Since Donald Trump's first day in office, a large and energetic grassroots "Resistance" has taken to the streets to protest his administration's plans for the United States. Millions marched in pussy hats on the day after the inauguration; outraged citizens flocked to airports to declare that America must be open to immigrants; masses of demonstrators circled the White House to demand action on climate change; and that was only the beginning. Who are the millions of people marching against the Trump administration, how are they connected to the Blue Wave that washed over the U.S. Congress in 2018-and what does it all mean for the future of American democracy? American Resistance traces activists from the streets back to the communities and congressional districts around the country where they live, work, and vote. Using innovative survey data and interviews with key players, Dana R. Fisher analyzes how Resistance groups have channeled outrage into activism, using distributed organizing to make activism possible by anyone from anywhere, whenever and wherever it is needed most. Beginning with the first Women's March and following the movement through the 2018 midterms, Fisher demonstrates how the energy and enthusiasm of the Resistance paid off in a wave of Democratic victories. She reveals how the Left rebounded from the devastating 2016 election, the lessons for turning grassroots passion into electoral gains, and what comes next. American Resistance explains the organizing that is revitalizing democracy to counter Trump's presidency.

This book presents the first large-scale study of lobbying strategies and outcomes in the United States and the European Union, two of the most powerful political systems in the world. Every day, tens of thousands of lobbyists in Washington and Brussels are working to protect and promote their interests in the policymaking process. Policies emanating from these two spheres have global impacts - they set global standards, they influence global markets, and they determine global politics. Armed with extensive new data, Christine Mahoney challenges the conventional stereotypes that attribute any differences between the two systems to cultural ones - the American, a partisan and combative approach, and the European, a consensus-based one. Mahoney draws from 149 interviews involving 47 issues to detail how institutional structures, the nature of specific issues, and characteristics of the interest groups combine to determine decisions about how to approach a political fight, what arguments to use, and how to frame an issue. She looks at how lobbyists choose lobbying tactics, public relations strategies, and networking and coalition activities. Her analysis demonstrates that advocacy can be better understood when we study the lobbying of interest groups in their institutional and issue context. This book offers new insights into how the process of lobbying works on both sides of the Atlantic.

How do we integrate the theoretical underpinnings of Social Reproduction Theory (SRT) into our understanding of the social harms inflicted upon us? How can we use it to inform our struggles and affect societal change under capitalism? Integrating our understanding of productive and reproductive spheres and exploring the connection between identity-based oppression and class exploitation, SRT has emerged as a powerful Marxist frame for social analysis and political practice. In this book, Aaron Jaffe extracts SRT's radical potential, relying on recent struggles, including the International Women's Strike and the teachers' strikes, showing how we can use SRT to motivate socialist politics and strategy. Using Social Reproduction Theory to appreciate distinct forms of social domination, this unique and necessary book will have vital strategic implications for anti-capitalists, anti-racists, LGBT activists, disability activists and feminists.

This book offers a scholarly yet accessible overview of the role of lobbying in American politics. It draws upon extant research as well as original data gathered from interviews with numerous lobbyists across the United States. It describes how lobbyists do their work within all branches of government, at the national, state, and local levels. It thus offers a substantially broader view of lobbying than is available in much of the research literature. Although tailored for students taking courses on interest group politics, Total Lobbying offers an indispensable survey of the field for scholars and others concerned with this important facet of American politics.

This book, which takes the form of a graphic novel, looks at political activism in the public landscape. It has a particular focus on the UK activist group Led by Donkeys which has, since late 2018, been running a campaign to expose hypocrisy in the political classes. Their approach to activism involves the use of large posters and other forms of public display, which highlight the gap between the rhetoric and actions of politicians, and how language and communication is used to manipulate opinion. The activism discussed in the book includes four major issues: Brexit, Trump, Covid and the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The book is both an innovative visual approach to the presentation of academic research and thought, and an exploration of how the linguistic landscape can be a key resource for the communication of political activism.

