Epistemologies of Struggle

Social Movement Theory and the Politics of Knowledge Production

Bibliographic Data

ID11230435
AuthorsEmily Brissette (Bridgewater State University, corresponding author), Mike King (0000-0002-9001-040X, Bridgewater State University)
Year2023
Volume47
Issue2
Pages139-153
Publication date2023-05-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueHumanity & Society (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0160-5976 • E-ISSN: 2372-9708
PublisherSAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/01605976231158396
OpenAlexW4321087287
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited31

Within the field of US social movement studies, there is periodic concern that the work produced by scholars is not more widely read and used by activists and organizers, yet there is little attention given to how epistemological norms within the field produce and maintain the disconnect between mainstream US social movement studies and movements on the ground. In this paper we trace the major contours of the problem: the positivism that saturates the field’s tendency towards abstraction and model building; the implicit normative commitment to a liberal-pluralist social order which eclipses radical voices; and the refusal to engage seriously with the organic knowledge production that takes place within every movement. We also highlight exemplary theorizing that has emerged out of active struggles and argue that the humanistic study of social movements must begin from a place of intellectual humility, decentering academic expertise and recognizing that scholars have much to learn from organic intellectuals in movements today

Aesthetics · Epistemology · Field (mathematics · Humanism · Mainstream · Movement (music · Normative · Political science · Politics · Positivism · Social movement · Social movement theory · Social science · Sociology · American Political and Social Dynamics · Law · Political theory and Gramsci · Race, History, and American Society

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