SOC 98mc: Protest and the State

Semester: 

Spring

Offered: 

2016

Social movement protests challenging state policy, legitimacy and leadership have become a central feature of American political life. This tutorial explores major protest episodes in the United States, emphasizing historical trajectories and movement precedents. Four major trajectories will be considered: (1) the Civil Rights Movements of the 1950s and 1960s, and Black Lives Matter activism; (2) 1960s student movements and 2000s antiwar activism; (3) early 20thcentury US labor movements, and anti-globalization and Occupy Wall Street activism; and (4) suffragist and early feminist movements, and the women's movement of the 1960s and 1970s and contemporary LGBTQ activism. Students will conduct an independent research project on a movement of their choosing (not necessarily one covered in the syllabus) using the conceptual and methodological tools of sociology – archival research, content analysis, interviews, and/or ethnography. In addition to learning about issues of protest and the state, the tutorial will be dedicated to exploring issues in research design and methods. Several weeks will be devoted to student presentations and workshopping, as students develop an independent research project with original data collection.

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