The work explores the field of public health advocacy from the twin perspectives of the sociology of news production and public health activism. The second section offers an A-Z of strategies for gaining media attention, with many entries illustrated by case histories. Covering theory and practice, the guide is intended for public health and community medicine workers, community health action groups, and students of mass communication, media studies or public health.

In this thorough, yet accessible, book, Robert Garner explores the character of animal protection policy making in Britain and the United States and the opportunities open to animal protection movements. In showing how the political system in both countries has been responsive to the growing demands for reforms in the way animals are treated, he argues that there is a viable reformist strategy for the animal protection movement short of the adoption of animal rights objectives. Much less protection is afforded to animals in the United States, however, largely as a consequence of the particular policy networks within which animal welfare decisions are made.

This book probes three issues about the linkage between political protests and social change. First, why do individuals participate in protest activities, including nonviolent movements and revolutions? How do cultural beliefs, sociopolitical structures, personal attitudes, motives and perceptions shape the decision to participate? Second, why do participants choose certain tactics? Protesters use different types of tactics: violent vs. nonviolent, public vs. covert, organized vs. spontaneous and confrontation vs. accommodation with other groups, political parties, and government agencies. Most activists view a particular tactic as a useful means to attain their policy demands. Third, what policy consequences emerge from the activities of protest movements? The book explores the impact of protests on social change and on the distribution of political power, particularly greater access of subordinate groups to government policymakers. A theory of political opportunities helps explain these issues about the origins, activities, and outcomes of protests.

How do interstate actors negotiate their interests? What do 'common interests' look like from their historically and culturally contingent perspectives? What happens when actors work for their private, professional, public, personal or institutional interests, even when those interests go against their mandate? Honing in on the role of diplomats and lobbyists during negotiations for Turkey's contentious EU membership bid, this book presents intricate, backstage conflicts of power and interests and negotiations of compromises, which drove this candidate country both closer to and farther apart from the EU. Based on long-term ethnographic fieldwork in Brussels, this first book-length account of Turkish Europeanisation argues that public, private and corporate actors voicing economic, political and bureaucratic interests from all corners of Europe sought access to markets and polities through the Turkish bid instead of facilitating Turkey's EU accession, earning recognition & power. -- .

When dissidents and activists toppled powerful regimes across the globe in the 1980s and 1990s--from the Soviet Union to South Africa, from Nicaragua to the Philippines--how did Americans respond to challenges in their own country? The conventional wisdom is that Americans sullenly withdrew from all manner of political action. But in fact, activists of all backgrounds took to the streets to challenge ordinary structures of politics.These movements--their history; their cyclical development; their organization, strategies, and tactics--constitute what the author calls "extraordinary politics." Activists have set the pace on every conceivable issue, including the environment, gay rights, feminism, abortion, states' rights, religion, and multiculturalism. The president and Congress can barely keep up, but extraordinary politics keeps evolving.With style and grace, Charles Euchner weaves together hundreds of examples drawn from movements spanning the ideological spectrum to offer both a practical and intellectual guidebook to political activism in a reputedly apathetic age, embracing with abandon the art of making a difference.

Through exploring the public depiction of Judge Robert Bork and Professor Lani Guinier, Your Past and the Press elucidates how interest groups and the media influence the confirmation process for top-level government appointees. Illuminating the sequence of events characterized by the derailment of Bork and Guinier, author Joseph Michael Green details the activities surrounding the entire nomination process, from the announcement of a nominee to his/her ultimate defeat. Until recently, the vast majority of studies performed on the appointment process focused solely on the roles of the United States Senate and the nominee during confirmation hearings. This research fills a serious gap in political science literature by focusing on the impact of interest groups and media activity upon presidential decision-making.

