Activism consists of intentional action to bring about social Social change as a sociological term is defined as, alterations in basic structures of a social group or society. Social change is an ever present phenomenon in social life, but has become especially intense in the modern era. The origins of modern sociology can be traced to attempts to understand the dramatic changes shattering the modern world, political, economic Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek οἰκονομία from οἶκος (oikos, "house") + νόμος (nomos, "custom" or "law"), hence "rules of the house(hold)". Current economic, or environmental The natural environment, commonly referred to simply as the environment, encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally on Earth or some region thereof.[citation needed] change. This action is in support of, or opposition to, one side of an often controversial Controversy is a state of prolonged public dispute or debate, usually concerning a matter of opinion. The word was coined from the Latin controversia, as a composite of controversus – "turned in an opposite direction," from contra – "against" – and vertere – to turn, or versus , hence, "to turn against." argument. In contemporary use, "activism" tends to be a word associated with the actions and ideologies of those on the political left.
The word "activism" is used synonymously Synonyms are different words with identical or very similar meanings. Words that are synonyms are said to be synonymous, and the state of being a synonym is called synonymy. The word comes from Ancient Greek syn ("with") and onoma (ὄνομα) ("name"). The words car and automobile are synonyms. Similarly, if we talk about a with protest A protest expresses a strong reaction of events or situations. The term protest usually now implies a reaction against something, while previously it could also mean a reaction for something. Protesters may organize a protest as a way of publicly and forcefully making their opinions heard in an attempt to influence public opinion or government or dissent Dissent is a sentiment or philosophy of non-agreement or opposition to a prevailing idea or an entity (e.g. an individual or political party which supports such policies). The term's antonyms include agreement, consensus (when all or nearly all parties agree on something) and consent (when one party agrees to a proposition made by another), but activism can take a wide range of forms from writing letters to newspapers or politicians, political campaigning, economic activism Economic activism involves using economic power for change. Both conservative and liberal groups use economic activism to boycott companies and organizations that do not agree with their particular political, religious, or social values. Conversely, it also means purchasing from those companies and organizations that do. The idea behind the such as boycotts A boycott is a form of consumer activism involving the act of voluntarily abstaining from using, buying, or dealing with a person, organization, or country as an expression of protest, usually for political reasons or preferentially patronizing businesses, rallies, street marches A demonstration is a form of nonviolent action by groups of people in favor of a political or other cause, normally consisting of walking in a march and a meeting to hear speakers. Actions such as blockades and sit-ins may also be referred to as demonstrations, strikes Strike action, often simply called a strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to perform work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became important in factories and mines. In most countries, they were quickly made, both work stoppages and hunger strikes A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance or pressure in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke feelings of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. A notably successful hunger strike was that of Mitch Snyder in 1984 who, as a member of the Community, or even guerrilla tactics Guerrilla warfare is irregular warfare, conflicts in which a small group of combatants uses military tactics, like ambushes and raids, to harass a larger and less-mobile traditional army.
In some cases, activism has nothing to do with protest or confrontation.[1] Some religious Religion is the belief in and worship of a god or gods, or a set of beliefs concerning the origin and purpose of the universe. It is commonly regarded as consisting of a person’s relation to God or to gods or spirits. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories associated with their deity or deities, that are or vegetarian Vegetarianism is the practice of following a plant-based diet including fruits, vegetables, cereal grains, nuts, and seeds, mushrooms, with or without dairy products and eggs. A vegetarian does not eat meat, including red meat, game, poultry, fish, crustacea, and shellfish, and may also abstain from by-products of animal slaughter such as animal-/vegan Veganism is a philosophy and lifestyle whose adherents seek to exclude the use of animals for food, clothing, or any other purpose. Vegans endeavor not to use or consume animal products of any kind. The most common reasons for becoming a vegan are human health, ethical commitment or moral conviction concerning animal rights or welfare, the activists try to persuade people to change their behavior directly, rather than persuade governments to change laws. The cooperative movement The history of the cooperative movement concerns the origins and history of cooperatives. Although cooperative arrangements, such as mutual insurance, and principles of cooperation existed long before, the cooperative movement began with the application of cooperative principles to business organization seeks to build new institutions which conform to cooperative principles, and generally does not lobby or protest politically.
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Transformational activism
Transformational activism maintains that people need to transform on the "inside" as well as on the "outside" in order to create any meaningful change in the world.
