Social Movements lecture 1 -cre 287 fall 2024

 Social Movements

a.      Social movements are great forces for social change

b.      Often hindered by both governments and opponents

 

1.    Understanding Social Movements

a.      Social movement =organized effort by a large number of people to bring about or impede social, political, economic, or cultural change

b.      Major difference between social movements and special-interest groups       

                        i.      Special interest groups normally operate within the system

1.      Conventional political activities such as lobbying, election campaigning

                         ii.      Social movements work outside the system, engaging in various kinds of protests, including demonstrations, picket lines, sit-ins, and sometimes outright violence.

                        iii.      It's a form of political action by other means because they lack the resources and access to the political system that interest groups typically enjoy

2.      Types of Social Movements

a.      Reform social movements -seek limited, though significant, changes in some aspect of the political, economic, or social system

                           i.      Want to improve conditions within an existing political structure

                           ii.      Some of our most important reform movements

1.      Abolitionist movement preceding the Civil War

2.      The women’s suffrage movement after the Civil War

3.      The labor movement

4.      Southern Civil Rights Movement

5.      Vietnam era’s antiwar movement

6.      Contemporary women’s movement

7. The gay rights movement

8.      Environmental movement

b.      Revolutionary movement wants to overthrow the existing government, creating a new one

                         i.      Responsible for great revolutions in Russia, China, and even the American Revolution

                        ii. Like reform movements, revolutionary movements are considered political movements because they seek political changes.

c.      Reactionary movement -also a political movement -tries to block social change or reverse social changes that have been achieved

                        i.  E.g., Antiabortion movement, which seeks to limit or eliminate the legality of abortion.

d.      Self-help movements and religious movements

                            i. Self-help movements involve people trying to improve aspects of their personal lives

1.      alcoholics Anonymous and Weight Watchers

                          ii.      Religious movements aim to reinforce religious beliefs among members and to convert others to their beliefs

1.      Early Christianity proselytizing

3.      The Origins of Social Movements

a.      What are the cultural, social, and other factors that give rise to social movements

                            i. They do not arise out of a vacuum, but as people become sufficiently discontented, they often push for social movements to come into being

                            ii.      Social movements attract specific individuals because of their views

4.      Discontent with existing conditions

a.      People dissatisfied with certain political, economic, or other problems begin to join social movements

b.      There must be structural strain or other social problems that produce frustration or anger

                           i.      Without this, people would not have a reason to protest, and social movements would not arise

c.      These conditions must lead to shared discontents or shared grievances

                           i.      Where sufficient people feel deprived relative to other groups

1.      Called relative deprivation

a.      They feel, relative to others, that they are not advancing as well as others, and their social conditions are not perceived as improving

b.      They become frustrated as their hopes for change or improvement do not keep pace with others or what was anticipated does not happen.

c. If social conditions are perceived as improving, then people stop. If they perceive that their lives are not getting any better, they become frustrated, which can result in protests, collective violence, or other forms of social movement activity.

d.      Relatively deprivation involves feelings/perceptions that are more important for their involvement than their level of actual deprivation.

                                                                                                            i. i. However, frustration does not necessarily lead to protests, as individuals are likelier to blame themselves for the deprivation and, thus, less likely to protest.

e.      Discontent does not always lead to social movements or other forms of collective behavior

                            i.      Prison riots, for example, do not always occur, even with a high degree of discontent.

                            ii. Thus, while discontent is a necessary component for social movements, it does not guarantee that social movements will come into being.

                            iii.      There may be many people who oppose racial, homophobic, or sexual attacks..but few actually participate in social movements to halt these.

5.      Social Networks and Recruitment

a.      People are much more likely to participate in social movement activity when they are asked or urged to by friends, acquaintances, and family members.

                       i.      Issues do not automatically drive people into the streets

                        ii.      It takes someone reaching out to them through social networks to pull or recruit them into social movements

                        iii.      Recruitment essential facts of social movement life -cannot succeed if it does not draw significant members into the movement

                        iv.      Electronic recruitment means have become a central focus of new forms of social movement.

b. Now there is Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, threads, GroupMe, the dark web.. etc.…that reach millions through social media, smartphone apps, etc.,  mobilizing, recruiting, and facilitating protests and other political activities.

