Showing papers on "Social movement published in 2000"

Framing Processes and Social Movements: An Overview and Assessment

Abstract: ■ Abstract The recent proliferation of scholarship on collective action frames and framing processes in relation to social movements indicates that framing processes have come to be regarded, alongside resource mobilization and political opportunity processes, as a central dynamic in understanding the character and course of social movements. This review examines the analytic utility of the framing literature for un- derstanding social movement dynamics. We first review how collective action frames have been conceptualized, including their characteristic and variable features. We then examine the literature related to framing dynamics and processes. Next we review the literature regarding various contextual factors that constrain and facilitate framing processes. We conclude with an elaboration of the consequences of framing processes for other movement processes and outcomes. We seek throughout to provide clarifi- cation of the linkages between framing concepts/processes and other conceptual and theoretical formulations relevant to social movements, such as schemas and ideology.

A Space for Place in Sociology

Abstract: Sociological studies sensitive to the issue of place are rarely labeled thus, and at the same time there are far too many of them to fit in this review. It may be a good thing that this research is seldom gathered up as a “sociology of place,” for that could ghettoize the subject as something of interest only to geographers, architects, or environmental historians. The point of this review is to indicate that sociologists have a stake in place no matter what they analyze, or how: The works cited below emplace inequality, difference, power, politics, interaction, community, social movements, deviance, crime, life course, science, identity, memory, history. After a prologue of definitions and methodological ruminations, I ask: How do places come to be the way they are, and how do places matter for social practices and historical change?

Methodology of the oppressed

Abstract: In a work with far-reaching implications, Chela Sandoval does no less than revise the genealogy of theory over the past thirty years, inserting what she terms "U.S. Third World feminism" into the narrative in a way that thoroughly alters our perspective on contemporary culture and subjectivity.What Sandoval has identified is a language, a rhetoric of resistance to postmodern cultural conditions. U.S liberation movements of the post-World War II era generated specific modes of oppositional consciousness. Out of these emerged a new activity of consciousness and language Sandoval calls the "methodology of the oppressed". This methodology -- born of the strains of the cultural and identity struggles that currently mark global exchange -- holds out the possibility of a new historical moment, a new citizen-subject, and a new form of alliance consciousness and politics. Utilizing semiotics and U.S. Third World feminist criticism, Sandoval demonstrates how this methodology mobilizes love as a category of critical analysis. Rendering this approach in all its specifics, Methodology of the Oppressed gives rise to an alternative mode of criticism opening new perspectives on a theoretical, literary, aesthetic, social movement, or psychic expression.

Radical media: rebellious communication and social movements

Abstract: PART ONE: CONCEPTS - RADICAL MEDIA INTERSECT MEDIA THEORY Popular Culture, 'Audiences' and Radical Media Power, Hegemony, Resistance Social Movements, the Public Sphere, Networks Community, Democracy, Dialogue and Radical Media Art, Aesthetics, Radical Media, Communication Radical Media Organization Two Models Religion, Ethnicity, the International Dimension Repressive Radical Media PART TWO: RADICAL MEDIA TAPESTRY: COMMUNICATIVE REBELLION IN HISTORY AND GLOBALLY Public Speech, Dance, Jokes and Song Graffiti and Dress Popular Theatre, Street Theatre, Performance Art and Culture Jamming The Press 'Mind Bombs' Woodcuts, Satirical Prints, Flyers, Photomontage, Posters, Murals Radio Film and Video The Internet PART THREE: EXTENDED CASE STUDIES The Portuguese Explosion The Collapse of Dictatorship and Colonialism, 1974 - 75 Italy Three Decades of Radical Media Access Television and Grassroots Political Communication in the United States KPFA, Berkeley and Free Radio Berkeley Samizdat in the Former Soviet Bloc A Hexagon by Way of a Conclusion

The Outcomes of Homeless Mobilization: The Influence of Organization, Disruption, Political Mediation, and Framing

Abstract: This article contributes to a more systematic understanding of movement outcomes by analyzing how organizational, tactical, political, and framing variables interact and combine to account for differences in the outcomes attained by 15 homeless social movement organizations (SMOs) active in eight U.S. cities. Using qualitative comparative analysis to assess ethnographically derived data on the 15 SMOs, the study highlights the importance of organizational viability and the rhetorical quality of diagnostic and prognostic frames for securing outcomes while identifying a contingent relationship between tactics and political environment. The analysis suggests that there are multiple pathways leading to movement outcome attainment, and therefore unidimensional rather than combinatorial and interactive approaches are misguided.

