DWA 257 Social Movements in Comparative and Transnational Perspective

When and why do people mobilize to make demands against their states and societies? What contextual conditions enable such mobilization, and under what conditions does mobilization decline? When and how to movements spread and diffusion their ideas globally? Finally, do movements actually matter for bringing about change? This course is designed to gain leverage on these questions by surveying an eclectic literature on social movements. The goal of the course is to better understand a series of movements that have captured the world’s attention in various moments of time, while developing the conceptual skills that provide an introduction to social movement theory. In doing so, we will take an in-depth empirical look at movements for civil rights, women’s rights, LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) rights, and immigrant rights. An analysis of these movements across multiple domestic and transnational contexts should give us an angle with which to critically assess the theoretical concepts we will engage. We will touch on a broad array of movements in our weekly current events seminars, and you are welcome to explore other movements that you find interesting in your written work.