Active citizenship in Southern Europe. Framing protest, political participation and civic engagement
Panel proposal for: PSA 64th Annual International Conference, 14 – 16 April 2014, The Midland Hotel, Manchester
Panel convenors: Cristiano Bee (University of Surrey), Stavroula Chrona (University of Surrey).
(Standing Group on Southern European Politics, ECPR)
This panel proposal aims at gathering empirical information regarding non-institutionalised forms of political participation and civic engagement in Southern Europe. Active citizenship is traditionally seen as the dynamic engagement of the civil society with the institutional levels. As research shows, it is considered essential for providing input legitimacy to current systems of governance. However, recent events prove evidence of the fact that non institutionalised bottom up processes and pressures that are currently characterising a number of Southern European countries bring in new elements to the analysis of active citizenship. This is a key issue that, we believe, requires further investigation, by looking into more details at the implications of new structured forms of mobilisation aimed at a profound social and political change, and ultimately at delegitimising existing political structures. The present context, therefore, is marked by a number of political, social and cultural dynamics that signify resurgence of political participation in apparently non organised ways that in reality follow very structured patterns. The recent protests against the politics of austerity that took place in Greece, for example, show the emergence of forms of mobilisation that are clearly contextual to the enhancing of the euro-crisis and the effects it has produced. These have the aim to radically challenge, and ultimately change, the current political system. On a different pattern, the Turkish protests that started on 28 May 2013 to contest the urban development of Gezi Park or the former Spanish protests that took place in 2011, prove evidence of the highly politicised nature of mobilisation and also of the changing nature of active citizenship in Europe. In all cases, even if these initially appeared to be unorganised forms of contestation, they then became structured bottom-up processes entailing a wide mobilisation from the civil society with the aim of challenging the current political system. This panel explores new dynamics that shape protest, political participation and civic engagement in Southern Europe and invites paper proposals focused around the transformation of the concept of active citizenship.
Some of the key questions that the panel seeks to answer are:
- How can we explain the new power assumed by social media in structuring political mobilisation?
- How successful are recent protests in achieving their aims?
- What are the motivational factors underlying political participation and active citizenship?
- What are the key social and public problems that motivate the civil society to engage in social movements?
- What are the institutional policy responses to growing protests in Southern Europe?
- How are traditional media portraying current and past protests?
The panel is proposed on behalf of the ECPR Standing Group in Southern European Politics.
Abstracts to be sent by 23/10/2013 to c.bee@surrey.ac.uk