Challenging global warming as a social problem: An analysis of the conservative movement's counter-claims

Abstract: The sociological literature on global environmental change emphasizes the processes by which the problem of global warming is socially constructed. However, the opposing efforts to construct the “non-problematicity” of global warming advanced by the conservative movement are largely ignored. Utilizing recent work on framing processes in the social movements literature and claims-making from the social problems literature, this paper analyzes the counter-claims promoted by the conservative movement between 1990 and 1997 as it mobilized to challenge the legitimacy of global warming as a social problem. A thematic content analysis of publications circulated on the web sites of prominent conservative think tanks reveals three major counter-claims. First, the movement criticized the evidentiary basis of global warming as weak, if not entirely wrong. Second, the movement argued that global warming will have substantial benefits if it occurs. Third, the movement warned that proposed action to ameliorate global warming would do more harm than good. In short, the conservative movement asserted that, while the science of global warming appears to be growing more and more uncertain, the harmful effects of global warming policy are becoming increasingly certain . In order to better understand the controversy over global warming, future research should pay attention to the influence of the conservative movement by identifying the crucial roles of conservative foundations, conservative think tanks, and sympathetic “skeptic” scientists in undermining the growing scientific consensus over the reality of global warming.

Breaking the Iron Law of Oligarchy: Union Revitalization in the American Labor Movement1

Abstract: This article addresses the question of how social movement organizations are able to break out of bureaucratic conservatism In‐depth interviews with union organizers and other data are used to identify the sources of radical transformation in labor organizations by comparing local unions that have substantially altered their goals and tactics with those that have changed little This analysis highlights three factors: the occurrence of a political crisis in the local leading to new leadership, the presence of leaders with activist experience outside the labor movement who interpret the decline of labor’s power as a mandate to change, and the influence of the international union in favor of innovation The article concludes by drawing out the theoretical implications of the finding that bureaucratic conservatism can sometimes be overcome in mature social movements

Contesting global governance : multilateral economic institutions and global social movements

Abstract: This book argues that increasing engagement between international institutions and sectors of civil society is producing a new form of global governance. The authors investigate 'complex multilateralism' by studying the relationship between three multilateral economic institutions (the IMF, World Bank, and World Trade Organization), and three global social movements (environmental, labour and women's movements). They provide a rich comparative analysis of the institutional response to social movement pressure, tracing institutional change, policy modification and social movement tactics as they struggle to influence the rules and practices governing trade, finance and development regimes. The contest to shape global governance is increasingly being conducted upon a number of levels and amongst a diverse set of actors. Analysing a unique breadth of institutions and movements, this book charts an important part of that contest.

From the Ground Up: Environmental Racism and the Rise of the Environmental Justice Movement

Abstract: A critical look at the movement for environmental justice When Bill Clinton signed an Executive Order on Environmental Justice in 1994, the phenomenon of environmental racism-the disproportionate impact of environmental hazards, particularly toxic waste dumps and polluting factories, on people of color and low-income communities-gained unprecedented recognition. Behind that momentous signature, however, lies a remarkable tale of grassroots activism and political mobilization. Today, thousands of activists in hundreds of locales are fighting for their children, their communities, their quality of life, and their health. From the Ground Up critically examines one of the fastest growing social movements in the United States-the movement for environmental justice. Tracing the movement's roots, Luke Cole and Sheila Foster combine long-time activism with powerful storytelling to provide gripping case studies of communities across the US-towns like Kettleman City, California; Chester, Pennsylvania; and Dilkon, Arizona-and their struggles against corporate polluters. The authors use social, economic and legal analysis to reveal the historical and contemporary causes for environmental racism. Environmental justice struggles, they demonstrate, transform individuals, communities, institutions and the nation as a whole.

Social movement networks virtual and real

Abstract: This paper discusses the impact of 'computer mediated communication' (or CMC) on political activism and social movements. CMC may be expected to affect collective action by improving the effectiveness of communication and facilitating collective identity and solidarity. However, the heterogeneity of social movements undermines generic arguments and their relationship to CMC. Accordingly, the potential consequences of CMC on three different types of political organizations are discussed: organizations mobilizing mainly participatory resources, organizations focusing on professional resources, and transnational networks. The potential to build 'virtual [social movement] communities' seems highest among sympathizers of movement organizations who act professionally on behalf of causes with vast resonance among the public opinion and low radical potential. All in all, the most distinctive contribution of CMC to social movements still seems to be instrumental rather than symbolic. Existing bonds and solidaritie...