This is the first scholarly history of the proportional representation movement. Jenifer Hart explores its origins in the early nineteenth century and analyses the contribution of political thinkers such as Thomas Hare and John Stuart Mill. She traces the history of the early campaigns, and the progress and vicissitudes of the cause during the twentieth century. A final chapter takes the account up to the present day. Based on extensive research, this is an accessible and comprehensive study which throws light on many of the questions which bedevil contemporary political commentators. Mrs Hart demonstrates the inadequacy of the commonly made identification of proportional representation with liberalism, and explains the failure of its supporters to achieve its adoption in the UK, with the exception of Northern Ireland. Her book makes an important contribution to British constitutional history and to current debates on electoral reform.

Have special interests taken over the country, derailing the public agenda and threatening representative democracy? Or is it possible that the maturation of interest group politics will yield a more pluralistic and balanced society? Interest groups have changed over the past two decades, and so have the ways in which we study them. This volume charts the changes in interest group theory, organization, activity, and the influence of interest groups in the United States and beyond.Leading scholars and practitioners trace notable shifts in interest group politics, including challenges to effective governance, new resources and techniques of influence, patterns of representation, and changing venues, targets, and characteristics of interest group activity. The mobilization of particular interests?including business, women, conservatives, and consumers?is given special attention. Institutional interactions and interest group evaluations round out the coverage.Sixteen original essays written especially for this volume reflect the best and most current scholarship in the field. New empirical research, informed theoretical reflection, and experienced involvement are all rendered accessable in this thematically unified collection. Petracca has drawn together leading text authors, cutting-edge researchers, established scholars, and rising young stars to capture the attention and challenge the thinking of both novice and serious students of interest groups.This compact yet comprehensive volume can provide the core of reading for a course on interest group politics, or it can supplement one of the leading texts in a wide range of courses in American politics. The distinguished lineup of contributors promises to make this book ?must? reading for scholars, professionals, and practitioners, as well as for their students.

Building on a comprehensive theoretical framework that draws on discursive and ideational approaches to populism, this volume offers a comparative mapping of the Populist Radical Left in contemporary Europe. It explores the novel discursive, political and organisational features of several political actors, as well as the conditions of their emergence and success, while being alert to the role of relevant social movements. Chapters feature case studies of the Greek party Syriza, the Spanish Podemos, the German Die Linke, Jean-Luc Melenchon and France Insoumise, the Dutch Socialist Party and the Slovenian Levica. Jeremy Corbyn's leadership of Labour in the UK and 'Momentum', the movement that supports him is also examined. A separate chapter is devoted to recent grassroots social movements that can be seen as instances of progressive populism, such as the 'squares movement' in Spain and Greece. This book fills a crucial gap in the literature on radical left politics and populism in Europe, contributing to the rapidly burgeoning field of populism studies.

Considered the gold standard on interest group politics, this widely-used text analyzes interest groups within the intuitive framework of democratic theory, enabling readers to understand the workings of interest groups within the larger context of our political system. Comprehensive coverage includes not only the traditional farm, labor, and trade associations, but also citizen groups, public interest organizations, corporations, and public interest firms Brief in page count yet comprehensive in coverage, the book is flexible for different class settings. The book's rich content and lean size allows it to stand alone as the centerpiece of a course, or be assigned as one of several texts. New to the Sixth Edition Updates the role of money in interest group activity following the Citizens United Supreme Court decision. Covers new interest group actors including the Tea Party, Occupy, and others. Examines new developments in key interest group arenas including health care and the environment. Looks at the role of social media in interest groups. Adds a comparative look at interest group action, organization, and scholarship abroad.