One example of transformational activism is peacekeeping Peacekeeping is defined by the United Nations as "a unique and dynamic instrument developed by the Organization as a way to help countries torn by conflict create the conditions for lasting peace". It is distinguished from both peacebuilding and peacemaking which, as defined by the United Nations The United Nations Organization or simply United Nations (UN) (Arabic: الأمم المتحدة, French: Organisation des Nations Unies, Chinese: 联合国 / 聯合國, Spanish: Organización de las Naciones Unidas, Russian: Организация Объединённых Наций) Filipino: Organisasyon ng Nagkakaisang mga Bansa is an, is "a way to help countries torn by conflict create conditions for sustainable peace." Peacekeepers monitor and observe peace processes in post-conflict areas and assist ex-combatants in implementing the peace agreements they may have signed. Such assistance comes in many forms, including confidence-building measures, power-sharing arrangements, electoral support, strengthening the rule of law, and economic and social development. Accordingly, UN peacekeepers The Department of Peacekeeping Operations is a department of the United Nations which is charged with the planning, preparation, management and direction of UN peacekeeping operations (often called "Blue Helmets Peacekeeping is defined by the United Nations as "a unique and dynamic instrument developed by the Organization as a way to help countries torn by conflict create the conditions for lasting peace". It is distinguished from both peacebuilding and peacemaking" because of their light blue helmets) can include soldiers, civilian police officers, and other civilian personnel.
Another example is encouraging choices to live in racially diverse communities. Such communities may literally "transform" communities by opening the minds of residents to new ideas, new cultures, new historical perspectives, and a broader view of life that ultimately can benefit social relations.
Another example of transformational activism is transformational economics. This is the idea that you can change the way resources flow in a society by doing inner work. People examine their emotional reactions to what their needs are. This may allow them to see that things they felt they needed are not really needed. This then alters the flow of goods in a society because of the underlying change in needs.
Transformational politics is the field of guiding people to look inwardly what they feel is true power. They may discover that real power is seeing the deep connection of everyone with each other and of being able to tap that place. In this case power is not power over someone, but rather power to unleash collective creativity in creating a new society.
Transformational activism seeks common fundamental values, and then works from there so that all parties are able to get what they want. In the process each party may find their inner landscape and paradigms changing.
Transformational open-sourced activism is the idea that you can tap into the power of mass collaboration and collective creativity in a way that transforms the people involved into more loving, peaceful, compassionate states.[citation needed]
See also
- Community leader A community leader is a designation, often by secondary sources , for a person who is perceived to represent a community. A simple way to understand community leadership is to see it as leadership in, for and by the community. Community ‘is frequently based in place and so is local, although it can also represent a community of common interest,
- Common Dreams Common Dreams NewsCenter, often referred to simply as Common Dreams, is a U.S. based progressive news website. Common Dreams publishes both news stories and editorials. Common Dreams also re-publishes syndicated content from Associated Press, columnists such as the late Molly Ivins, and news stories from a number of mainstream mass-market
- Social movement Social movements are a type of group action. They are large informal groupings of individuals and/or organizations focused on specific political or social issues, in other words, on carrying out, resisting or undoing a social change
- Virtual volunteering Virtual volunteering is a term describing a volunteer who completes tasks, in whole or in part, offsite from the organization being assisted, using the Internet and a home, school, telecenter or work computer or other Internet-connected device. Virtual volunteering is also known as online volunteering, cyber service, telementoring, and
- Social engineering (political science) Social engineering is a discipline in political science that refers to efforts to influence popular attitudes and social behaviors on a large scale, whether by governments or private groups. In the political arena, the counterpart of social engineering is political engineering
- Revolution A revolution is a fundamental change in power or organizational structures that takes place in a relatively short period of time. Its use to refer to political change dates from Galileo's famous De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium. Aristotle described two types of political revolution:
- Rebellion Rebellion is a refusal of obedience or order. It may, therefore, be seen as encompassing a range of behaviors from civil disobedience and mass nonviolent resistance, to violent and organized attempts to destroy an established authority such as a government. Those who participate in rebellions are known as "rebels". A rebel is
- Deprogramming Deprogramming refers to actions that attempt to force a person to abandon allegiance to a religious, political, economic, or social group. Methods and practices typically involve violent kidnapping and coercion. Similar actions, when done without force, are called "exit counseling"
- Fifth column A fifth column is a group of people who clandestinely undermine a larger group, such as a nation, from within, to the aid of an external enemy
- Restorationism
