Direct Action and Democratic Politics

The first part of the volume covers the theoretical and historical dimensions of protest, and is followed by a detailed consideration of specific issues (Ulster, race, the Bomb, students and community action). An analysis is then made of the reaction of the State to such protest through legislative and administrative channels. The final part shows the intermediary roles of political parties, MPs, the NCCL and the mass media. The book concludes with a critical examination of the interaction between protest and representative democracy and the implications which arise from it.

Students of politics and sociology as well as political activists of all shades of opinion will find this book essential to an understanding of the bases of protest movements.