The Life Cycle of a Social Movement

Social movements, like oh say, the TEA party or labor unions…Let’s take a quick look at Cooter’s Sociology text book:

· Agitation: Social movements typically emerge from the belief that a problem exists. In this early stage, a small group of people attempts to stir up public awareness of the issue, often with the intention of gaining widespread support for the movement. More often than not, movements die out at this point due to lack of support or lack of resources.
· Legitimation: Movements that find support enter legitimation stage, as the movement becomes more respectable and gains increasing acceptance among the population. Leaders previously dismissed as cranks are now seen as legitimate spokespeople of a just cause. Government and other authorities begin to recognize the movements’ concerns as legitimate. The movement attracts media attention, which brings goals to attention of increasing numbers of people. Demonstrations and rallies add to visibility.
· Bureaucratization: As the structure becomes more formal, movement enters the third stage. Movement has developed a ranked structure of authority, official policies, efficient strategies for future. The original goals of the movement are sometimes swept aside during this stage because increasing amounts of time and energy are needed to handle day-to-day running of the organization.
· Institutionalization: Movement has become an established part of society. Bureaucrats have replaced the idealistic leaders who founded the movement, and they care more about their position than the goals of the movement. Movement resists proposals for change. Procedures no longer benefit the members.

It is so fun to evaluate labor unions in this framework. Then evaluate the current TEA party.

Labor Union
Agitation: Remember the pictures of child workers in the mines and factories? Pictures of the horrific working conditions?
Legitimation: Unions even had song books!…for all those protest songs to be sung as you march around.
Bureaucratization: My grandfather, a trucker, was often puzzled by the actions of his own union, but very grateful for his pension received without fail every month in the mail.
Institutionalization: Look at the images in the media today of the pompous, arrogant spokespeople making quite frankly greedy demands that crush the very companies and industries they work for. Companies are either going bankrupt due to their labor costs or adopting a dug-in stance to break the union and get it out of the industry altogether. A strong argument can be made that unions killed the auto industry in this country due to insane labor costs – they just cannot compete with the more cost-efficient superior product from overseas. So, how did the workers benefit exactly when those companies shut their doors and went belly up?

Would I ever doubt the need of labor unions as we became an industrial nation? Absolutely not. Am I sad to see what they have become? Yup. I am afraid we have cut our nose off to spite our face. How can you fight the natural course of events – the life cycle of the social movement? Labor unions have evolved into something not good for anyone…certainly not good for rational, creative, problem-solving discussion and action to make the company or organization more competitive and profitable.

I believe our biggest challenge in this country today is figuring out how to get rid of what we once needed and replace it with what we do need that reflects TODAY’s situation, not a hundred years ago, for Pete’s sake. How can we all see more clearly the natural life cycle going on around us, and tear down that which is no longer effective and put our energy into building new things that are.

As a consumer, I don’t understand a lot of the preservationist attitudes – let the Germans make the beer and let the Japanese make the cars! Because I want to drink the best and drive the cheapest, most reliable. I want to reward the best with my purchasing decision. And if the Germans or Japanese make me mad at some point in the future and I can’t suddenly get beer and a new car, then some enterprising American will probably take advantage of that situation and step in and fill my need with some new wonderful American invention or substitution. Displaced workers in the meantime? I’d rather see my tax money go to developing new energy sources and new jobs in that area than shoring up companies making crappy products who can’t get their labor costs under control. God, I love the free market. And that means I am free to make my own darn beer, too, if I feel like it. The last thing we need is the government in the beer-making business! Blech…. can you imagine. Can you say: Don’t pee down my leg and tell me it’s raining…

TEA Party
Where is it on the life cycle? Based on my research, I believe hovering between legitimation and bureaucratization. TEA party-haters believe that it is much further along in the process than it really is. THERE IS NO FORMAL STRUCTURE. The reality is that there are several competing splinter groups at the state level. They have websites that sometimes lack a professional veneer, as they’re being created by emotional non-professionals. The national level exists so far of one not-too-bad website with leaders tasked as official spokespeople and the goal of organizing rallies and demonstrations. The organization is focused still on communicating its message and getting the word out. The message is simple: The mission is to attract, educate, organize, and mobilize fellow citizens to secure public policy consistent with three core values of Fiscal Responsibility, Constitutionally Limited Government and Free Markets. However, the movement is attracting some true crazies who PERCEIVE that message to mean ANYTHING anti-government, and they’re fuzzing up the core message/ mission.

Also, the young organization is coming under a very interesting attack from those in power in the establishment and media. I speak of use of propaganda techniques such as name calling (claims of yelling racial slurs and spitting on people) and card stacking (printing the quotes from the random crazies as opposed to official spokespeople). Interestingly enough, no video or proof has yet to be offered to support the claims. It definitely looks like, sounds like, smells like “nazi tactics” to discredit a LEGITIMATE social movement.