Politics and Social Movements

The term “politics” can refer to decision-making and governance at the highest levels of society (such as the campaigns, policies, and machinations of major political leaders and heads of state), or to efforts to enact change from the bottom up (including the activities of those affiliated to trade unions, protest groups, or other grassroots organisations). Ultimately, politics is about power, and ideas about how this is distributed at local, national, and international levels. Many historians argue that “politics” is central to both history and everyday life, whilst others stress that it is impossible to understand political change without acknowledging the role of “social movements”. Consequently, the theme of “Politics and Social Movements” is a useful umbrella term, which captures the myriad ways in which, throughout history, people from across the political spectrum have influenced how our societies are organised.

“Politics and Social Movements” intersects with many other themes at BOA, including “Colonialism and Empire”, “Philosophy and Religion”, “International Relations”, and “Economics” (to name just a few). Accordingly, the collections shown below inform our understanding of a wide range of historical events and movements, from the emergence of organised labour to workers’ revolutions; from the repression of civil rights protestors to the development of radical countercultures; and from the rise of fascism to the fall of empires.