Marianne Maeckelbergh | Universiteit Gent (original) (raw)

Books by Marianne Maeckelbergh

Articles/Chapters/etc. by Marianne Maeckelbergh

in Martin Parker, George Cheney, Valérie Fournier & Chris Land (eds) Routledge Companion to Alternative Organization (Routledge 2013), 2013

Open Citizenship 4(1): 74-79, 2013

The current financial crisis highlights two trends that offer some indication of what post-democ... more The current financial crisis highlights two trends that
offer some indication of what post-democracy might look like. The
first trend – authoritarian repression – is characterised by increased
acceptability of far-right ideologies and pre-emptive, militarised
policing, both of which make protest more dangerous. The second
trend, by contrast, involves the refusal of many social movements to express their demands through traditional democratic channels,
such as elected representatives and referenda. These movements have designed elaborate decision-making procedures that promote a form of radical equality dubbed horizontality, which is viewed by many participants as a potential replacement for political systems based on representation and electoral politics.

Transforming Anthropology 21(1): 27-40., 2013

This article explores the role of conflict in fostering equality within the decision-making proce... more This article explores the role of conflict in fostering equality within the decision-making processes of the alterglobalization movement. I argue that movement actors treat conflict as constructive because it helps create “diversity.” Movement actors transform conflict from adversarial to constructive through a continuous process of decentralizing power referred to as “horizontality.” This decentralization of power is achieved through network-based decision-making structures that reject unity through agreement in
favor of connections between differences. Drawing on over 8 years of ethnographic research into movement decision-making practices, I argue that these movement practices show that although diversity leads to conflict, adversarial conflict is not caused by this flow of diversity; adversarial conflict arises only when these flows are blocked. Movement practices demonstrate that conflict can be productive if it is given space for expression. [alterglobalization movement, conflict, democracy, decision making, diversity, networks]

Kosmos Spring/Summer 2013, 2013

Schols, H., Hobbelink, G., Fominaya, C.F., Trejo, S., Maeckelbergh, M., Vogiatzoglou, M., Cox, L., van den Berg, E. 2013. “Social movements and the European crisis: activist and researcher reflections” Interface: the journal of and for social movements 5(2): 98-120.

Interface: the journal of and for social movements 5(2): 98-120., 2013

Overview On June 28, the Transnational Institute Amsterdam hosted a symposium with activists from... more Overview On June 28, the Transnational Institute Amsterdam hosted a symposium with activists from a range of movements and researchers from the three main European networks of social movement research (Council for European Studies, European Sociological Association, European Consortium for Political Research). The goal was to share experiences from participants' different standpoints, map out the current situation of movement organising in Europe, and identify strategic implications in a way that can be usefully shared with activists across Europe. The participants were The symposium discussed three key questions: 1. Where are movements at? New and old elements, strengths and weaknesses (introduced by Benjamin Tejerina) 2. How can movements help each other? Networking across differences, solidarity, building a European movement? (introduced by Marianne Maeckelbergh) 3. How can movements win? Movement strategy in the crisis (introduced by Laurence Cox) Following the event we asked participants to write up their reflections arising

Interface: a journal for and about social movements 4(1), 2012

This article examines the 15 May movement in Barcelona to explore some continuities and discontin... more This article examines the 15 May movement in Barcelona to explore some continuities and discontinuities between social movement responses to the economic crisis and previous experiments with horizontal democracy within global social movement networks. Specifically, this article examines two meeting structures embodied in the occupied square in Barcelona to explore the mechanisms through which decision making within the 15 May movement foster diversity and embrace conflict. Based on a decade of involvement in the alterglobalization movement, attendance at meetings in the acampada in Barcelona at the height of the 15 May uprising, as well as follow up interviews and discussions with long-time activists in Barcelona, this article shows how the decision making practices used in the squares in Barcelona mimic, build on and expand on horizontal decision-making methods practiced within the alterglobalization movement. Some of the dilemmas created by the grounding of horizontal decision- making within local squares and the much larger scale of these meetings are explored.

International Journal of Urban and …, 2012

This article examines how housing becomes a basis for mobilization that brings residents in East ... more This article examines how housing becomes a basis for mobilization that brings residents in East Harlem, New York City into internationally mobile social movement networks. These networks foster the mobility of people, practices and ideas to transform ‘housing’ from an immobile practice into a mobile, shifting entity experienced as tenuous, a counterfactual demand for immobility, and an expression of a shared desire for self-determination. Through mobilizing frames that turn the demand for decent housing into a struggle against neoliberalism, gentrification and displacement, and for collective self-determination, housing struggles create multi-scale networks of mobility that are essential to pursuing a neighborhood-level struggle to stay put.

