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[Christian Davenport]

I Really Don't Approve of How Some of You Protest Your Subjugation: Of Movements, Counter-Movements and Meaning

7/28/2020

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Like many of you, I have been transfixed by the events in Portland.  The tactics being employed by both sides - in response to one another.  The actors involved - from locals to those from other parts of the nation.  The news and social media coverage of what is and what is not making it into the popular imagination/awareness.  

At the same time, I have been amazed by the lack of understanding regarding how contentious politics generally plays out.  No one is really to blame for this... Actually, academics are partly to blame for this. Much of what we have written and talked about is not intended for mass consumption and thus when something like Portland contention happens, there is really no resource that someone could use to figure out what is what as well as who is who.

Given this, I thought it would be useful to identify some of what the extensive research on the topic teaches us.  Feel free to keep this up on your screen as you look at the news: 


  • A protest event and a social movement are not one thing, they are not one group, the participants are not of one motivation, there is rarely a single tactic that is used.  What you see in the picture/any picture is one fragment of the whole event.  Zoom into the picture - away from the front row.  Keep going back and then back further.  Different things are going on at different points but they are all "together".  Or, are they?
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Here is a link to one of my explorations of a protest/protest policing event.
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  • In contrast, the government side of the contentious interaction (i.e., counter-movements) is generally much more unified in all the dimensions noted above - at least those deployed to face off against protestors. There may be some variation but the government is generally able to swap folks out in a more effective way than protestors.
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  • Who shows up on the protestor side? Different types of people: the committed, the converted, the thrill seeker, the informant, the provocateur, the voyeur, the novice. Each of them likely has a different conception of why they attend, what they are willing to do, why and how far they are willing to go.  
  • Who shows up on the states side? those deployed and those who volunteer. While there might be some variation here, I would again suggest that there is less variation than what exists on the protestor side because of a variety of filters: i.e., a tolerance for order taking and training, desire to carry a weapon, etc.
  • What protest and police actions gets amplified (covered and distributed to a larger number of people)?  Those that are the most violent (what bleeds still leads), those taking place closest to media, those that are the loudest and those that are often the most bizarre relative to that which is normalized over time.
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  • What should be amplified? The average sentiment and/or original intent of the aggrieved.  Of course, claims making efforts evolve over time.  New topics come up. People change their opinion.  There are no census takers at a protest event but perhaps we should think of something like that.  Would that not be the most straightforward way to understand what is going on?  Why just listen to the spokesperson or the person with the mic?  
  • Will you as the observer/consumer agree with everything that is done?  No. Indeed, you might think that the rage that you see someone engaged in or what you perceive as wanton criminality is unnecessary or ineffective for communicating the desired point.  As you begin to judge though, consider the variation noted above and then consider contextualizing the activity not only within the situation confronted on the street but also within the situation of the person's whole life up to that point.  We would like simple and straightforward explanations for people's actions but these are rarely found.  Rage or bliss might be what is both most natural and most appropriate in a given situation but this should not lead to a wholesale dismissal/approval of a protest event or an episode of protest policing for that matter.  We need to view all of the events and evaluate them together.  Some of this appears to be missed in the current context.  There appears to be some unspoken metric used to evaluate as well as judge the activities of those protesting anti-police violence.  People in diverse venues appear to be saying: I Really Don't Approve of How Some of You Protest Your Subjugation. But, this is a difficult position to maintain.  Where we these people when the violence was being enacted?  How would they respond to the same historical pattern of abuses if directed against them and their community?  What is appropriate, right and just as Charles Tilly or Sid Tarrow would ask us?  Who gets to make that call?  These are the discussions we need to have as a community.  
  • Should you hold protestors and police accountable for what takes place at relevant events?  Yes.  But, before you do, consider two things. First, you need to make sure that what happened actually happened. Agents provocateur are sent to protests in order to do things that make protestors look bad - justifying government behavior. What you think is a protestor might not actually be.  It rarely goes the other way with a police officer actually being a member of the challenging institution.  Second, you need to make sure that you are not following the sideshow as opposed to the main event - has the protest activity (i.e., looting and property damage) come to occupy a large percentage of the actions undertaken or the time spent by protestors or has the police activity (i.e., pepper spraying and rubber bullets) come to occupy a large percentage of the actions undertaken or the time spent by police.  
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One day Congressman John Lewis Came to my Job

7/23/2020

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For three fantastic years I ran a project with Michelle Bellino as Co-Director and Ashley Bates as basically everything called the Conflict and Peace Initiative under the International Institute at the University of Michigan.  We had a broad commitment to creating cathartic events which provoked individuals to think about political conflict as well as peace.  We also had a broad commitment to working with a large number of individuals to get as many eyes, ears and hands on something as possible.  