This volume examines the role of law in increasing the legitimacy of European decision-making by structuring and facilitating diverse forms of participation, representation, and deliberation whilst ensuring transparency and accountability. The democratic deficit and the legitimacy of the European Union have attracted the attention of both lawyers and political scientists, but few have examined normatively the role of interest groups or of functional participation in European governance.This book examines institutional settings, such as committees, agencies, and social dialogue within which such participation occurs. Moving beyond generalities, tye author provides a detailed empirical account of participation within one policy sector: EC occupational health and safety. Smismans argues that different institutional settings for functional participation are underpinned by very different considerations: they weight balanced representation, deliberation, and expertise differently. He shows how this participation differs between legislation and regulatory implementation, and appraises the extent to which participation can compensate for a lack of territorial representation in implementation procedures, and can exert some control over 'scientific experts'. This book reveals changes in functional participation over time, from regulatory to persuasive policy-making; and argues that the 'new' forms of governance are not necessarily more participatory than the old.

American Political Rhetoric is the only reader for introductory classes in American politics, government, and political communication designed to explore fundamental political principles through examples of political rhetoric ranging from the founding to today. Now in its seventh edition, its selections include the entire political spectrum and contributors range from our nation's founders to contemporary elected public officials, Supreme Court opinions, and representatives of historic movements for social change. The new edition is fully updated to include recent Supreme Court decisions, edited for use in the classroom, presidential speeches, and expanded chapters on presidential powers, race, and gender. The book is now more useful than ever for students and teachers thanks to a supplementary website available at americanpoliticalrhetoric.com.

Undoing the Silence offers guidance to help both citizens and professionals influence democratic process through letters, articles, reports and public testimony.

Louise Dunlap, PhD, began her career as an activist writing instructor during the Free Speech Movement of the 1960s. She learned that listening and gaining a feel for audience are just as important to social transformation as the outspoken words of student leaders atop police cars. "Free speech is a first step, but real communication matches speech with listening and understanding. That is when thinking shifts and change happens."

Dunlap felt compelled to go where the silences were deepest because her work aimed not just at teaching but also at healing both individual voices and an ailing collective voice. Her tales of those adventures and what she knows about the culture of silence -- how gender, race, education, class, and family work to quiet dissent -- are interwoven with practical methods for people to put their most challenging ideas into words.

Louise Dunlap gives writing workshops around the country for universities and social justice, environmental, and peace organizations that help reluctant writers get past their internal censors to find their powerful voice. Her insight strengthens strategic thinking and her "You can do it " approach makes social-action writing achievable for everyone.

Interest Group Politics in America is a concise, readable, and up-to-date introduction to the study of group power. This third edition of the book gives expanded attention to the changing dynamics of power politics in America; new media venues and grassroots organizing techniques; the role of PACs, referenda, and direct action; and the perennial issue of reform.

No topic is more polarizing than guns and gun control. From a gun culture that took root early in American history to the mass shootings that repeatedly bring the public discussion of gun control to a fever pitch, the topic has preoccupied citizens, public officials, and special interest groups for decades. In this thoroughly revised second edition of The Gun Debate: What Everyone Needs to Know (R) noted economist Philip J. Cook and political scientist Kristin A. Goss delve into the issues that Americans debate when they talk about guns. With a balanced and broad-ranging approach, the authors thoroughly cover the latest research, data, and developments on gun ownership, gun violence, the firearms industry, and the regulation of firearms. The authors also tackle sensitive issues such as the impact of gun violence on quality of life, the influence of exposure to gun violence on mental health, home production of guns, arming teachers, the effect of concealed weapons on crime rates, and the ability of authorities to disarm people who aren't allowed to have a gun. No discussion of guns in the U.S. would be complete without consideration of the history, culture, and politics that drive the passion behind the debate. Cook and Goss deftly explore the origins of the American gun culture and the makeup of both the gun rights and gun control movements. Written in question-and-answer format, this updated edition brings the debate up-to-date for the current political climate under Trump and will help readers make sense of the ideologically driven statistics and slogans that characterize our national conversation on firearms. This book is a must-read for anyone interested in getting a clear view of the issues surrounding guns and gun policy in America.