What a Good Idea! Ideologies and Frames in Social Movement Research

Abstract: Frame theory is often credited with "bringing ideas back in" social movement studies, but frames are not the only useful ideational concepts. The older, more politicized concept of ideology needs to be used in its own right and not recast as a frame. Frame theory is rooted in linguistic studies of interaction, and points to the way shared assumptions and meanings shape the interpretation of events. Ideology is rooted in politics and the study of politics, and points to coherent systems of ideas which provide theories of society coupled with value commitments and normative implications for promoting or resisting social change. Ideologies can function as frames, they can embrace frames, but there is more to ideology than framing. Frame theory offers a relatively shallow conception of the transmission of political ideas as marketing and resonating, while a recognition of the complexity and depth of ideology points to the social construction processes of thinking, reasoning, educating, and socializing. Social...

From Tribal Village to Global Village: Indian Rights and International Relations in Latin America

Abstract: Preface Acronyms and organizations Introduction: when worlds collide 1. Theory: on power, borders, and meaning 2. Voice in teh village: building a social movement 3. State security: power versus principal 4. 'Indian market': profit versus purpose 5. Identities across borders: the politics of global civil society 6. New times: the impact of the movement Conclusion: it takes a village References Index.

Agency and Social Networks: Strategies of Action in a Social Structure of Position, Opposition, and Opportunity

Abstract: This study uses social movement concepts to explain the success and failure of actors in a network of relationships trying to influence policies on environmental issues in a small city Results show that strategies to take action and mobilize others in a network of interorganizational relationships can vary depending on the social context, which consists of the political opportunity structure defined by government regulators, whether the actor faces opposition, and the actor's position in the network Decisions to engage in strategies to try to influence government regulators directly, to use a broker to reach agreements with the opposition, or to form a coalition with actors in other organizations to influence government decision makers are affected by this social context Results also show that even peripheral actors, usually assumed to be powerless in network studies, can influence policy if they use a direct-contact strategy and the political opportunity structure is favorable

Globalizations and Social Movements: Culture, Power, and the Transnational Public Sphere

Abstract: Globalization is a set of processes that are weakening national boundaries. Both transnational and local social movements develop to resist the processes of globalization--migration, economic interdependence, global media coverage of events and issues, and intergovernmental relations. Globalization not only spurs the creation of social movements, but affects the way many social movements are structured and work. The essays in this volume illuminate how globalization is caught up in social movement processes and question the boundaries of social movement theory.The book builds on the modern theory of social movements that focuses upon political process and opportunity, resource mobilization and mobilization structure, and the cultural framing of grievances, utopias, ideologies, and options. Some of the essays deal with the structure of international campaigns, while others are focused upon conflicts and movements in less developed countries that have strong international components. The fourteen essays are written by both well established senior scholars and younger scholars in anthropology, political science, sociology, and history. The essays cover a range of time periods and regions of the world.This book is relevant for anyone interested in the politics and social change processes related to globalization as well as social-movement theory.Mayer Zald is Professor of Sociology, University of Michigan. Michael Kennedy is Vice Provost for International Programs, Associate Professor of Sociology, and Director of the Center for Russian and East European Affairs, University of Michigan. John Guidry is Assistant Professor of Political Science, Augustana College.

The Return of The Repressed: The Fall and Rise of Emotions in Social Movement Theory

Abstract: In recent years sociologists have made great strides in studying the emotions that pervade social life. The study of social movements has lagged behind, even though there are few arenas where emotions are more obvious or important. We hope to understand this lag as well as make some suggestions for catching up. To do this we examine the history of scholarship on social movements, finding that emotions were poorly specified in the early years, ignored entirely in the structural and organizational paradigms that emerged in the 1960s, and still overlooked in the cultural era of the 1980s and 1990s. Despite isolated efforts to understand the emotions of social movements, they remain today a fertile area for inquiry.

Contingent Democrats: Industrialists, Labor, and Democratization in Late-Developing Countries

Abstract: Many classic works of political economy have identified capital and labor as the champions of democratization during the first wave of transition By contrast, this article argues for the contingent nature of capital and labor's support for democracy, especially in the context of late development The article offers a theory of democratic contingency, proposing that a few variables, namely, state dependence, aristocratic privilege, and social fear account for much of the variation found in class support for democratization both across and within cases Conditions associated with late development make capital and labor especially prone to diffidence about democratization But such diffidence is subject to change, especially under the impact of international economic integration, poverty-reducing social welfare policies, and economic growth that is widely shared Case material from Korea, Indonesia, Mexico, Zambia, Brazil, Tunisia and other countries is offered as evidence

Power and its Disguises: Anthropological Perspectives on Politics

Abstract: Locating the political : a political anthropology of today the origins and limits of coercive power: the anthropology of stateless societies from hierarchy to surveillance: the politics of agrarian civilisation and the rise of Western nation state the political anthropology of colonialism: a study of domination and resistance third world states: legacies of history and pressures of modernity from macro to micro processes: anthropolitical practice political process and global disorder: perspectives on contemporary conflict and violence society against the modern state: social movements, cultural politics, gender politics anthropology and politics: commitment responsibility and the academy.

