Full Description
Protest and Politics in Turkey offers the first comprehensive academic study of Turkey's 1970s protest cycle, analyzing the political dynamics of the decade and its long-term consequences. Drawing on an original dataset of protests, the book examines the interplay between state repression and protests.
The study situates the 1970s as a formative period in Turkish politics, tracing how leftist, nationalist, and Islamist movements developed under conditions of polarization, violence, and authoritarian intervention. It also demonstrates how the 1980 coup reshaped the political arena, suppressed collective action, and created the conditions for the rise of political Islam and the rightward shift that continues to shape Turkish politics today. Providing a detailed examination of historical continuities and disruptions, the author presents a rich tapestry with which to comprehend the complex socio-political landscape of contemporary Turkey.
By analyzing both continuities and ruptures, the book shows how the legacies of the 1970s reverberate in contemporary struggles over democracy, authoritarianism, and the role of protest in public life. The book contributes to broader debates on contentious politics, repression, and regime change, and will form essential reading for scholars of social movements, Turkish politics, and comparative authoritarianism.
Contents
1. Introduction Part I: Theoretical Framework and Method 2. Explaining Collective Action: The Political Process Approach and Political Opportunities 3. Methodology: Protest Event Analysis Part II: Political Opportunity Structure: Turkey in the 1960s and 1970s 4. Institutional Structure and Alliances Part III: 1970s As a Wave of Protest: Actors, Repertoires of Action, and Issues 5. Key Actors and Organizations in the 1970s 6. Repertoires of Action: Exploring Diverse Strategies in the 1970s 7. Issues: Key Sociopolitical Concerns in the 1970s Part IV: Dynamics of the Cycle: Radicalization and Repression 8. Between Radicalization and Institutionalization 9. Institutional Responses and Political Opportunity Structures: Repressive Measures in the 1970s 10. Conclusion
