Author Archives: David S. Meyer

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About David S. Meyer

Author and professor of Sociology and Political Science at the University of California, Irvine

The mask

Tens of thousands of masked demonstrators turned up in Hong Kong in response to a new ban on wearing a mask in a protest. The show of masked solidarity was completely predictable. Outlawing the mask was all about intimidation, and … Continue reading →

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It’s not about Greta (about Greta!)

Heroic Swedish teen Greta Thunberg delivered a blistering address at the UN’s Climate Action Summit. It’s worth watching all the way through. In less than five minutes, Greta projects a sense of urgency and righteous anger. She’s right, of course, … Continue reading →

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The debate protesters care about DACA

Protesters briefly interrupted the Democratic candidates presidential debate last night, knocking former Vice President Joe Biden a little further off his rhythm, and sending weary viewers to the Internet with one question: what were they yelling? It was hard to … Continue reading →

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Repression/Concession Digression and Hong Kong

Social protest movements are messy collections of people and groups with different ideas about what they want and how to get it. They tend to do best when they can maintain some kind of unified presence in relation to authorities … Continue reading →

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Labor Day 2019, reposted from the past, with an afterword on the day

Successful politicians exploit, buy off, and sell out the movements that sometimes buoy their campaigns.  This American story is an old one, and it’s one that leaves activists disappointed, wary, and cynical, even especially about the politicians who do the most for … Continue reading →

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When People Power works

The extraordinary impact of massive and sustained peaceful assemblies in Puerto Rico stirs the heart and the imagination. It also forced Governor Ricardo Rosselló to resign. If it continues–because most grievances remain–it may do much more. When nearly 900 pages … Continue reading →

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How to claim someone else’s platform….or not.

#NotTodayManBun is my favorite hashtag of 2019, so far. Aidan Cook, of Direct Action Everywhere (DxE), rushed the stage at Moveon’s Big Ideas Forum, grabbed the mic from California Senator Kamala Harris, and tried to talk about his bigger idea. … Continue reading →

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Arthur as outcome

I was surprised and delighted to see that Mr. Ratburn, a demanding and very caring third grade teacher in the cartoon town of Ellwood City, has found love and gotten married. Mr. Ratburn is mostly a supporting character in PBS’s … Continue reading →

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Alyssa Milano, Lysistrata, and the sex strike for reproductive rights

Actress/activist and Twitter master, Alyssa Milano, is rightly concerned about the contagion of new state laws restricting access to abortion. Sniffing the prospects of a conservative Catholic majority on the Supreme Court eager to overrule Roe v. Wade, Republican state legislators … Continue reading →

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On the day of a global climate strike, youth and activism

Below is a post I offered at The Conversation last week, where you will find some comments. Unlike almost everything else on this site, the entry below benefited from the good attentions of an editor, Emily Schwartz Greco. A gaggle … Continue reading →

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