Cultural Anthropology, 2012

It is too early to determine what the effects of Occupy, the May 15 (15M) movement and the many o... more It is too early to determine what the effects of Occupy, the May 15 (15M) movement and the many other struggles around the world will be, but one thing they have already accomplished is to shift the way many people think about democratic governance―not in one or two places, but across the world simultaneously. Over the past year, I have teamed up with independent filmmaker Brandon Jourdan to make short documentaries about many of the different sites of revolt―Greece, Spain, Egypt, UK, US (see www.globaluprisings.org) and as I go from site to site I have been trying to understand how it is that all these uprisings can somehow be simultaneously so different from each other and so exactly the same. It is too easy to say that these responses are all the same because the causes are everywhere the same: the neo-liberal state and its short-sighted economic policies, otherwise known as capitalism. It is also too easy to say that these uprisings cannot be compared, cannot be treated as similar at all, just because the specific circumstances in each country are so different. There is something far more interesting going on and I think it deserves attention.

in Martin Parker, George Cheney, Valérie Fournier & Chris Land (eds) Routledge Companion to Alternative Organization (Routledge 2013), 2013

Open Citizenship 4(1): 74-79, 2013

Transforming Anthropology 21(1): 27-40., 2013

Kosmos Spring/Summer 2013, 2013

Interface: the journal of and for social movements 5(2): 98-120., 2013

Interface: a journal for and about social movements 4(1), 2012

International Journal of Urban and …, 2012

Cultural Anthropology, 2012

Open Democracy, 2012

Horizontal democracy attempts to ensure equality by embracing diversity and conflict. Within thes... more Horizontal democracy attempts to ensure equality by embracing diversity and conflict. Within these political structures, diversity is not a problem that needs to be resolved: there is no narrative of uniformity, no shared identity (national or otherwise) and no predetermined ideology.

"This short documentary explores ongoing resistance and self-organization in the midst of the eco... more "This short documentary explores ongoing resistance and self-organization in the midst of the economic and social crisis in Madrid, Spain.

As social conditions continue to deteriorate across the country, people have been turning to the streets and to each other to find for solutions to the crisis. This film tells a story of the massive mobilization that saw millions of people converge on Madrid on March 22nd 2014, the story of the proliferation of social centers, community gardens, self-organized food banks, and the story of large-scale housing occupations by and for families that have been evicted. The film pieces together many of the creative ways that people have been coping with crisis and asks what the future may hold for Spain.

Filmed and edited in March/April 2014, it is part of the Global Uprisings documentary series."

This short documentary tells the story of the uprising in Bosnia and Herzegovina that started in ... more This short documentary tells the story of the uprising in Bosnia and Herzegovina that started in early February 2014. Since February 5 2014, protests have swept across Bosnia and Herzegovina. The protests were started by workers from five factories in northern city of Tuzla: Dita, Polihem, Poliolhem, GUMARA and Konjuh. The factories had been privatized, bankrupted and stripped of assets, leaving the workers with large debts, no salaries, no health care and no benefits. The protests culminated on February 7, 2014 when several governmental buildings were set on fire in cities across the country, including the presidential building in Sarajevo. Under pressure of protests, four regional governments resigned. The protests were followed with mass popular assemblies, referred to as plenums, that quickly spread across the country.

This short documentary tells the story of the occupation of Gezi Park, the eviction on July 15, 2... more This short documentary tells the story of the occupation of Gezi Park, the eviction on July 15, 2013, and the protests that have continued in the aftermath. It includes interviews with many participants and footage never before seen.

"The workers at the Vio.Me. Factory in Thessaloniki, Greece have quickly grown into a symbol of s... more "The workers at the Vio.Me. Factory in Thessaloniki, Greece have quickly grown into a symbol of self-management internationally. After going on strike and occupying their factory, on February 12, 2013 they re-opened the factory and started production under worker’s control. For many, the factory represents a new potential way forward for unemployed workers in Greece – seizing the means of production, running factories without bosses, producing only goods that are needed, and distributing them through solidarity networks.

“Every extra profit we make will be given out to people who need it. Our plan is to offer help to unemployed people or others who are in great need,” says Dimitrios Koumasiouras, a worker from Vio.Me.

This film tells the story of how the worker’s re-opened the factory under self-management and looks to where the factory is headed now."

""Two years after the revolution in Egypt began, unrest continues across the country as the polit... more ""Two years after the revolution in Egypt began, unrest continues across the country as the political and economic situation worsens. As the current government consolidates its power, the demands of the revolution may seem further away than ever. Still the revolution has opened up new spaces for political action, spurring public debate on issues that have gone unacknowledged and unresolved for too long.