​In this context, we focused in on trying to get Congressman John Lewis to come to the University of Michigan to discuss his graphic novel March.  In many respects, this was a great fit for our triad of attention to graphic novels (adding to Art Spiegelman's Maus and Joe Sacco's Palestine who were each brought in separate events).  It was something that touched upon conflict as it depicted not only the anti-black discrimination and repression of the period but also the immense effort of the civil rights movement taken against these activities/institutions.  

The task was not easy.  We needed some money for he and his team were not going to be free.  We thus reached out and worked with the King-Chavez-Parks Visiting Professors Program as part of the regular Penny Stamps Distinguished Speaker Series. Additional support is provided by the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts; Department of Psychology; Department of Political Science; Institute for the Humanities; National Center for Institutional Diversity; Office of Community-Engaged Academic Learning; Rackham Graduate School; and Office of Research.  

We also wanted to push past the usual dynamic of just having someone come in to give a talk and then leave.  We wanted the keynote to simply be part of a larger wave of attention/awareness/activity/thought - this we called "Marching Forward".  Toward this end, Michelle worked on putting together a teaching/reading guide so that people could think about how to teach about the topic.  Book clubs started to be created by diverse institutions/individuals in order to prepare them for what was coming.  We put together a research and scholarship symposium in order to take advantage of all the local expertise that existed on repression and resistance.  Someone even facilitated a comic contest so that the local community could show what they could do.  The flyer itself was a work of art.

The events involved were incredible.  Once the momentum was started, the whole community got involved:


“Get in the Way” Free Public Screening (5:10pm, Thursday, September 21, 2017): In place of the previously scheduled talk by Congressman John Lewis, Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell, the Penny Stamps School of Art & Design will present a free screening of the PBS Documentary “Get in the Way” at the Michigan Theater. This 2017 film chronicles the journey of civil rights hero, congressman, and human rights champion John Lewis.

Non-Violent Action Workshop (10am-5pm, September 24, 2017): Learn about national and international examples of nonviolent movements; key research about the effectiveness and outcomes of nonviolent movements; strategies and tactics; and different roles and leadership within nonviolent movements. Free and open to all U-M undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, and staff.  Lunch and snacks will be provided.

“Over/come(ing)” Art Series Opening with Juliet Seignious (October 6, 2017): Please join the Office of Community-Engaged Academic Learning (CEAL) on Friday, October 6, 4:30-6pm for an art exhibition inspired by the graphic novel series March. Juliet’s stunning art evoke the connections between past and current social justice and civil rights protests. Please RSVP to talsabah@umich.edu.

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Horizons of the Racial Justice Movement (4-7pm, November 1, 2017): This event will bring together multiple generations of black activists who attended the University of Michigan and fought for racial justice from 1970 to present. (1014 Tisch Hall, Ann Arbor, MI).

Center for the Education of Women Spectrum of Advocacy and Activism Symposium (8:30am- 7:30pm, November 15, 2017): This event will demonstrate how a person’s activism can change over time, how advocacy is tied to a person’s context and situational power, and how partnering with diverse perspectives can strengthen advocacy and activism efforts. Health outcomes has been selected as the theme for this year’s symposium. Events will be held in the Michigan League and Rackham Auditorium. See the CEW website for details.

Blood at the Root (7:30pm, Thursday, November 16, 2017): This play, performed at the School of Music, Theater and Dance, is based on the true case of the Jena Six in 2006. It explores the nature of racial bias and whether justice is truly blind. (Arthur Miller Theater, 1226 Murfin Ave, Ann Arbor, MI 48109)

“I Am Not Your Negro” Screening (November 21, 2017): Join the Interfaith Council for Peace and Justice (ICPJ) at 7pm on Nov. 21 at Ann Arbor Friends Meeting House (1420 Hill Street) for a free and public screening and discussion of this powerful documentary film. Filmmaker Raoul Peck imagines the book that James Baldwin never finshed about his three assassinated friends, Medgar Evers, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King. Baldwin’s deeply personal notes for the project have never been published before.

Comics as a Social Justice Medium (1-2:30pm, November 27, 2017): Nate Powell, the graphic artist behind March will give a presentation followed by a 30 minute Q&A. (Ann Arbor District Library, 343 South 5th Ave., Ann Arbor)

This outpouring was in part a testament to the pull of Congressman Lewis and the power of his graphic novel in captivating/educating but it was also a testament to the various members of the community who stepped up and in.  The event took a village to create it for the village to experience it and perhaps beyond this specific one to yours.  This was event precisely the kind of energy that was needed then but it was also the kind of energy that we need now.

