From Dungannon to Drumcree: street politics and the troubles

Thesis

This thesis examines protests and riots during the Northern Ireland Troubles. This is a study of the wide range of popular activity (everything from peaceful demonstrations to running battles) which took place during the high points of political mobilisation in the North during the conflict. Essentially, it questions who (the groups organising and individual participants), what (parliamentary and extra-parliamentary methods), why (structural and contingent factors and individual agency), where (spatial patterns of protest and the conflict geography) and how (calculations, consequences and control). Who protested? Why did they protest? What did they protest? What did they do? What happened? Where were the flashpoints? How were demonstrations and civil disorder managed? How effective was street protest? It studies protest events and episodes in forensic detail; the processes of political and paramilitary mobilisation; the makeup of protest movements; the lives and trajectories of activists, demonstrators and rioters; internal dynamics and intra-movement competition; women’s activism; peaceful and violent protest action, including symbolic and ritualistic practices, and its objective and function; policing of protest and control mechanisms; the risks and costs of activism to social movements; and the effects and efficacy of the protest tool. It sees street politics as part of a wider political and territorial struggle. It demonstrates how politics in the streets was bound up with micro- and macro-territorial aspirations (and a territorial practice) and competing visions for a democratic political settlement. It challenges common understandings about community consent and control, levels of support and power dynamics. It further demonstrates that gendered and generational, conservative and radical and constitutional and violent divisions are poorly conceived. It provides insight on action repertoires. Ultimately, this thesis provides an episodic history of street politics during the Troubles by examining the composition, characteristics, objectives, methods and outcomes of individual events and political campaigns.

Authors: Richardson, J

• DOI: 10.5287/ora-r5rjvdpd4
• Type of award: DPhil
• Level of award: Doctoral
• Awarding institution: University of Oxford
• Language: English