                        i. Consider the most recent protests..see the guide to social media and social movements in the announcement.

6.      Resource Mobilization and Political Opportunities

a.      Resource mobilization theory -assumes that social movement activity is a rational response to unsatisfactory conditions in society

                      i. These related to or produce discontent

b.      but these, while necessary, are not sufficient to create a social movement

                       i.      must have leaders able to mobilize resources

1.      such as time, money, and energy

2.      and direct these into effective political action.

c.      Resource mobilization is often criticized because it ignores or underestimates the importance of harsh social conditions and discontent

                         i.      It is not either or. But both and..

                         ii.      Emotions must also be taken into consideration.

1.      People must be both emotionally connected and act rationally to pursue specific outcomes

d.      Political opportunity theory is more likely to arise when a repressive government becomes more democratic or when it weakens because of economic or foreign crisis

                         i.      Political opportunities can come into being, which increases the likelihood that people will act

1.      This explains why democracies produce more social movements than authoritarian societies

a.      Activists feel freer to engage actively without fear of reprisals, arrests, beatings, or other repressive responses from the government.

7.      The Life Cycle of Social movement

a.      Social movements differ -they go through life cycles marked by several stages

                         i.      Stage 1 emergence -the movement begins for one or more reason

                         ii.      Stage 2 coalescence -decide how to recruit new members and determine the strategies to achieve goals

1.      What media, methods, and strategies will they employ to make their demands known or achieve their objectives.

                         iii.      Stage 3: institutionalization or bureaucratization -as the movement grows, it develops an organizational structure, often with paid leaders and paid staff that replace the volunteers that began the movement

1.      Clear lines of authority

2.      Attention devoted to fund-raising

3.      They often reduce their effectiveness by turning disruptive activities that succeeded in the early stages of movement into more conventional activities—working within the system instead of outside of it.

4.      If they do not bureaucratize to some extent, they tend to lose focus and cohesiveness and lack the resources to continue.

iv.      Stage 4 decline -all social movements eventually reach this stage for one reason or another

1.      Sometimes the goals have been achieved or there is no reason to continue as the causes no longer exists

2.      Sometimes they simply fail, they lack money and enthusiasm, or they become fragmented

3.      Sometimes, they can be coopted by the government -where some partial victories are granted, or some leaders are bought off with jobs, money or etc.

a.      Or the leaders can be jailed or threatened with imprisonment                                                                     

              i. Police violence against the Southern civil rights movement/black lives matter, campus protests surrounding Palestinians and Israel,  etc. Has worked well as arrests/incarceration or the threat of loss of jobs, scholarships, etc., has deterred activists, thus stifling descent.

Governmental Responses to Social Movements

government responses to social movements

Government responses to social movements are complex and can vary from accommodation to repression, depending on the regime and the nature of the movement . Historically, governments in the U.S. have been compelled to respond to activist demands through policy, but have also used suppression to maintain control. More recently, digital surveillance and targeted prosecution have become modern tools of government response.  Methods of government response Suppression and repression

 Governments may use force or other methods to prevent movements from gaining momentum.

• Physical violence: In the 1960s, the U.S. government used violence against civil rights and anti-war activists, such as the shooting of students at Kent State. Globally, crackdowns on protests have included deadly force, such as in Chile (2019) and Iraq (2019–2021).
• Legal system: Authorities can weaponize the legal system by using harassment arrests, targeted prosecutions, and creating new laws to interfere with individuals and demobilize movements. In the U.S., restrictive laws were passed after the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests to limit demonstrations and increase legal penalties.
• Surveillance: Covert and conspicuous surveillance intimidates activists and can suppress participation. Historically, the FBI's COINTELPRO program infiltrated and discredited groups like the Black Panther Party. Modern surveillance now includes digital methods like AI-assisted facial recognition and monitoring social media.
• Media manipulation: Governments can influence media to undermine social movements by planting stories, intimidating journalists, and disparaging activists to delegitimize their causes in the public eye. 

