1. The concept of political protest or social movement is notoriously vague and flexible. How does David Meyer define a protest or social movement? Contrast Meyer’s definition with the definition provided by others.
Meyer’s makes sure to include definitions by various scholars such as Tarrow. Tarrow proposes that the definition of is one that includes sets of collective issues founded on common purpose and social solidarity, “in sustained interaction with elites, opponents, and authorities” (Meyer 11). In contrast, McCarthy and Zald believe that political protest is defined by a population’s set of beliefs and opinions that represent the desire for, “changing some elements of the social structure and/ore reward distribution of a society” (11).
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He includes the example of the increase voter base in the form of former slaves, women, and then youth as they become part of an elected officials constituents and therefore enter and have the ability to influence mainstream politics.
3. What are the implications of the Madisonian constitutional design for social movements?
Meyer includes numerous implication of the Madisonian constitutional design on pages 26 and 27 with regards to social movements. A few of its impacts include how the guarantee of civil liberties enables the dissatisfied to take to the public and join others in mass movements. However, in order to gain notice, these activists must be able to develop a large coalition whose, in an effort to reach the most amount of people, message will over time soften. Elected officials will be interested in reacting to public protest as their jobs depend on how well they are able to hear the needs of their constituents. In general, the overall effect of the Madisonian constitutional design ensures that social movements live in a dynamic interaction with the political
Existing within the movement must be a leader or leaders, as well as a large number of committed followers or members. Additionally, social movements have “organizations or coalitions” working as a guiding backbone for collectivity and regulation (Stewart,
The Federalist Paper number 10 by James Madison, illustrates the Constitution's ability to help control and limit the damages caused due to division, by enabling more power to the Government Madison emphasizes on the fact that in any society, social classes will erupt, and people of the similar classes will stay together, opposing the rights of others who aren’t apart of the same social group. Madison intercepts
Public conflict may be triggered by several causes. For one, it may result from the agitation of several groups who believe that what is morally right is violated. Despite the reason behind, agitators seek to challenge the society so that their proposal for social change is accepted. Hence, it is important to understand the reasons why agitators use different strategies to advance their cause and how establishments can control them. For the purposes of this paper, the Boston Tea Party will be analyzed in light of the concept of agitation and establishment. Further, the strategies of the agitators and the establishment will also be provided.
Continuing the metaphor of faction as a disease, Madison labels “[a] republic” as “the cure for which we are seeking”. Madison notes that a republican government differs from pure democracy in that the delegation of the government is smaller and can thus achieve efficient action. Another contrast lies also in the extent to which a republic has influence over a “greater sphere of country”. The passing of public views “through the medium of a chosen body of citizens” allows for refinement of ideas due to the influence of elected officials’ wisdom and is “more consonant to the public good than if pronounced by the people themselves”. To protect against the caprices of wicked men, the number of representatives of the people will be a quantity that stymies the influence of the few but is able to, as Madison states, “guard against the confusion of a multitude”. Madison then references his belief in the common sense and good will of men in that “the suffrages of the people” is likely to result in the election of men most deserving and fit for their roles as representatives and lawmakers. Madison presents an avowal that counters one of the Anti-Federalists’ major grievances: “[t]he federal Constitution forms a happy combination” with “the great and aggregate interests being referred to the national, the local and particular to the State legislatures”; Anti-Federalists feared that a stronger
Throughout history, social movements have continuously formed because of a person who had the courage to stand up against the injustice they witnessed in every day live. When I was a child, I remember feeling as if it takes a superhero-like person to start a social movement. However, I have found that through the use of social media today, any person with a passion for making a change can spark a social movement. Social movements are a powerful way to help people believe that their voice matters and they should stand up for what they believe in. Before the advancement of technology, it took a lot longer for social movements to become prominent in society’s media outlets because of the difficulties of not having enough time in one’s life to
If something isn’t right, there is a way to fix it. Violence of course is never the answer therefore, non-violent protests were started. Non-Violent protesting had a slow start then it spread around the world when it hit media attention. Non-violent protest also had more effectiveness than violent protests. Non-Violent protests may have taken a while, but the results were successful.
