| Description |
xviii, 178 pages ; 25 cm |
| Series |
Oxford studies in culture and politics |
|
Oxford studies in culture & politics
|
| Note |
Includes bibliographical references (pages 163-174) and index |
| Contents |
Nonviolent power and revolutionary change -- Nonviolent revolts against socialist regimes -- The Tiananmen tragedy and the failed uprising in China -- The collapse of the East German State -- Nonviolent revolts against military regimes -- Panama's struggle for democracy -- Ousting General Pinochet -- Nonviolent revolts against personal dictatorships -- Kenya'sstruggle against the Moi dictatorship -- The Philippines' "bloodless revolution" -- Conclusion : how civil resistance works |
| Summary |
In the spring of 1989, Chinese workers and students captured global attention as they occupied Tiananmen Square, demanded political change, and then experienced a tragic crackdown at the hands of the Chinese army. Months later, East German civilians rose up nonviolently, bringing down the Berlin Wall and dismantling their regime. Although both movements used the tactics of civil resistance, their outcomes were different. In Nonviolent Revolutions, Sharon Erickson Nepstad examines these two movements, along with citizen uprisings in Panama, Chile, Kenya, and the Philippines. Through a comparative approach that includes both successful and failed cases, she analyzes the effects of movements' strategies along with the counter-strategies that regimes developed to retain power. Nepstad concludes that security force defections have a significant influence on revolutionary outcomes since those regimes that maintained troop loyalty were the least likely to collapse. Through a close analysis of these cases, she explores the reasons why soldiers defect or remain loyal and the conditions that increase the likelihood of mutiny. She also examines the impact of international sanctions, arguing that they sometimes harm movements by generating new allies for authoritarian leaders or by shifting the locus of power from local civil resisters to international actors. In conclusion, Nepstad finds that the dynamics of nonviolent revolution are not adequately captured by theories that have largely been derived from studies of armed struggles. -- Back cover |
| Subjects |
Government, Resistance to -- History -- 20th century
|
|
Revolutions -- History -- 20th century
|
| Genre/Form |
History. fast |
| Other Titles |
Civil resistance in the late 20th century |
| OCLC # |
707267312 |
| ISBN |
9780199778201 (hardback ; alk. paper) |
|
0199778205 (hardback ; alk. paper) |
|
9780199778218 (pbk. ; alk. paper) |
|
0199778213 (pbk. ; alk. paper) |
| LCCN |
2011015264 |
|
