Title
Contesting middle-class civility : place-based collective identity in Hong Kong’s Occupy Mongkok
Document Type
Journal article
Source Publication
Social Movement Studies
Publication Date
2-16-2018
Volume
Advance online publication
Publisher
Routledge
Keywords
Protest camp, Place, Collective identity, Occupy movement, Umbrella Movement
Abstract
The global wave of popular protests since 2011 has highlighted the importance of place to contentious politics. Focusing on Hong Kong’s Umbrella Movement, this article analyzes how place, when dramatized by the practice of protest camping, shapes collective identity formation and contestation. By examining the Mongkok protest camp, I argue that the symbolic meanings being attributed to the place have shaped a collective identity distinctive from other local protests. This place-based collective identity was constituted by two dimensions: a tactical dimension that advocated militant actions against the police and counter-protesters; and an associational dimension that sought to identify with the grassroots in political activism. While its formation helped to galvanize protesters’ solidarity at the early stage of the movement, the two dimensions gradually generated intensive conflicts, which eventually weakened solidarity and the movement claims.
DOI
10.1080/14742837.2018.1434501
Print ISSN
14742837
E-ISSN
14742829
Publisher Statement
Copyright © 2018 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. Access to external full text or publisher's version may require subscription.
Full-text Version
Publisher’s Version
Language
English
Recommended Citation
Yuen, S. (2018). Contesting middle-class civility: Place-based collective identity in Hong Kong’s Occupy Mongkok. Social Movement Studies. Advance online publication. doi: 10.1080/14742837.2018.1434501