Co-optation and manipulation A strategy to dismantle opposition involves absorbing movement leaders or ideas into the existing power structure.

• Absorption: In this process, elements of a social movement are incorporated into the leadership or policy-making body of an organization or government. This can dilute the movement's goals and help the establishment maintain control.
• Appropriating rhetoric: Adopting language from a movement, such as "sustainability" from the environmental movement, can dilute its effectiveness as a tool for change. This is often used to confuse the public and lessen the movement's impact. 

Accommodation and reform Government entities can adapt to a social movement's demands through policy changes or enforcement.

• New legislation: In the U.S., the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 were passed in response to the Civil Rights Movement. The Americans with Disabilities Act (1990) resulted from advocacy by disability rights activists.
• Formation of new agencies: Following public pressure from the environmental movement in the late 1960s, the U.S. government created the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
• Executive actions: President Biden issued an executive order requiring federal agencies to protect LGBTQ+ people from discrimination. In 2024, former President Trump issued a conflicting order removing federal protections for transgender individuals.
• Court rulings: Landmark court cases, such as Brown v. Board of Education (1954) on racial desegregation and Obergefell v. Hodges (2015) on same-sex marriage, have enforced movement-driven civil rights. 

Examples of modern government responses Black Lives Matter (BLM)

• Repression: Following the 2020 protests, federal officers used tear gas and force against peaceful protesters, and a report found the federal government deliberately targeted BLM activists with heavy criminal prosecution. Law enforcement also used extensive surveillance of activists.
• Accommodation: Some federal policies have offered concessions. For example, in 2022, the federal government agreed to policy reforms related to police conduct in protests following a lawsuit by BLM D.C.. 

Environmental movements

• Repression: Governments and law enforcement have used surveillance tactics, such as partnering with private security firms, infiltrating activist camps, and creating "no-fly zones" over protests like those against the Dakota Access Pipeline.
• Accommodation: In recent decades, government action on environmental issues has included forming the EPA, passing the Clean Air Act, and participating in international agreements like the Montreal Protocol. 

LGBTQ+ rights

• Accommodation: In 2020, the Supreme Court ruled in Bostock v. Clayton County that federal law prohibits employment discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. The Biden administration has used executive orders to expand LGBTQ+ protections.
• Suppression: State legislatures have launched campaigns targeting trans youth with discriminatory legislation. In 2025, an executive order of President Trump attempts to roll back federal protections for transgender people and their recognition. 

Indigenous rights movements

• Repression: Past assimilationist policies, like termination, aimed to dismantle tribal sovereignty and end federal recognition, resulting in land loss and harm to indigenous communities.
• Accommodation: Newer laws address some indigenous demands. The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (1990) was enacted to protect and return cultural items and remains. The Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act (2013, 2019) has expanded tribal court jurisdiction to prosecute non-Natives for violent crimes against indigenous women. 

8.      How Social Movements make a difference

a.      They operate outside of the political system by engaging in protests

                          i.      Rallies, demonstrations, sit-ins, and vigils are difficult to ignore

                          ii. These make it in the news and on social media and, therefore, attract more attention and followers, which brings even more pressure on government agencies, corporations, and other targets of the protests.

                          iii.      Social movement success, such as the Abolition movement that led ultimately to the Civil War and the end of slavery

                          iv.      Women’s suffrage movement -that led to women finally getting the right to vote.

                          v. The #metoomovement -more recently, that has increased our awareness of the discrimination, abuses, and ordeals faced by women.

b.      Political consequences -more people now vote, more laws on the books and being enforced protecting women’s and LGBTQ2+ rights, but there is more to be done..

c.      Cultural outcomes—our values, music forms, literature, and even fashion have changed as we have confronted child labor, environmental degradation, and global conflicts.

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