Abstract

During the last two decades Europe has experienced a rise in transnational contention. Citizens are crossing borders to advance alternative visions of Europe. They spread protest concepts and tactics and explore new ways of organizing dissent. Far from being a recent phenomenon, transnational protest is obviously more salient in a world of international corporations and global political interaction, compounded by electronic communication and cheap travel. The transnational condition permeates all aspects of protest organization and dynamics – from individual biographies to activist networks to cycles of contention. The contributors offer insight into this multifaceted condition by combining rich empirical evidence with reflections on the problems of transnational research.

“Overall, this compendium is a welcome addition to the academic debate on social protest movements. The common thread appears to be the need to view social protest by seeing the correlation between national and international efforts and almost all authors acknowledge the need for further researchand new methodological approaches. The volume is therefore a useful source for scholars who study current day social protest movements.” · The European Legacy: Toward New Paradigms

“This volume certainly develops our understanding of social movement research in terms of what questions we should be asking and where we ought to seek the answers… the book will be of interest to researchers on social and political movements, as well as those working on transnational mobilization and institutions.” · Ethnopolitics

“…a valuable development of the academic literature on social movements and transnationalism… In summary, Simon Teune has gathered a selection of studies that contribute positively to the study of protest and transnationalism in Europe. The conceptual and empirical analyses are thorough and will be appreciated by researchers, students and activists alike.” · CEU Political Science Journal

“It is altogether fitting that this exemplary collection on the dynamics of transnational activism is dedicated to Dieter Rucht who has consistently sought to understand the "brave new world" of transnational social movement activism that is emerging all around us. Indeed this is as strong a collection of writings on the topic as has yet to appear in print.” · Doug McAdam, Stanford University

“The volume makes a substantial contribution to the study of social movements and of the many social processes related to globalization. It addresses deficits and limitations in the existing literature on transnational movements in ways that should help movement scholars to frame the issues in new and more complex ways.” · Joe Bandy, Bowdoin College

“The scholars who offer the fruits of their research in The Transnational Condition make notable progress toward defining, and therefore understanding, supra-national protest dynamics — a rapidly expanding phenomenon across European nations. Several chapters in this volume open up new, provocative perspectives on the issue.” · John McCarthy, Penn State University

Simon Teune works at the Social Science Research Center, Berlin. His research interests are social movements, protest and culture. As a fellow of the Hans-Böckler-Stiftung he is preparing a Ph.D. dissertation that focuses on the communication strategies of global justice groups during the anti-G8 protests in Germany 2007. He is co-editor of Nur Clowns und Chaoten?, which explores the media event of the Heiligendamm protests (Campus, 2008).