Student Movements and the Power of Disruption

<span class="abs_content">We seek to clarify the nature of militant student protest by proposing a theoretical distinction between two types of student-movement-initiated disruption that are too-often viewed as similar: structural disruption within educational institutions, centered...

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Autores principales:	Gabriela Gonzalez Vaillant, Michael Schwartz
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Coordinamento SIBA 2019
Materias:	disruption leverage occupation power student movements Political science (General) JA1-92
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/a37e90ecd7ae48b0aeaac7b6a3e624c6
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:a37e90ecd7ae48b0aeaac7b6a3e624c62021-11-21T15:11:40ZStudent Movements and the Power of Disruption1972-76232035-660910.1285/i20356609v12i1p112https://doaj.org/article/a37e90ecd7ae48b0aeaac7b6a3e624c62019-07-01T00:00:00Zhttp://siba-ese.unisalento.it/index.php/paco/article/view/20664https://doaj.org/toc/1972-7623https://doaj.org/toc/2035-6609<span class="abs_content">We seek to clarify the nature of militant student protest by proposing a theoretical distinction between two types of student-movement-initiated disruption that are too-often viewed as similar: structural disruption within educational institutions, centered around students' refusal to perform their role as such; and invasive disruption of other institutions, in whose functioning students do not have a routinized role. By drawing on a newspaper-based database of student-initiated protest in Argentina, triangulated by analysis of secondary accounts of these events and in-depth interviews with the activists who planned and implemented the protest, we seek to understand the strategic logic that leads to disruptive protest and to explore the differing dynamics that characterize structural and invasive disruption. Both structural and invasive protest by students (and other organized social groupings) can successfully interfere with the normal functioning of society and can therefore create usable leverage against institutional power holders. However, the tactical choice and the outcome of such confrontations derives from a complex equation of situational variables. The variables specific to student protest include the institutional target designated for disruption, whether the target has the formal authority and/or resources to grant the demanded reform, whether non-students who work or otherwise participate in the targeted structure support or oppose the demands and tactics of the students, and whether the protesting students have active allies among various non-student stakeholders. We conclude that structural disruption on campus can be a surer and less difficult-to-implement strategy, that it can generate leverage without the creation of alliances with outside groups and can force concessions if the administration has the authority and resources to deliver meaningful reform. In many circumstances, however, the institutional educational leadership cannot deliver meaningful concessions, and stu-dents therefore consider invasive disruption of neighboring structures aimed at delivering more comprehensive reforms, and consequently face far more complicated strategic and tactical decisions if they wish to generate productive leverage. These strategic and tactical choices rely on congealed experience from current and prior student protest and their capacity to generate alliances mediated by their understanding of what can succeed.</span><br />Gabriela Gonzalez VaillantMichael SchwartzCoordinamento SIBAarticledisruptionleverageoccupationpowerstudent movementsPolitical science (General)JA1-92ENPartecipazione e Conflitto, Vol 12, Iss 1, Pp 112-141 (2019)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	disruption leverage occupation power student movements Political science (General) JA1-92
spellingShingle	disruption leverage occupation power student movements Political science (General) JA1-92 Gabriela Gonzalez Vaillant Michael Schwartz Student Movements and the Power of Disruption
description	<span class="abs_content">We seek to clarify the nature of militant student protest by proposing a theoretical distinction between two types of student-movement-initiated disruption that are too-often viewed as similar: structural disruption within educational institutions, centered around students' refusal to perform their role as such; and invasive disruption of other institutions, in whose functioning students do not have a routinized role. By drawing on a newspaper-based database of student-initiated protest in Argentina, triangulated by analysis of secondary accounts of these events and in-depth interviews with the activists who planned and implemented the protest, we seek to understand the strategic logic that leads to disruptive protest and to explore the differing dynamics that characterize structural and invasive disruption. Both structural and invasive protest by students (and other organized social groupings) can successfully interfere with the normal functioning of society and can therefore create usable leverage against institutional power holders. However, the tactical choice and the outcome of such confrontations derives from a complex equation of situational variables. The variables specific to student protest include the institutional target designated for disruption, whether the target has the formal authority and/or resources to grant the demanded reform, whether non-students who work or otherwise participate in the targeted structure support or oppose the demands and tactics of the students, and whether the protesting students have active allies among various non-student stakeholders. We conclude that structural disruption on campus can be a surer and less difficult-to-implement strategy, that it can generate leverage without the creation of alliances with outside groups and can force concessions if the administration has the authority and resources to deliver meaningful reform. In many circumstances, however, the institutional educational leadership cannot deliver meaningful concessions, and stu-dents therefore consider invasive disruption of neighboring structures aimed at delivering more comprehensive reforms, and consequently face far more complicated strategic and tactical decisions if they wish to generate productive leverage. These strategic and tactical choices rely on congealed experience from current and prior student protest and their capacity to generate alliances mediated by their understanding of what can succeed.</span><br />
format	article
author	Gabriela Gonzalez Vaillant Michael Schwartz
author_facet	Gabriela Gonzalez Vaillant Michael Schwartz
author_sort	Gabriela Gonzalez Vaillant
title	Student Movements and the Power of Disruption
title_short	Student Movements and the Power of Disruption
title_full	Student Movements and the Power of Disruption
title_fullStr	Student Movements and the Power of Disruption
title_full_unstemmed	Student Movements and the Power of Disruption
title_sort	student movements and the power of disruption
publisher	Coordinamento SIBA
publishDate	2019
url	https://doaj.org/article/a37e90ecd7ae48b0aeaac7b6a3e624c6
work_keys_str_mv	AT gabrielagonzalezvaillant studentmovementsandthepowerofdisruption AT michaelschwartz studentmovementsandthepowerofdisruption
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Student Movements and the Power of Disruption

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