Interest groups form an important part of the development of political and social systems. This book goes beyond current literature in examining the survival and 'careers' of such groups beyond their formation. The author introduces the concept of organizational form and develops a framework to describe and evaluate organisations, and uncover how they adapt to survive. Using example case studies from the UK, US and Australia, the book presents extensive historical analyses of specific groups, to better understand the organisation and position of such groups within their political system. It analyses how groups differentiate themselves from each other, how they develop differently and what impact this has on policy implementation and democratic legitimacy. The Organization of Political Interest Groups will be of interest to students and scholars of political science, comparative politics, public representation, and public policy.

The crisis of the progressive movement is so evident that nothing less than a fundamental rethinking of its basic assumptions is required. Today's progressives now work for professional organizations more comfortable with the inside game in Washington DC (and capitols throughout the West), where they are outmatched and outspent by corporate interests. Labor unions now focus on the narrowest possible understanding of the interests of their members, and membership continues to decline in lockstep with the narrowing of their goals. Meanwhile, promising movements like Occupy Wall Street and Black Lives Matter lack sufficient power to accomplish meaningful change. Why do progressives in the United States keep losing on so many issues? In No Shortcuts, Jane McAlevey argues that progressives can win, but lack the organized power to enact significant change, to outlast their bosses in labor fights, and to hold elected leaders accountable. Drawing upon her experience as a scholar and longtime organizer in the student, environmental, and labor movements, McAlevey examines cases from labor unions and social movements to pinpoint the factors that helped them succeed - or fail - to accomplish their intended goals. McAlevey makes a compelling case that the great social movements of previous eras gained their power from mass organizing, a strategy today's progressives have mostly abandoned in favor of shallow mobilization or advocacy. She ultimately concludes that, in order to win, progressive movements need strong unions built from bottom-up organizing strategies that place the power for change in the hands of workers and ordinary people at the community level. Beyond the concrete examples in this book, McAlevey's arguments have direct implications for anyone involved in organizing for social change. Much more than cogent analysis, No Shortcuts explains exactly how progressives can go about rebuilding powerful movements at work, in our communities, and at the ballot box.

During the 2008 election season, politicians from both sides of the aisle promised to rid government of lobbyists' undue influence. For the authors of "Lobbying and Policy Change," the most extensive study ever done on the topic, these promises ring hollow--not because politicians fail to keep them but because lobbies are far less influential than political rhetoric suggests.
Based on a comprehensive examination of ninety-eight issues, this volume demonstrates that sixty percent of recent lobbying campaigns failed to change policy despite millions of dollars spent trying. Why? The authors find that resources explain less than five percent of the difference between successful and unsuccessful efforts. Moreover, they show, these attempts must overcome an entrenched Washington system with a tremendous bias in favor of the status quo.
Though elected officials and existing policies carry more weight, lobbies have an impact too, and when advocates for a given issue finally succeed, policy tends to change significantly. The authors argue, however, that the lobbying community so strongly reflects elite interests that it will not fundamentally alter the balance of power unless its makeup shifts dramatically in favor of average Americans' concerns.

In October 1918, war-weary German sailors mutinied when the Imperial Naval Command ordered their engagement in one final, fruitless battle with the British Royal Navy. This revolt, in the dying embers of the First World War, quickly erupted into a full scale revolution that toppled the monarchy and inaugurated a period of radical popular democracy. The establishment of the Weimar Republic in 1919 ended the revolution, relegating all but its most prominent leaders to a historical footnote. In A People's History of the German Revolution, William A. Pelz cuts against the grain of mainstream accounts that tend to present the revolution as more of a 'collapse', or just a chaotic interregnum that preceded the country's natural progression into a republic. Going beyond the familiar names of Karl Liebknecht, Rosa Luxemburg or Clara Zetkins, Pelz explores the revolution from the bottom up, focusing on the active role that women, rank-and-file activists, and ordinary workers played in its events. Rejecting the depiction of agency as exclusively in the hands of international actors like Woodrow Wilson or in those of German elites, he makes the compelling case that, for a brief period, the actions of the common people shaped a truly revolutionary society.