Songs of Ourselves Employees’ Deployment of Social Identity in Workplace Encounters

Abstract: Research on diversity in the workplace considers the conditions for creating a safe, equitable, and welcoming work environment. Inclusivity is a challenge when visible social identities trigger potentially judgmental and divisive reactions (e.g., Wharton, 1992). A distinct set of challenges arises when employees bring invisible, marginalized, or even stigmatized aspects of their identities into the workplace. Making a social identity visible not only sets the stage for others’ reactions, whether positive, negative, or mixed, it also lays the groundwork for social changes that may reduce the stigma and costs of the social identity. In this article, we investigate the deployment of social identity in the interest of organizational change, extending a concept used by Bernstein (1997) to describe the faceto-face lobbying practices of gays and lesbians in state and local political campaigns for nondiscrimination legislation. We also extend the concept of encounters, through which individuals who identify with a category engage in some self-conscious and intentional performances that announce and enact who they are (Goffman, 1969). This concept has been elaborated for understanding the micromobilizing moments of social movements in broader societal contexts (W. A. Gamson, Fireman, & Rytina, 1982). We examine how employees deploy their social identity in the workplace in ways that they hope will advance social

Cultural Power and Social Movements

Abstract: In several ways, Swidler provides a more developed analysis of the relationship between culture and social movements than does McAdam. First, she focuses on the ways culture shapes individual beliefs and desires. Thus, culture provides a means by which people make sense of the world. Second, Swidler examines the ways culture provides repertoires of public symbols that structure the kinds of expected responses that individuals develop from their social interactions. A handshake on first meeting a person could be seen as such a symbol: Failure to shake hands once another has been extended is a deliberate insult. Thus, once they have offered it, most people expect that their hand will be shaken. Such an expectation represents cultural knowledge that exists even when no handshake is ongoing. Such assumptions may shape how a social movement acts even if its members are ideologically divided and its contention with the broader society sharp. Third, Swidler pays attention to the ways social institutions shape movement activities: If official organizations and others try to integrate or co-opt a group, for example, the movement is likely to behave differently than if it faces aggressive, perhaps violent, repression. Culture, then, is more than just the private beliefs of individual group members, and it is more than a set of broad principles that can be used for group purposes. It involves a dynamic interaction that shapes private and public acts together.

Reflections on Social Movement Theory: Criticisms and Proposals

Abstract: The arrival of a new century and a new millennium are attention-grabbing symbolic markers. They provide a convenient opportunity for me to reflect critically on the current status of social movement theory. Because of space limitations, it is impossible to provide a comprehensive review and critique of this burgeoning field. I focus here on what I contend are serious blind spots within current social movement theory. I argue that these theories continue to slight the role that human agency plays in social movements. The slight occurs because assumptions in current theory lead its proponents to gloss over fundamental sources of agency that social movement groups can bring to the mobilization process, cultural framing, tactical problems, movement leadership, protest histories, and transformative events. I address the human agency and these movement phenomena, and offer correctives. By the mid-twentieth century, collective behavior and related theories constituted the dominant paradigm that guided research of social movements. These theories argued that social movements were a form of collective behavior that emerged when significant social and cultural breakdowns occurred. As a form of collective behavior, social movements were considered spontaneous, unorganized, and unstructured phenomena that were discontinuous with institutional and organizational behavior

Ideologically Structured Action: An Enlarged Agenda for Social Movement Research

Abstract: The conceptual definitions we use in social science often need adjusting to allow scholars to hone in on issues that are obscured under other definitions and to open research agendas. Here it is argued that a focus upon social movements as ideologically structured action accomplishes two objectives. First, it allows us to incorporate cultural/cognitive components of action into our core definition. Second, it helps us to broaden our research agenda to include a deeper and fuller view of socialization to social movement ideology and to social movement-related action that takes place in a variety of institutional arenas, including electoral competition, legislative processes, bureaucratic agencies, and executive ojfces.

