Soc 61.6 Social Movements

How do social networks affect social movement participation? This is a complex question. It seems to have much to do with both the characteristics of the movement and the networks. In general, though, networks can function in two ways: as conduits of information (thus playing an important role in socialization and framing) and as the basis of solidarity (thus making some people more likely to participate and less likely to leave a movement). Think about the social movement you are studying. Where do the participants come from? Are the activists also participants in other social movements?

Dear Members of the Brooklyn College Community,

I am pleased to announce the third lecture in the Carol Zicklin Lectures in Interdisciplinary Studies, which Dr. Robert P. Moses will deliver on March 26 at 1:30 p.m. in Gershwin Hall. Dr. Moses' lecture is entitled "Civil Rights and Constitutional People." The lecture is offered in cooperation with the The Ethyle R. Wolfe Institute for the Humanities, the Department of Africana Studies, ERIS, the School of Education, Phi Beta Kappa, the National Black Science Students Organization, the Teacher Academy, the Department of History, the Department of Political Science, and the Honors Academy.

Robert P. (Bob) Moses is the founder and president of the Algebra Project Inc., a national, non-profit organization that uses math as an organizing tool to ensure quality public school education for every child in America. Dr. Moses directs the project's curriculum development program while also teaching weekly algebra courses at Edison High School in Miami, Florida. He serves as an Eminent Scholar at the Center for Urban Education & Innovation at Florida International University in Miami. Dr. Moses is the co-author of Radical Equations: Civil Rights from Mississippi to the Algebra Project. He was a pivotal organizer for the civil rights movement as a field secretary for the Student Non-violent Coordinating committee (SNCC), and was director of SNCC's Mississippi Project. He also served as the Co-Director of the Council of Federated Organizations (COFO), a group that comprised all the major civil rights organizations working in Mississippi in the 1960s. Dr. Moses received a Masters Degree in Philosophy from Harvard University and is the recipient of numerous honorary doctorates.

Dean Donna F. Wilson

One important part of collective identity construction in social movements involves using aspects of social identities to make political claims. That is, the decision of movement activists to make some aspect of social identity a political issue is a part of how identity as strategy works. Perhaps the most concise formulation of this process is "the personal is political." Reflect on the meaning of this phrase as it applies to the movement you are studying. Post a comment to this page with your thoughts about how the personal is political in your movement.

Bernstein identifies three analytic dimensions of identity in social movements: identity for empowerment, identity as goal, identity as strategy. Her work demonstrates at least two of the ways that identity as strategy works. Identity for critique confronts mainstream culture. Identity for education challenges the mainstream perception of the minority.

The authors suggest that identity is a process not a thing and that most of us, most of the time, have multiple identities. Some of these identities derive from our participation in social movements. Recall that social movements simultaneously engage both in claims-making and collective meaning-making. Movement participants are socialized to see themselves in particular ways as a result of their attachment to the movement (organizations and other participants) and through the collective behavior of the movement (e.g., protest and ritual).

Think of a contemporary social movement and some of the stories told my movement participants. Identify one narrative from the movement and briefly summarize it. What role does this story play in attracting participants to the movement or in motivating them to act? How does 'narrative' explain the collective meaning-making differently than 'framing'?

The three core framing tasks are diagnosis, prognosis and motivation. In small groups, I'd like you to try to construct a frame for a potential social movement issue. I'll assign each group an issue. Deliberate about how you might frame the issue if you were movement activists. Write a paragraph or so in which you accomplish the three core framing tasks. Write the message as if you were communicating with movement participants (or potential participants). Post your message in the comments to this page. Remember to include everyone's name.

1. economic inequality

2. global warming
   

I've fixed the links to the framing readings assigned on the schedule page. Use the contact form (website category) if you are still having problems accessing them.

On Tuesday, Feb. 19, the B.C. Anti-War Coalition is planning a teach-in/speak-out, The War on Terror and the Future of Democracy. As we are studying social movements, this event is an excellent example of what movement organizations do. If you attend one of the events of the day and post a comment on this page about it, you'll receive two participation points.

I'm a member of the faculty caucus of BCAW, so I'll be there for most of the day.