A reformative social movement, Safe Streets Coalition (SSC), is campaigning for a statewide policy package to reduce road deaths. SSC uses predominantly non-violent tactics (local rallies, community “slow street” demonstrations, petitions, coordinated calls to MPs, and a week-long consumer boycott of a major fuel retailer that lobbies against speed reductions). A small splinter group, Road Justice Now (RJN), has carried out several acts of sabotage (damaging speed cameras and vandalising a government office). Major media outlets increasingly frame the overall campaign as ‘lawless’, and the government announces a proposed bill increasing penalties for “disruptive protest near critical infrastructure”.
SSC’s organisers have collected the following estimates for the last 12 months:
- Adults in the state: $4{,}000{,}000$
- People who participated in at least one SSC action: $96{,}000$
- People who participated in at least one RJN action: $1{,}200$
- Police report: $18$ arrests at SSC events; $37$ arrests linked to RJN incidents
- Two MPs from the governing party publicly “cross the floor” to support SSC’s policy package after meeting with families of victims at an SSC event.
Assume these estimates are accurate for the purposes of this question.
a. Calculate the percentage of the adult population that participated in at least one SSC action in the last 12 months. Show your working. Using Chenoweth’s work, deduce what this level of participation suggests about SSC’s potential to influence social change.
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Create Free Account Log inThis is a free VCE Units 3 & 4 Sociology practice question worth 4 marks, testing your understanding of Movements' influence (Chenoweth). It falls under Social movements and social change in Unit 4: Community, social movements and social change. Submit your answer above to receive instant AI-powered marking and personalised feedback.
In this unit, students explore the ways sociologists have thought about the idea of community and how various types of community are experienced. They examine the relationship between social movements and social change, including the nature, purpose, power, and outcomes of social movements.
Students investigate the sociological concept of power, the nature and purpose of social movements, types and stages of social movements, and how power is used by movements and their opposition. They evaluate the influence of social movements on social change, referencing Erica Chenoweth’s work, and analyse a specific social movement in detail.
influences of social movements on social change, with reference to the work of Erica Chenoweth
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