By the time of the event (provided in the link below) people were so jazzed that extra venues needed to be identified so that it could be shown remotely.  
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I write about this now because the passing of Congressman Lewis made me reflect on his life as well as the fact that I was honored to get a chance to meet him.  I also write about this because it revealed to me an example of what kinds of events we might need to put together moving forward as we address the problems that ail us.  Everyone has a story to tell and as we think about compiling these stories/experiences/data we should be as open to format as possible and then put all the material together so that this can be sorted as well as evaluated later. 
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Compassion Fatigue or Fundamental Change

7/17/2020

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We are at a crossroads in the United States and I wonder which way we will go.  

On the one hand, we have something that is referred to as "compassion fatigue".  At its essence, this concerns


emotional and physical exhaustion leading to a diminished ability to empathize or feel compassion for others, often described as the negative cost of caring. It is sometimes referred to as secondary traumatic stress (STS). According to the Professional Quality of Life Scale, burnout and secondary traumatic stress are two interwoven elements of compassion fatigue.

In some work this is found when the problem is too large and the answers too difficult.  If one cannot figure out what to do, the mind and body simply shuts down and it/they move on to another topic. 

On the other hand, we have the possibility of trying to institute real change regarding police violence, racial inequality and bringing forward a true/robust democracy.  Clearly these issues are not easy to begin nor to sustain but there has been a deep as well as wide movement of people as well as a variety of institutions brought forward to deal with the issues at hand.  

While we think about what should be done with the current window of opportunity that we have, I think it is worthwhile to reflect on what probably should not be redone.  In particular, I am reminded of the Presidential Initiative on Race put forward under Clinton. In many respects, the initiative seemed to be excellent - there was a wide number of knowledgeable people connected with it and they had the idea of reaching out into the communities of America to hear and compile the stories about race/racism.  Unfortunately, the effort was not prepared for the groundswell of experience and emotion that was unearthed.  I attended the event in Denver but I also read the transcripts from several other cities (I cannot seem to find them now and I think that is unfortunate).  Listening, things proceeded more or less reasonably at each event until the panelists opened the mic.  This is kind of when everything went sour.  The initiative never allocated enough time for this component of the event and people appeared to get frustrated by the lack of time and seemingly the lack of interest in hearing what they had to say.  There was no depository for those that could not make the event or for cities that were not visited.  There was an opportunity but it was not used properly.  

We cannot proceed in this manner again.  We need to be prepared to hear as well as to listen.  We need to provide a million ways for people to provide what they have to offer and then we need to spend the time going through this material to figure out what was experienced, perceived and lived or survived.  Only then will we know what has transpired here in the United States.  Only then can we begin to heal and move toward a more positive peace.  

And thus we soon will have to choose: compassion fatigue or fundamental change.  
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SO, the Black Nationalists were right.  Let's give it up people.

7/4/2020

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The last few weeks of protest and revelations have been truly amazing.  First, there were mass protests about anti-black police violence.  Then there were calls to defund or, alternatively, abolish the police.  Then there was some acknowledgement of the need for people to buy black.  Now, there is some discussion about African Americans feeling the need to own guns in order to be safe.  This sounds familiar to those aware of American history in general and African American history in particular and it should.  Much of this was said by black nationalists most clearly and loudly in the mid to late 1960s and 1970s (e.g., the Black Panther Party, Republic of New Africa, the Congress of African People, the All African People's Revolutionary Party) but even before this time with the NAACP under Robert F. Williams and the Deacons for Defense and Justice as well as many of the organizations traditionally associated with the civil rights movement.  

These organizations identified that the police were engaging in significant levels of violence within and against the black community.  Some of them noted that there was no hope of reforming or negotiating with these institutions and moved that they should be eliminated.  

These organizations identified that the problems of African Americans were so far reaching, so devastating and that they were so far behind that they needed to be provided reparations in order to try to survive in the current context - for example, there is the National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America which emerges from the same people associated with the Republic of New Africa.  Some of the individuals associated with these movements were quite detailed in their historical evaluations to see what happened and why regarding extending assistance to African Americans.

These organizations noted that black communities were largely being bled dry of resources with residents spending their hard earned money elsewhere.  This had numerous impacts but most importantly it reduced the overall power of this community by dissipating its potential impact.  

These organizations also identified that the problems of African Americans regarding the police and/or white vigilantism required that blacks purchase as well as learn to legally use firearms in case they had to defend themselves.  Indeed, they were well aware of the principles of "state failure" where the existing political authorities not only might not protect them but they might be directly in league with the very forces that were threatening black life.  

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In short, black nationalists correctly saw the problems that confronted African Americans and they (AGAIN) correctly identified that the actions proposed (e.g., getting specific politicians voted in and crafting specific laws) would not have the desired impact on the relevant actions.  And thus we come to 2020 where the black nationalists appear to have been on to something and America is now considering selected parts of the platforms that they raised before the nation 50 or so years ago - largely without popular recognition.  To their credit, some of the members of BLM+ movements (i.e., the broad constellation of organizations and individuals that are currently emerging) do recognize some of this important history but this is largely lost on the larger population.  

