Challenging Austerity: Radical Left and Social Movements in the South of Europe

Description

This book analyses social movements and radical political parties’ strategies in Spain, Greece, Portugal and Italy from 2008 to today. Events in 2011 such as the Arab Spring and the indignados movement in Spain initiated a new cycle of social protest. This book explores how the economic crisis and policies of austerity have transformed and continue to transform social movements, trade unions and radical political parties in Southern Europe. The economic crisis has led to a rise in protest movements, which confront political institutions and conventional forms of democracy, and develop new spatial and organisational strategies. This book examines these cases, in addition to those groups who, contrastingly, have used institutional politics to achieve their aims, such as new political parties like Podemos in Spain or Movimento 5 Stelle in Italy. Analysing the extent to which there has been a change in approach when it comes to contesting neo-liberal capitalism, this book makes an important contribution to the study of social movements and radical politics. With a comparative perspective and an emphasis on studying the largely unexplored recent social and political dynamics in the European periphery, this book is essential reading for students, scholars and activists interested in social movements, radical politics and European politics more generally. Cover Half Title Book Title Copyright Table of Contents List of illustrations Notes on contributors Foreword Introduction: social movements and radical politics in the European periphery – a world-systems analysis The articulation among European Mediterranean countries and northern European countries European periphery, technological rent and financial-real estate circuit Understanding social movements in the post-political era: materialism and the electoral arena The book Notes References 1 Radical Left in Portugal and Spain (1960–2010) The Iberian transitions to democracy: intertwined processes Radical projects in Spain and Portugal Revolutionary currents in Portugal The Bloco de Esquerda Revolutionary currents in Spain Conclusions and reflections Acknowledgment Glossary of radical Left political organizations and movements in Portugal and Spain Notes References 2 Greece and Italy after the Second World War: contentious politics, cycles of protest and radical Left Introduction Civil war and the constitution of the “cachectic democracy” in Greece Social movements and collective action in the Third Hellenic Republic (1974–2000) From Genoa 2001 to Athens riots 2008 Italy 1945–1973: the crisis of the traditional left, and the emergence of the “new grass-roots political militant” The oil crisis of 1973 and its aftermath The years after the lead: 1983–2001 Post-2001: precarious labour, housing rights and sustainable development movements Conclusion References 3 Indignados, municipalism and Podemos: mobilisation and political cycle in Spain after the Great Recession From the Spain of consumption to the Spain of austerity The indignados and the first responses to the crisis The materialist turn of social protest: 2012–2014 The electoral turn: from 2014 to today Acknowledgements References 4 Political opportunities, threats and opportunism: examining Syriza’s rise in crisis-ridden Greek politics Introduction Political opportunities and opportunism Data sources and research methods The interactions between opportunists and ideologists Perceptions of threats, opportunity availability, and attributions of responsibility in the Greek anti-austerity campaign Concluding remarks References 5 Building the “contraption”: anti-austerity movements and political alternative in Portugal Introduction Austerity, crisis and social protests Social movements and democracy in times of austerity The Left, radicalism and the search for “alternative” Anti-austerity movements and political parties Moments of a protest cycle Beyond the movements: building the “contraption” Conclusion Notes References 6 When the Spring is not coming: Radical Left and social movements in Italy during the austerity era The economic crisis in Italy and the absence of an anti-austerity movement The failed momentum: the marginalisation of the radical Left after the G8 protests From the global to the local and return: the No Tav and No Dal Molin movements From the Web to the street: the rise of the M5S Final considerations Acknowledgement Notes References Conclusion: learning from the economic crisis and the protest cycle in the South of Europe – implications for social movements and the Left The responses of labour, left parties and social movements The old is dying and the new is to be born Note Index