Social Movements and Violently Divided Cities

Violently divided cities are characterised by an intense conflict over the legitimacy of the wider state. In such cities, social identities are often constrained by ethnic allegiances that hinder the emergence of alternative identities and politics crosscutting traditional cleavages. For this reason, civic, social life and political mobilisation tend to occur within ethnic communities, reinforced by historically embedded patterns of social segregation. This reinforcement means that levels of intergroup distrust are high and ethnic group membership is clear and, with few exceptions, seems unchangeable. Given the salience of ethnic community in divided cities, institutional structures designed to mitigate violent conflict often rest on the accommodation of apparent homogeneous ethnic communities.

Yet, while it is tempting to view ethnic communities in divided cities as monolithic entities and ethnic identity as fixed and predictive of individual political behaviour, there is often a significant portion of the population who challenge attempts to be corralled into uniform conceptions of ethnic community. One particular sign of contestation is non-sectarian social movements: groups that mobilise on issues transcending ethnic interests and promoting plural identities and politics. These movements encompass Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) groups, environmentalists, trade unionists, the Occupy movement, pro-choice movements, the global justice movement, feminists, the elderly and disabled movements, artistic subcultures and peace movements.

The proposed PhDs will examine social movement mobilisation in violently divided societies and how such movements contribute to peacebuilding or ethnic violence.

Themes:
• How and why individuals actively disengage with the ethnic encapsulations and communities they are perceived as ascriptively belonging.
•Further our understanding of whether non-sectarian social movements encourage new forms of community identity, intercultural relations and politics that may stand in opposition to tradititional ethnic politics and identities.
•Contribute to debates concerning the role of civil society in conflict management frameworks in divided regions.
• Contribute to our understandings of how social movements mobilize in violently divided societies.

Possible PhD topics:
•Regional case-studies of non-sectarian social movements in divided societies (e.g. Belfast, Beirut, Nicosia) or comparative research
Social movements and radicalization/deradicalization in divided societies
•Social movements and peacebuilding
• LGBTQ, trade unionists, ‘Occupy’, ‘Arab Spring’, Feminist, Environmentalists, Global Justice, anti-war movements in violently divided societies
Social movements and public space
•Social movements and violence
•Social movements and power sharing
• Social movements and peace processes
• Victims’ Groups
• Hizbolllah, IRA
• The ‘right to the city’ and divided societies