Past debates over social movements have suffered from a focus on Anglo-America and Europe, often neglecting the significance of collective actions of citizens in the Global South. This authoritative new title redresses this imbalance with case study material from movements for change in Brazil, India, Bangladesh, Mexico, South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria. In these examples, social movements have formed without the benefits of the structural or institutional resource base found in the North, and have persevered even when the state does not have the resources to effectively respond to collective demands. Each expert contribution points to the complexity of relationships that influence mobilization and social movements; unsettling the notion that social activism leads inexorably to democracy and development and questioning what motivates collective action and what does it achieve?

Seamlessly entwining archival research and sociological debates, The Last Abolition is a lively and engaging historical narrative that uncovers the broad history of Brazilian anti-slavery activists and the trajectory of their work, from earnest beginnings to eventual abolition. In detailing their principles, alliances and conflicts, Angela Alonso offers a new interpretation of the Brazilian anti-slavery network which, combined, forged a national movement to challenge the entrenched pro-slavery status quo. While placing Brazil within the abolitionist political mobilization of the nineteenth century, the book explores the relationships between Brazilian and foreign abolitionists, demonstrating how ideas and strategies transcended borders. Available for the first time in an English language edition, with a new introduction, this award-winning volume is a major contribution to the scholarship on abolition and abolitionists.

Seamlessly entwining archival research and sociological debates, The Last Abolition is a lively and engaging historical narrative that uncovers the broad history of Brazilian anti-slavery activists and the trajectory of their work, from earnest beginnings to eventual abolition. In detailing their principles, alliances and conflicts, Angela Alonso offers a new interpretation of the Brazilian anti-slavery network which, combined, forged a national movement to challenge the entrenched pro-slavery status quo. While placing Brazil within the abolitionist political mobilization of the nineteenth century, the book explores the relationships between Brazilian and foreign abolitionists, demonstrating how ideas and strategies transcended borders. Available for the first time in an English language edition, with a new introduction, this award-winning volume is a major contribution to the scholarship on abolition and abolitionists.

Past debates over social movements have suffered from a focus on Anglo-America and Europe, often neglecting the significance of collective actions of citizens in the Global South. This authoritative new title redresses this imbalance with case study material from movements for change in Brazil, India, Bangladesh, Mexico, South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria. In these examples, social movements have formed without the benefits of the structural or institutional resource base found in the North, and have persevered even when the state does not have the resources to effectively respond to collective demands. Each expert contribution points to the complexity of relationships that influence mobilization and social movements; unsettling the notion that social activism leads inexorably to democracy and development and questioning what motivates collective action and what does it achieve?