David S. Meyer
I'm a professor of sociology and political science at the University of California, Irvine. I've been thinking, and writing about, protest politics for almost ever. This site offers comments on contemporary events, informed (I hope) by knowing something about history and about the academic study of social movements.
Monthly Archives: June 2012
Rights and facts on the ground
The Supreme Court’s ruling to uphold the Affordable Care Act means that Governor Mitt Romney, by campaigning to repeal the Act, is promising to take health insurance away from 30 million people, none in Massachusetts. This is far tougher than … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged don't ask don't tell, GLBT, Japanese internment, military, Mitt Romney, red scare, rights, Supreme Court, war
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Starving postal workers
Ten current and former postal employees stopped eating yesterday in Washington, DC, starting a hunger strike to protest continuing cutbacks at the United States Postal Service. Organized by Community and Postal Workers United, they do not plan to starve themselves … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Benjamin Franklin, Fedex, government, hunger strike, labor, mail, postal workers, Postmaster General, private sector, UPS
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Defectors and dissident elites: rifts in the campaign against gay marriage
When David Blankenhorn changed his mind about same sex marriage, the New York Times was eager to give him space on its op-ed page to explain why. Blankenhorn has been a stalwart in the battle against gay marriage, testifying as … Continue reading
Lucy Lawless protests Arctic oil drilling: Her courage will change the world
Without sword or chakram, actor Lucy Lawless occupied the Noble Explorer, an oil-drilling ship docked in Auckland last February. With seven other Greenpeace activists, she tried to stop the ship from leaving port until she was finally arrested after 77 … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Auckland, celebrity, environment, Greenpeace, Lucy Lawless, New Zealand, oil, Shell Oil
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Risk, Repression, and Response in Russia
Tens of thousands of Russians took to the streets in Moscow, calling for the ouster of President Vladimir Putin, and demanding new elections. This is just days after President Putin raised the costs of protesting by announcing fines of up … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged bandwagon, demonstration, mobilization, Moscow, Putin, repression, Russia
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Froze and reversed the nuclear arms race?
Thirty years ago today, one million people marched in the streets of New York City to protest the nuclear arms race in general and the policies of Ronald Reagan in particular. Organized around a “nuclear freeze” proposal, the demonstration was … Continue reading
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Tagged arms control, cold war, nuclear freeze, pacifists, peace movement, Ronald Reagan, Russia, Soviet Union
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A tactic is a tactic
Greenpeace is innovating new tactics, an excellent piece by Kim Murphy in the weekend LA Times reports, developing a style of performance that is a departure from blocking whalers in port. We’ll come back to this, but first let’s talk … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged environment, Greenpeace, guerrilla theater, oil drilling, performance, PETA, pornography, Russia, Shell Oil
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