This short documentary looks at some of the reasons motivating revolutionaries to keep taking the streets, the obstacles that they are facing, and the tactics that they are using. It looks into the current economic and political problems facing Egyptians, the growing independent union movement, black bloc tactics, and the response of women to sexual assaults.""

On November 14th 2012, thousands of people took to the streets of Portugal as part of a European ... more On November 14th 2012, thousands of people took to the streets of Portugal as part of a European wide general strike. Until recently, the International Monetary Fund held Portugal as an ideal example of the effectiveness of austerity policies, but today, its economy is heading in the same direction as Greece and Spain. This short documentary details the week of the November 14th strike in Lisbon and the events surrounding it.

"By Brandon Jourdan and Marianne Maeckelbergh This short documentary looks at the current social... more "By Brandon Jourdan and Marianne Maeckelbergh
This short documentary looks at the current social crisis in Greece, the growth of alternative economies, general strikes, and the rise of the anti-fascist movement in response to violent attacks by the far-right. After six years of recession, the situation in Greece is growing increasingly dark. As the unemployment rate continues to rise and salaries continue to drop, the country has descended into an increasingly unpredictable situation."

"This short film chronicles the events of September 25-29th in Madrid, Spain where tens of thous... more "This short film chronicles the events of September 25-29th in Madrid,
Spain where tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets to
demand the resignation of the government and an end to police
brutality. Many of the protests ended in clashes with the police.
Since the stand off began on September 25th , the images of police
brutality have travelled the world over, shocking and inspiring people
across Europe and leading to an international day of action on
September 29th. This film tells the story of why so many people took
to the streets and follows these events as they unfolded.

Go to globaluprisings.org for the full series of mini-documenaries about reactions to the economic crisis around the world."

From Sept 15-17th Occupy Wall Street gathered in lower Manhattan to commemorate one full year of ... more From Sept 15-17th Occupy Wall Street gathered in lower Manhattan to commemorate one full year of actions. The three days were broken up into a day of education, a day of celebration, and a day of liberation. Occupy Wall Street participants used the anniversary to show that they are still active, organizing actions everyday all across the city. Those in attendance made clear that their movement is far from over.

From May 12-May 15th, protesters throughout Spain marked the first anniversary of the 15M movemen... more From May 12-May 15th, protesters throughout Spain marked the first anniversary of the 15M movement by re-taking the streets and squares of over 80 cities. The 15M movement inspired people all over the world to occupy their local squares, to self-organize general assemblies and to build networks of solidarity in the face of severe economic policy. This short documentary documents the 15M anniversary protests in Barcelona.

On March 29, 2012, millions of people across Spain went on strike. The strike, which was the firs... more On March 29, 2012, millions of people across Spain went on strike. The strike, which was the first general strike since September 2010, brought the country to a near halt. The situation in Spain has grown increasingly difficult with 1 in 4 people out of work and many struggling to make rent or mortgage payments. This short film is about what happened in Barcelona on that day.

SAGE Publications Ltd eBooks, Sep 13, 2016

Social Movement Studies, 2011

ABSTRACT In most accounts of social movements, prefiguration and strategy are treated as separate... more ABSTRACT In most accounts of social movements, prefiguration and strategy are treated as separate movement practices that are either contradictory or complementary to each other. In this article I argue that in the case of the alterglobalization movement, we have to ...

Routledge eBooks, Nov 2, 2021

The nature of this book: A practical and theoretical guide Worldwide, courses and specialisations... more The nature of this book: A practical and theoretical guide Worldwide, courses and specialisations on audiovisual and digital methods are proliferating. However, many still rely on textbooks written several decades ago. The time is ripe for a manageable, up-to-date, theoretical and practical guide that addresses in a comprehensive way the methodological connections across established and emergent fields such as sonic ethnography, digital media and visual anthropology. At Leiden, over the years we have developed collective and individual expertise in these fields, as well as a collective stance on how to deal with data management. This book brings together this practical and field-based expertise in a coherent volume. In teaching and field research, students and scholars encounter (audio) visual and digital 'data' not as separate entities, but all at the same time; accordingly, we provide a broad but succinct epistemological framework regarding how to sense, mediate and listen while also drawing, videoing and digitally interacting with the field-as modern ethnographers do. In this book we accompany the reader as they 'enskill' their senses, learning to see, listen and mediate, whether by drawing, filming or other digital and multimodal methods. We ground our approach firmly in ethnographic field research practice, encompassing visual ethnography, skilled vision, sonic ethnography, skilled listening and digital developments as aspects of current field engagements. The authors of this book are all anthropologists and colleagues at Leiden University. Each is an expert in visual, digital or sonic ethnography. We developed the project for a handbook together and have reviewed each other's chapters. 1 The chapters can accordingly be read either as independent essays on a specific field or as component parts of a holistic approach that covers in a connected manner the following aspects of audiovisual and digital ethnography: learning to see and listen in the field; the mediation of the senses; doing anthropological fieldwork