Not in my body: rBGH and the rise of organic milk

Abstract: The advent of rBGH (recombinant bovinegrowth hormone) has spurred the establishment of anorganic milk industry. The food systems/commoditychain analytical framework cannot fully explain therise of this new food. An adequate understanding ofthe consumer's role in the food system/commodity chainrequires more attention to consumption as a form ofpolitics. One way to do this is to look at thepolitics of other new social movements, especiallythose contesting mainstream notions of risk. From thisapproach, organic milk consumption challenges rBGHfrom a ``Not-in-my-Body'' or ``NIMB'' politics of refusal,similar to the political refusal of neighborhoodresidents in ``Not-in-My-Backyard'' or ``NIMBY''environmental movements. The NIMB form of politics isnot a social movement of politically consciousconsumers, yet it is still a political activity inwhich consumers participate in the formation of theindustry through a process of ``reflexive consumption.''An analysis of producer-consumer discourse on milkcartons reveals the nature of this political formation.

What a Good Idea! Frames and Ideologies in Social Movement Research

Abstract: Frame theory is often credited with “bringing ideas back in” to the study of social movements, but frames are not the only useful ideational concepts. In particular, the older, more politicized concept of ideology needs to be used in its own right and not recast as a frame. Frame theory is rooted in linguistic studies of interaction, and points to the way shared assumptions and meanings shape the interpretation of any particular event. Ideology theory is rooted in politics and the study of politics, and points to coherent systems of ideas which provide theories of society coupled with value commitments and normative implications for promoting or resisting social change. Ideologies can function as frames, but there is more to ideology than framing. Frame theory offers a relatively shallow conception of the transmission of political ideas as marketing and resonating, while a recognition of the complexity and depth of ideology points to the social construction processes of thinking, reasoning, educating, and socializing. Social movements can only be understood by genuinely linking social psychological and political sociology concepts and traditions, not by trying to rename one group in the language of the other.

Fields of Protest: Women's Movements in India

Abstract: The women's movement in India has a long and rich history in which millions of women live, work and struggle to survive in order to remake their family, home and social lives. Whether fighting for safe contraception, literacy, water and electricity or resisting sexual harassment, they are participating in vibrant and active women's movements that are thriving in many parts of India today. "Fields of Protest" explores the political and cultural circumstances under which groups of women organize to fight for their rights and self-worth. Starting with Bombay and Calcutta, Raka Ray discusses the creation of "political fields" - structured, unequal, and socially constructed political environments within which organizations exist, flourish or fail. Women's organizations are not autonomous or free agents; rather, they inherit a "field" and its accompanying social relations, and when they act, they act in response to it and within it. Drawing on the literature of both social movements and feminism, Ray analyses the striking differences between the movements in these two cities.

Culture and Social Movements

Abstract: McAdam presents a good example of focusing on the questions discussed in the introduction to this section, explaining: why groups form, why they adopt the characteristics they do, what factors shape their success and failure, and how cultures broadly influential in their societies shape their identity and opportunities. Key among the points in his analysis is the concept of “frames.” McAdam uses this term to refer to packets of shared assumptions through which particular social movements can be categorized. Frames also highlight common elements through which movements’ purposes can be understood. A core belief of the civil rights movement, for example, was that American society was denying African Americans the equality in which the broader society professed to believe. Subsequent movements, such as women’s and gay rights movements, have largely adopted the same approach as their members pursue their goals. Social movements, in McAdam’s analysis, are embedded in the cultures within which they act and should be understood in relation to both the broader culture and each other across time.

Beyond compare? Women's movements in comparative perspective

Abstract: This article reviews a selected range of comparativepolitical research on women's movements, a subfield ofpolitical science whose recent proliferation nowpositions it at the leading edge of women and politicsscholarship. Recognizing that ``women'' as a categoryof research is of necessity heterogeneous and informedby differences of race, class, ethnicity, nationality,generation, and religion, the article argues that thiscomplex intersectionality need not mean that women'smovements are beyond the scope of comparativepolitical research. Rather, as the research focus ofwomen and politics scholars has become increasinglycarefully specified, general patterns are evident inthe research that should serve to advance thecomparative study of women's movements and comparativepolitical research more generally. The articlefocuses on definitional challenges and the limitationsof conflating ``women's movements'', ``feministmovements'', and ``women in social movements'', anddiscusses four major research arenas within whichcross-national commonalities among women's movementsare evidenced. These include the relationship betweenwomen's movements and political parties; ``doublemilitancy'' as a potentially distinctive collectiveidentity problem for women's movement activists; theextent to which political opportunities for women'smovements are (or can be) gendered; and therelationship between women's movements and the state.The article concludes with suggestions for futureresearch in the subfields of comparative women'smovements and comparative politics.