Protest or Politics? An Examination of the Introduction and Passage of Repressive Policies

• In Event: Disrupting the Status Quo of Political Repression

Abstract

The repression of social movement and protest activities includes a wide array of actions,
including arrests and surveillance. In this paper, I examine a lesser-studied type of repression:
repressive policymaking. I examine the role of threat and partisan politics in the introduction and
passage of these policies. While the literature on protest policing examines in detail how protest
characteristics can impact the presence and action of police at protests, less is known about how
protest characteristics impact the introduction and passage of repressive bills. Still as a form of
repression which occurs through the policymaking process, it is important to study the political
factors which impact the development of these legislative policies.

Author

• Baylee Hudgens, Purdue University