A. Philip Randolph use of the idea of mass protest as a vehicle to influence the political views of the federal government.
The Progressive Era was the period of reform and social activism from 1895 to 1920, it was an attempt to get rid of all the ills that had penetrated American society during the Gilded age. The Progressives were people who tried to make the life of the average American better, they believed in the ability of humans to create a better world. Industrial capitalism, burgeoning cities, the influx of immigrants, and the depression of the 1890s were some of the sources of the reform impulse of the era. The Progressives were primarily middle class citizens such as doctors, lawyers, engineers, teachers, businessmen, etc. Many of them were part of the Republican and Democratic parties. They were greatly influenced by the Europeans.The Progressives believed
Rodney King a black man who lived in Las Vegas was severely beaten by four white police officers. The officers were brought into court and tried on charges of assault. The officers were acquitted of the assault charges. Immediately protestors took to the streets, to express their angry over the judge’s decision. Protestors found the ruling to be unfair and was fed up with the ill-treatment. The violent protest turned into a riot. A lot of damage occurred; over 50 people were killed, over 2,300 people injured, 8,000 arrests and estimated over $1 billion in property damage. The riots exposed the police abuse, poverty, and lack of economic opportunity. If it was not for the violent protestors no light would have been shed on the way black were being
(Turner and Killian 1987) cited in (Diani 1992, p. 4) define social movements as a “collectivity acting with some continuity to promote or resist a change in the society or organisation of which it is part. As a collectivity a movement is a group with indefinite and shifting membership and with leadership whose position is determined more by informal response of adherents than by formal procedures for legitimizing authority”. Turner and Killian regard a social movement as a peculiar kind of collective behavior that is contrasted to regularity and institutional behavior. Additionally, Turner believes that social movements do not necessarily coincide with movement organisations, although these organisations can carry out a large part of the movement tasks and it is often help to control and speak for movements (Diani 1992).
There is some debate about the consequences of protest.” The anti-war movement were organizations that held demonstrations about their ideals against the government. The lasting effect of these demonstration were sometimes questioned to be radical or not. This allowed the nation to think about what these organizations had to say and see if they share any similarities to their cause. The student movement first organization; Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) is traced back to Port Huron, Michigan, in 1962, where the basis for the movement known as The Port Huron Statement was created.
In the summer of 1980 Communist Poland was experiencing labor unrest at an unprecedented level. Living standards were still very low, the economy was stagnant, and food shortages and inflation were abundant. The Polish Communist Party was faced with nationwide strikes, and their tactics of buying off workers had failed because there were too many people striking. However, when the strikes spread to the Lenin Shipyard in Gdańsk on August 14th, everything was about to change. The strikers were backed by waves of support from other industrial centers, and the Communist Party was forced to negotiate with them. Under the leadership of Lech Walesa the strikers emerged victorious and the formation of an independent trade union called Solidarity was born.
Researchers classify social movements according to the type of change they seek (Aberle, 1966, Cameron, 1966, Blumer, 1969, as cited in Macionis, 2007). According to John Macionis, a social movement is when people commonly band together to create an organized activity that encourages or discourages social change (Macionis, 2008). In the case of this radical society, Hippies were typically ...
I am a pacifist; I do not believe in nor promote violence. I do, however, promote peaceful protest. The act of civil disobedience, of protesting something that is unjust, unconstitutional is well within our constitutional rights. The right to criticize our government is one that was given, that was fought for by our founding fathers. It is an act that affects our society in a very positive way; peaceful resistance encourages others to criticize a cruel and unfair government. Peaceful protests, strikes, and boycotts have the opportunity to gain the government's attention, to try and stop these so-called "anarchists". When we look back at Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., we see a hero. We see someone who is intelligent, who is not afraid to argue,
having a car or even renting an apartment. Not only were these students being treated as