In your opinion, what is the political opportunity structure for current contemporary movements in the US? In what ways do they have more opportunity? In what ways do they have less? What movements do you think have the best chance of being successful on the basis of your analysis? Which have the worst?
I would say that the political opportunity structure for current movements in the US would be extremely varied, however I think that the majority focus on multifaceted approaches, including technology, physical activities, such as a marathon, rallies, as well as one to one contact. This has changed quite a bit from back in the Civil Rights for African Americans era, when not all forms of communication and expression were open and free for use by groups as dedicated as the individuals in this movement, for instance. It's hard for me to even compare the two now, just because of the fact that we know that there is no way to really predict the outcome of a movement, or know after the fact whether or not it was indeed your involvement or the activists as a whole. In some ways, I can definitely see how back before internet was invented, etc that the protests and movements would have been much more solidified and have more concentrated voices, whereas today, just by signing onto Facebook, you are able to join an infinite number of "causes" or links to organizations or even the public figures heading some of these movements. I personally wonder if this is making things so easy, that the dedication is waning and while there may be more numbers of the involved- there is something to be said about quality vs. quantity here as well.
The movements that I think have the best chance of "succeeding" would be the ones that did not start with information technology per se, but rather with an individual making a personal commitment and from their actions- people are educated and become interested in following and having a hand in this. This way, maybe there is more ownership of one's causes and benefits and from this be able to sustain a long term dedication to the said cause. The movements that I do not think have a good chance of following through with their intentions would be the ones started on a whim, by individuals going into this type of justice work with only their own interests in mind, instead of the humble reasons non profit organizations and governmental initiatives were founded.
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