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 Fractious Politics of Education

Hundreds of California teachers, declaring a state of emergency, demonstrated in Sacramento yesterday, marched on the Capitol building yesterday.  According to The Boston Globe (!?!), more than 100 rallied in the Capitol rotunda, resulting in 65 arrests. There’s a lot … Continue reading

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Professionalizing the Tea Party

Can you keep the grass(roots) growing when you take it inside? Judson Phillips, founder of the for-profit Tea Party Nation, has announced that he intends to take a salary out of the organization.  Tea Party Nation has produced a couple … Continue reading

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Osama, Obama, O.J., and Hasselhoff

When US forces killed Osama Bin Laden, they dramatically shook up domestic politics in the United States, but, really, nothing has changed. For the Tea Party, having President Obama announce Bin Laden’s death is an extraordinary stroke of bad luck.   … Continue reading

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Authenticity at the Town Hall Meetings?

Republican members of Congress who supported Paul Ryan’s budget plan (almost all of them) are having to defend their votes against hostile crowds at town meetings.  (Note that there is a lot to get angry about in this budget plan.  … Continue reading

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Honoring Bill Gamson

I’m off to the University of Notre Dame this long weekend.  Their Center for the Study of Social Movements will be honoring William A. Gamson with the John D. McCarthy Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Scholarship of Social Movements.  … Continue reading

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Are Lawyers Different?: Does the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) Deserve a Defense?

Several large gay rights organizations (e.g.) celebrated the decision of King & Spalding, a large law firm, to forgo work for the House of Representatives.  When the Obama administration declined to defend the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act … Continue reading

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Where’s the Peace Movement? (Protest is a blunt instrument)

It’s rare that social scientists studying protest get much attention from the mainstream press, opinion or otherwise.  Although the scholars may get a whiff of excitement from the attention, they’re usually frustrated by the distortions and oversimplifications that seem inevitable–almost. … Continue reading

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Reexamining Organization/s

From the comments, olderwoman writes: Your theoretical point is spot on, but your empirical point about Wisconsin is wrong, and wrong in a way that reflects back to a refinement of theory. Empirically, protests in Wisconsin were organized by a … Continue reading

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Anger, Organization, and the Myth of Spontaneity

When protest explodes/emerges/erupts/ after a politician does–or threatens–something unappealing, we talk about the unrest as a response. So, we saw disruptions at town meetings across the country in 2009 about President Obama’s health care reforms, and we saw large demonstrations … Continue reading

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Clustering Issues: Environmentalism and GLBT Politics

Politico’s Alex Guillen reported earlier this week that young environmentalists were consulting with gay and lesbian activists to figure out how to be more effective, especially in pushing President Obama. The GLBT movement has won–and is winning–several important victories, so … Continue reading

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