Explaining the fuel protests

Doherty

Abstract

We describe and analyse the fuel protests in the UK in September and November 2000. We draw on theories of social movements to explain the success of the first of these protests and the failure of the second. We show how the loose, network forms of organisation contributed to the success in September, and the attempts to impose more formal organisations helped to cause the failure in November. We also show how the success of the protests depended on the articulation of the aims of the protestors with dominant social forces in British politics, in particular the oil companies, the police, and the mass media.

Citation

Doherty. (2003). Explaining the fuel protests. British Journal of Politics and International Relations, 1 -23. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-856X.00093

• Acceptance Date: Nov 1, 2001
• Publication Date: Mar 20, 2003
• Journal: British Journal of Politics and International Relations
• Print ISSN: 1369-1481
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• Pages: 1 -23
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-856X.00093
• Keywords: social movements, direct action, British politics
• Publisher URL: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1467-856X.00093/abstract