This paper analyzes existing practices and supporting technologies for Participatory Budgeting (P... more This paper analyzes existing practices and supporting technologies for Participatory Budgeting (PB), with a special focus on US-related initiatives, as a mean to understand the current and future design space of ICT for participatory democracy. We suggest new design opportunities for ICT to facilitate citizen collaboration in the PB process, and by extension, to reflect on how these technologies could better foster deliberative decision-making at a scale that is both small and large.

Transforming Anthropology, Mar 15, 2013

This article explores the role of conflict in fostering equality within the decision-making proce... more This article explores the role of conflict in fostering equality within the decision-making processes of the alterglobalization movement. I argue that movement actors treat conflict as constructive because it helps create “diversity.” Movement actors transform conflict from adversarial to constructive through a continuous process of decentralizing power referred to as “horizontality.” This decentralization of power is achieved through network-based decision-making structures that reject unity through agreement in favor of connections between differences. Drawing on over 8 years of ethnographic research into movement decision-making practices, I argue that these movement practices show that although diversity leads to conflict, adversarial conflict is not caused by this flow of diversity; adversarial conflict arises only when these flows are blocked. Movement practices demonstrate that conflict can be productive if it is given space for expression.

Routledge eBooks, Nov 2, 2021

This article examines the 15 May movement in Barcelona to explore some continuities and discontin... more This article examines the 15 May movement in Barcelona to explore some continuities and discontinuities between social movement responses to the economic crisis and previous experiments with horizontal democracy within global social movement networks. Specifically, this article examines two meeting structures embodied in the occupied square in Barcelona to explore the mechanisms through which decision-making within the 15 May movement foster diversity and embrace conflict. Based on a decade of involvement in the alterglobalization movement, attendance at meetings in the acampada in Barcelona at the height of the 15 May uprising, as well as follow up interviews and discussions with long-time activists in Barcelona, this article shows how the decision-making practices used in the squares in Barcelona mimic, build on and expand on horizontal decision-making methods practiced within the alterglobalization movement. Some of the dilemmas created by the grounding of horizontal decision-making within local squares and the much larger scale of these meetings are explored.

The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this p... more The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.

Springer eBooks, 2016

Maeckelbergh argues that experimentation with alternative political structures within social move... more Maeckelbergh argues that experimentation with alternative political structures within social movements as a form of prefigurative politics is too often understood as separate from ‘other’ forms of politics. Those who reproduce the dichotomy argue that ‘other’ forms of politics are more strategic, instrumental and effective than prefiguration, which by comparison, becomes astrategic and ineffective. Drawing on the examples from the post-2011 wave of uprisings, with a focus on a general strike in Spain, Maeckelbergh argues that it is not possible to separate out ‘prefiguration’ from ‘other’ forms of political activity. The false dichotomy between prefiguration and ‘instrumental’ action is closely tied to powerful declarations about when a movement has succeeded or failed. The success/failure paradigm, however, is problematic when considering prefigurative politics because it raises the question of when such an assessment can rightly be made. The temporality of social change implied in prefiguration does not allow for easy success/failure declarations and the question of when we assess these movements therefore becomes a central concern with powerful consequences.

This article examines the 15 May movement in Barcelona to explore some continuities and discontin... more This article examines the 15 May movement in Barcelona to explore some continuities and discontinuities between social movement responses to the economic crisis and previous experiments with horizontal democracy within global social movement networks. Specifically, this article examines two meeting structures embodied in the occupied square in Barcelona to explore the mechanisms through which decision-making within the 15 May movement foster diversity and embrace conflict. Based on a decade of involvement in the alterglobalization movement, attendance at meetings in the acampada in Barcelona at the height of the 15 May uprising, as well as follow up interviews and discussions with long-time activists in Barcelona, this article shows how the decision-making practices used in the squares in Barcelona mimic, build on and expand on horizontal decision-making methods practiced within the alterglobalization movement. Some of the dilemmas created by the grounding of horizontal decision-mak...

Proceedings of the 8th International Conference on Communities and Technologies, 2017

PoLAR: Political and Legal Anthropology Review, 2018

Audiovisual and Digital Ethnography, 2021