Essay: Rethinking global civil society and the public sphere in the age of pro-democracy movements
Pro-democracy movements have recently emerged in various places worldwide. The Pots and Pans Revolution (Iceland), Arab Spring, 15M and the Occupy Movement, Yo Soy132, and the Gezi Park, Hong Kong or Nuit Debout protests, are all movements which, despite their differences, share a number of dynamics...
| Published in: | Journal of Civil Society |
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| Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
| Language: | English |
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Taylor & Francis
2017
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/10234/170071 https://doi.org/10.1080/17448689.2017.1359886 |
| Summary: | Pro-democracy movements have recently emerged in various places worldwide. The Pots and Pans Revolution (Iceland), Arab Spring, 15M and the Occupy Movement, Yo Soy132, and the Gezi Park, Hong Kong or Nuit Debout protests, are all movements which, despite their differences, share a number of dynamics, links, frames and repertoires. Paradoxically, in the academic field, we have witnessed a strong critical positioning against the concept ‘global civil society’. The objective of this article is to reflect on the utility of this concept once again in light of recent developments and to to respond to some sceptical positions. To meet this objective, a dialogue is established between civil society theories and progress made in the field of social movements. The public sphere notion (particularly its transnational dimension) becomes especially relevant for our discussion. |
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