- Eccentricity (behavior) In popular usage, eccentricity refers to unusual or odd behavior on the part of an individual. This behavior would typically be perceived as unusual or unnecessary, without being demonstrably maladaptive. Eccentricity is contrasted with "normal" behavior, the nearly universal means by which individuals in society solve given problems and
- Ochlocracy Ochlocracy or mob rule is government by mob or a mass of people, or the intimidation of constitutional authorities. As a pejorative for majoritarianism, it is akin to the Latin phrase mobile vulgus meaning "the fickle crowd", from which the English term "mob" was originally derived in the 1680s
Types
- Civil disobedience Civil disobedience is the active refusal to obey certain laws, demands, and commands of a government, or of an occupying international power. Civil disobedience is usually, but not always, defined as being nonviolent resistance. In its most nonviolent form it could be said that it is compassion in the form of respectful disagreement. One of its
- Community building Community building is a field of practices directed toward the creation or enhancement of community among individuals within a regional area or with a common interest. It is sometimes encompassed under the field of community development
- Activism industry The activism industry is composed of organizations and individuals who make a living from activism, involvement in action to bring about change. The number of organizations who employ people to perform this work is sufficiently large that Activism is now a job classification.[citation needed] Movements across the political spectrum can be
- Conflict transformation Conflict transformation is the process by which conflicts, such as ethnic conflict, are transformed into peaceful outcomes. It differs from conflict resolution and conflict management approaches in that it recognises "that contemporary conflicts require more than the reframing of positions and the identification of win-win outcomes. The very
- Cooperative A cooperative is a business organization owned and operated by a group of individuals for their mutual benefit. Cooperatives are defined by the International Co-operative Alliance's Statement on the Co-operative Identity as autonomous associations of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social, and cultural needs and movement
- Craftivism Craftivism is a form of activism, typically incorporating elements of anti-capitalism, environmentalism or third-wave feminism, that is centered around practices of craft - most notably knitting. Practitioners are known as craftivists
- Voluntary simplicity Simple living is a lifestyle characterized by consuming only that which is required to sustain life. Adherents may choose simple living for a variety of personal reasons, such as spirituality, health, increase in 'quality time' for family and friends, reducing their personal ecological footprint, stress reduction, personal taste or frugality. E. F
- Economic activism Economic activism involves using economic power for change. Both conservative and liberal groups use economic activism to boycott companies and organizations that do not agree with their particular political, religious, or social values. Conversely, it also means purchasing from those companies and organizations that do. The idea behind the
- Boycott A boycott is a form of consumer activism involving the act of voluntarily abstaining from using, buying, or dealing with a person, organization, or country as an expression of protest, usually for political reasons
- Divestment (a.k.a. Disinvestment) Disinvestment, sometimes referred to as divestment, refers to the use of a concerted economic boycott, with specific emphasis on liquidating stock, to pressure a government, industry, or company towards a change in policy, or in the case of governments, even regime change. The term was first used in the 1980s, most commonly in the United States,
- Franchise activism Franchise activism refers to forms of activism carried out by autonomous individuals or groups in different localities under the same name. This name usually describes an idea put into action rather than the mandate of a single organization. Some examples of franchise activism include:
- Lobbying
- Media activism
- Non-violent confrontation
- Peace activist and Peace movement
- Political campaigning
- Propaganda
- Protest
- Strike action
- Youth activism
Notes
- ^ Elliot Miller writes of "the world of New Age politics and activism (i.e., the move toward 'planetary transformation')". See Elliot, Miller. "Tracking the "Aquarian Conspiracy" (Part One)" (PDF). CRI Statement DN065. Rancho Santa Margarita, California: Christian Research Institute. p. 8. http://www.equipresources.org/atf/cf/{9C4EE03A-F988-4091-84BD-F8E70A3B0215}/DN065.pdf. Retrieved 2010-06-24. "[...] the world of New Age politics and activism (i.e., the move toward 'planetary transformation')""
References
| This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. Please improve this article by introducing more precise citations where appropriate. (February 2008) |
- Randy Shaw, The Activist's Handbook: A Primer for the 1990s and Beyond (University of California Press, 1996). ISBN 0-520-20317-8
- David Walls, The Activist's Almanac: The Concerned Citizen's Guide to the Leading Advocacy Organizations in America (Simon hacked & Schuster/Fireside, 1993). ISBN 0-671-74634-0
- Victor Gold, Liberwocky (Thomas Nelson, 2004). ISBN 978-0785260578
External links
Categories: Activism | Activists | Community organizing
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Tue, 24 Aug 2010 03:37:53 GMT+00:00
Baltimore Sun Meisner, who once considered his own run for public office, has walked away jaded from his days of activism . A self-described avid Democrat, ...
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A unique depiction of meaningful collective activism by teenagers
Wed, 31 Mar 2010 11:39:03 PDT
... artistic activism artistic interpretation calamity caribbean charity death developing countries earthquake emotion haiti human experience loss ... forum-network.org.
