Movements as Communities

• In Event: 353 - Section on Collective Behavior and Social Movements Paper Session. Social Movements Across Institutions

Abstract

Social movements are diffuse phenomena with permeable boundaries consisting of a variety of actors, ideas and events that change over time. In this paper we discuss the theoretical advantages of conceptualizing social movement as communities, and we extend current thinking by considering cases outside Western societies, using examples from the Middle East. The notion of social movement communities aims to capture the interactions among diverse political and cultural elements that help to sustain social movements. Much of the research on movement communities looks at their role in mobilizing collective action and sustaining movements following visible movement campaigns. But in repressive contexts that lack “free spaces,” few opportunities exist for movement communities to develop prior to or following visible campaigns. Instead, we need to look at the collective behavior of everyday life that provides a basis for resistance, and the processes by which communities can spawn movement communities. Virtual communities are an important part of this process, as we show in our cases of Middle East protest.

Authors

• Suzanne Staggenborg, University of Pittsburgh

• Hatem Hassan, University of Pittsburgh