I want to give recognition to these individuals and institutions here not only because they appeared to be accurate in their evaluations of the problems that continue to plague the United States as well as potential solutions for addressing some of these problems but also to note that police abolition, reparations, buying black and African American self-defense were not the only items on their platform.  Several of the topics they raised have not gotten any traction in the current environment and it is worth noting them.

For example, some of these organizations talked about not just buying black but African Americans controlling the black economy.  "Black economy"?  Yes, indeed. Those familiar with the black nationalists are familiar with the phrase "black dollars" but for those unaware:

In a recent report by Nielsen titled, “Black Dollars Matter: The Sales Impact of Black Consumers,” the message was once again highlighted: While African Americans make up just 14 percent of the population, they are responsible for some $1.2 trillion in purchases annually.

Yes, 1.2 trillion.  Well, why have these black dollars not turned into political influence?  Why would the holders of such wealth continue to be harassed and killed in the street?  Well, the black nationalists would tell us that purchasing power is not wealth and wealth is more important for how you are treated than anything else - influencing where you live, what kind of resources you have access to (short and long term) and how relevant police power would be to your life.  In addition to this, black nationalists would tell us that it is partly because African Americans might be unaware of their collective purchasing power enamored as they are with the American principles of individuality and trying to be Americans.  

As a response to this latter problem, black nationalists advocated that blacks needed to develop a keen sense of themselves as a people/group.  Strongly mirroring current BLM calls for joy and self acceptance but devoid of the references to Egypt and Africa, they advocated that blacks take pride in themselves and the achievements of their ancestors.  Clearly this was also connected to the earlier efforts of 
W.E.B. Dubois, Marcus Garvey and J.A. Rogers. This seems very different from the current conversations which seem more like "everybody needs a little light under the sun" approach.  

Related, one of the biggest differences concerns the ideas of self-determination.  What is Self-determination?  From the Under-represented Nations and Peoples Organization

Essentially, the right to self-determination is the right of a people to determine its own destiny. In particular, the principle allows a people to choose its own political status and to determine its own form of economic, cultural and social development. Exercise of this right can result in a variety of different outcomes ranging from political independence through to full integration within a state. The importance lies in the right of choice, so that the outcome of a people's choice should not affect the existence of the right to make a choice. In practice, however, the possible outcome of an exercise of self-determination will often determine the attitude of governments towards the actual claim by a people or nation. Thus, while claims to cultural autonomy may be more readily recognized by states, claims to independence are more likely to be rejected by them. Nevertheless, the right to self-determination is recognized in international law as a right of process (not of outcome) belonging to peoples and not to states or governments.

The preferred outcome of an exercise of the right to self-determination varies greatly among the members of UNPO. For some of our members, such as Acheh, Tibet, Barotseland and Kabylia, the only acceptable outcome is full political independence. This is particularly true of occupied or colonized nations. For others, such as our members from West Balochistan, the goal is a degree of political, cultural and economic autonomy, sometimes in the form of a federal relationship. For others yet, the right to live on and manage a people's traditional lands free of external interference and incursion is the essential aim of a struggle for self-determination. Other members, such as Taiwan and Somaliland, have already achieved a high-level or full self-determination, but are yet to be recognized as independent states by the international community.


As we are trying to figure out exactly what BLM+ is articulating, it is Black nationalists spoke of themselves as a clearly defined group - a group deserving of rights and specific treatment (even if within an established nation state).  BLM+ seems to hint at black groupness and shared experience but not to invoke the legal implications of this identity discussed within international law. They speak about the problems of global capitalism but much of what they discuss in terms of problems is set within the context of nation-states.  

Finally, Black nationalists never spoke of "economic justice" (i.e., fair treatment within the existing economic system) for that suggests that capitalism is concerned with equitable outcomes - which it is not.  Black nationalists did not view the economic system in this manner and this is what prompted them to talk about separation and exiting the US polity and/or economy - things that are largely missed in the current conversation.  In contrast, BLM+ seems to envision a situation where the polity steps forward to rectify the problems of the economy.  

This is not to say that BLM+ is wrong as much of what they have to say is currently being formulated.  Rather, it is to say that moving forward, as problems are being identified as well as potential solutions it will be useful to highlight what has come before and juxtapose it against that which is being said now.  
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    Analog - The Anti-Blog

    By "Analog" I am referring to the adjective (i.e., relating to or using signals or information represented by a continuously variable physical quantity such as spatial position or voltage) and not the noun (i.e., a person or thing seen as comparable to another) for I wished to give voice to my thoughts which have come to me in a more or less continuous manner but which do so in a way that is not consistent in content or form. Thus you will see short stories, brief thoughts, haikus, low-kus and even a political cartoon or two. 

    Winner of Best Blog Post for 2014 by International Studies Association

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