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“What Else Can We Do?” An examination into sustained anti-authoritarian mobilization in Hong Kong’s Yellow Economic Circle

Tallberg, Bonnie LU (2023) SIMZ11 20231
Graduate School
Abstract
Civil liberties and freedoms have diminished globally due to the last decades’
deepened authoritarianism. Concurrently, mobilizations countering this
development have decreased. Hong Kong represents one of the cases where
anti-authoritarian resistance has been sustained, which sparks a question regarding what motivates people in expanding authoritarian spaces to engage in contentious politics. This thesis aims to understand why people engage in contentious activities when it can implicate them under growing authoritarianism in Hong Kong. This study was conducted through semi-structured interviews with individuals participating in Hong Kong’s Yellow Economic Circle, a movement relying on strategies derived from political consumerism.... (More)
Civil liberties and freedoms have diminished globally due to the last decades’
deepened authoritarianism. Concurrently, mobilizations countering this
development have decreased. Hong Kong represents one of the cases where
anti-authoritarian resistance has been sustained, which sparks a question regarding what motivates people in expanding authoritarian spaces to engage in contentious politics. This thesis aims to understand why people engage in contentious activities when it can implicate them under growing authoritarianism in Hong Kong. This study was conducted through semi-structured interviews with individuals participating in Hong Kong’s Yellow Economic Circle, a movement relying on strategies derived from political consumerism. Looking at the discourses, spaces, and practices which drive this mobilization, this thesis found that the movement’s decentralized aspect allows for individual agency through everyday activism. The perception of low risks related to the movement, along with the facilitation of social media, allows for broader dissemination of the movement. Moreover, the thesis found that democracy was the main discourse for individuals' initial engagement but not the main discourse behind sustained commitment. Instead, what drives individuals to participate in contentious political activities in Hong Kong's increasingly authoritarian setting is the continuity of a collective identity. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Tallberg, Bonnie LU
supervisor
organization
course
SIMZ11 20231
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Anti-authoritarianism, Contentious Politics, Democracy, Hong Kong, Mobilization, Yellow Economic Circle
language
English
id
9122343
date added to LUP
2023-06-21 15:45:25
date last changed
2023-06-21 15:45:25
@misc{9122343,
  abstract     = {{Civil liberties and freedoms have diminished globally due to the last decades’
deepened authoritarianism. Concurrently, mobilizations countering this
development have decreased. Hong Kong represents one of the cases where
anti-authoritarian resistance has been sustained, which sparks a question regarding what motivates people in expanding authoritarian spaces to engage in contentious politics. This thesis aims to understand why people engage in contentious activities when it can implicate them under growing authoritarianism in Hong Kong. This study was conducted through semi-structured interviews with individuals participating in Hong Kong’s Yellow Economic Circle, a movement relying on strategies derived from political consumerism. Looking at the discourses, spaces, and practices which drive this mobilization, this thesis found that the movement’s decentralized aspect allows for individual agency through everyday activism. The perception of low risks related to the movement, along with the facilitation of social media, allows for broader dissemination of the movement. Moreover, the thesis found that democracy was the main discourse for individuals' initial engagement but not the main discourse behind sustained commitment. Instead, what drives individuals to participate in contentious political activities in Hong Kong's increasingly authoritarian setting is the continuity of a collective identity.}},
  author       = {{Tallberg, Bonnie}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{“What Else Can We Do?” An examination into sustained anti-authoritarian mobilization in Hong Kong’s Yellow Economic Circle}},
  year         = {{2023}},
}