Occupy: In Theory and Practice

ABSTRACT

This paper situates the discourse of the Occupy movement within the context of radical political philosophy. Our analysis takes place on two levels. First, we conduct an empirical analysis of the ‘official’ publications of Occupy Wall Street (OWS) and Occupy London (OL). Operationalising core concepts from the framing perspective within social movement theory, we provide a descriptive-comparative analysis of the ‘collective action frames’ of OWS and OL. Second, we consider the extent to which radical political philosophy speaks to the discourse of Occupy. Our empirical analysis reveals that both movements share diagnostic frames, but there were notable differences in terms of prognostic framing. The philosophical discussion suggests that there are alignments between anarchist, post-anarchist and post-Marxist ideologies at the level of both identity and strategy. Indeed, the absence of totalising anti-capitalist or anti-statist positions in Occupy suggests that – particularly with Occupy London – alignments are perhaps not so distant from typically social democratic demands.

KEYWORDS:

• Occupy
• collective action frames
• Marxism
• anarchism
• anti-capitalism

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Dr David Bates is Principal Lecturer in Politics and International Relations at Canterbury Christ Church University, and Director of Politics and International Relations programmes. His work focuses on the following interrelated areas: first, the constitution of modes of political subjectivity (in ‘radical’, liberal, neo-liberal and conservative forms), and the relationship with dominant economic structures and forms of social identity, and second, the philosophical understanding of social movements (including anti-globalisation, anti-capitalism, Occupy, etc.) with specific reference to Marxist, post-Marxist, post-anarchist, and autonomist perspectives. School of Psychology, Politics and Sociology, North Holmes Road, Canterbury Christ Church University, Kent CT11QU, UK. E-mail: [email protected]

Dr Matthew Ogilvie is a political sociologist within the School of Psychology, Politics and Sociology at Canterbury Christ Church University. He previously worked at the University of Kent as a sessional lecturer and undergraduate tutor. His current research interests include social movement theory, community protest against wind farms and fracking developments, and the Occupy movement. School of Psychology, Politics and Sociology, North Holmes Road, Canterbury Christ Church University, Kent CT11QU, UK. E-mail: [email protected]

Emma Pole is a DPhil Researcher in Politics and Sociology at Canterbury Christ Church University. Her research interests include social movement theory, Marxism and anarchism. Her thesis focuses on a theoretical and empirical investigation of the Occupy movement. School of Psychology, Politics and Sociology, North Holmes Road, Canterbury Christ Church University, Kent CT11QU, UK. E-mail: [email protected]