritikpunkte an politischer Online-Partizipation wie "Digital Divide", "Clicktivism" und "Simplification", zum anderen auf die Verwässerung des Konzepts der Souveränität. Auf Grundlage der erhobenen Daten argumentiert die vorliegende Arbeit gegen diese Kritikpunkte und problematisiert das Konzept der nationalen Souveränität. Die Forschungsarbeit stellt die Annahme infrage, dass globale Unterstützung für lokale Angelegenheiten auf Solidarität basiert, und führt eine Perspektive ein, die das Recht auf Beteiligung als Ausdruck einer Identifikation als globaler Staatsbürger versteht. ; A new kind of social movements are not only introducing individuals from within the masses to new political and social topics, and raising their interest and activity in political education and participation, but also enabling their ability to learn, discuss, deliberate, share, and organize themselves for making the political institutions of the society to work for their interests. This hypothesis was formulated in order to aid the process of finding an answer to the research question: how are digital technologies helping in the development process of organic intellectuals? Based on the concepts presented by Manuel Castells and Antonio Gramsci, a qualitative analysis of the responses collected in four countries across four different continents using semi-structured interviews presented the evidence used to validate the above hypothesis. The research also examines couple of main aspects of the online environment in relation to a global web movement. One is relating to the major criticisms of online political participation such as 'Digital Divide', 'Clicktivism', and 'Simplification', while the second is relating to the dilution of the concept of 'Sovereignty'. The gathered data allows this research to argue against the criticisms, and problematize the concept of national sovereignty. This research questions the general assumption that a global action in support of local issues is based on solidarity, and presents a different perspective focused on the right to demand action based on an identification of global citizenship.
By summarizing the legacy of the first and second wave Black working class organic intellectuals in North America in the 20th century, I will use this as a backdrop to discuss my efforts in the first decade of the 21st century to develop a third wave of organic intellectuals in the hip hop generation. I will offer a case study of the Freedom Cipher Program at the Black Action Defense Committee (BADC), and discuss the implications of this experience for organizing oppressed Black working class and underclass youth into organic intellectuals today in this age of neo-liberal capitalism and globalization. I hope this paper will contribute to the work of the revolutionary party-building Left, and youth movements concerned with organizing the hip hop generations of the 20th century (born 1965-1984) and 21st century (born 1985-2004) into a new socialist hegemonic project.
This chapter addresses the relationship between three aspects of the concept of class. The first is as an analytical tool, particularly within anthropology. The second is as a social relation that takes particular forms in particular historical settings. The third is as a means of struggle. I will address the relationship between these aspects of class in terms of four questions: What class do we need or want? What kinds of collectivity need to be conceptualised and brought about if we want to transform capitalism? What sorts of practical politics will have to be developed? What sort of historical bloc can we contribute to form? Class is problematic because it has been conceptualized both as the locus of articulation of a structural position within the mode of production and as an emergent form in existing social conflict. Consequently, class is always being produced and changed through actual economic and political struggles. It is also important to recognise the strength of Gramsci's (1987) point that these struggles are also theoretical, for they are shaped by the common-sense interpretation of structural positions that defines collective identities and lines of struggle. I will follow Gramsci's lead and stress that what he calls the "organic intellectual", and intellectual debate in general, is central to producing understandings of the structure of the social processes that frame the realms of collective class identity and of organized and purposeful struggle.
