REPRESSION-INSPIRED INNOVATIVE FORMS OF PROTEST AS A FACTOR SUSTAINING MOBILIZATION: THE CASE STUDY OF ALL-POLISH WOMEN'S STRIKE
REPRESSION-INSPIRED INNOVATIVE FORMS OF PROTEST AS A FACTOR SUSTAINING MOBILIZATION: THE CASE STUDY OF ALL-POLISH WOMEN'S STRIKE

Summary/Abstract: The paper aims to discover the relations between repression and the occurrence of innovative forms of protests (hereinafter: IFP) during the All-women’s Strike in Poland (2020-2021). The Authors identified two most essential features of IFP, namely the use of the Internet and avoidance of physical violence. IFP were significant for these manifestations, considering pandemic circumstances and strict restrictions on public assembly. The following questions were asked during the research: 1) What was the content of the IFP? 2) Who is the target of IFP? The study draws on process tracing to determine whether repression by law enforcement caused a public reaction against those measures. Moreover, qualitative content analysis was used to determine the content published in public domain posts on Instagram. The period examined is 20 October 2020 (tightening abortion law by the Constitutional Court) to 8 February 2021 (when the last post was published). The purposeful selection of cases included 450 posts by the most engaged Polish female celebrities. The paper provides knowledge of how specific repression triggered certain types of IFP and who was the target of these protests. The authors also explain the use of IFP during the All-women’s Strike in Poland.

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