Reconsidering Politics II: New Social Movements

I.                 Civil Society as a ‘new’ realm of politics

a.   Oppositional and ‘progressive’ in nature.

II.             Vehicles of this politics: New Social Movements (NSMs)

a.   Flexibility in size and shape

b.   Fluid network setting

c.   Grassroots in nature

d.   Inclined toward direct political action

III.         The political character of NSMs

a.   Boundary problem: what counts as an NSM?

                                                            i.      Are all NSMs ‘progressive’?

b.   NSMs vs. NGOs

c.   Valorisation of the local

                                                            i.      New politics or just local politics?