The Politics of Protest: Who Gets Heard and Who Gets Silenced
A cultural analysis of why some protests spark real change while others are shut down.
Protests are breaking out across the US daily. For a good reason - the culture is changing and many people don’t want it to change.
But this blog is not about moving from traditional individual freedom to centralized authority, it’s about how different cultures protest.
American and French protest culture could not be more opposite, and Thai protest? You won’t believe it unless you see it. And we saw it!
Kim and I lived in Bangkok in 2013 - 2015 and watched the protest that resulted in the coup d’etat of 2014. What a difference in protest culture!
We are also familiar with the French style of protest, which is quite different from the American and Thai styles.
American Protest Culture
In the US, citizens have the right to protest as long as it does not become violent - and will not change something those in power don’t want changed.
For example, this week there were widespread protests against the firing of many science workers in the US.
Protests were peaceful and, let’s be honest, if science doesn’t move forward or as in the US regresses, the rich and powerful still make money. Contrast this with the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) protest of 2011.
This targeted the wealth of those in power and suddenly peaceful protesters were pepper sprayed while sitting, hit with batons, and arrested en masse.
In America, protesting is given the appearance of legality. However, the police are present at virtually all protests and they are not there to support the protesters. They are there to make sure the protesters stay in line. If those in power feel the protests are becoming effective, the police are on hand to clear out the protesters.
The reality of American protests is that if a protest is going to make a difference and the difference will affect those in power, it’s shut down quickly and violently, as the world witnessed in 2011.
French Protest Culture
French protest culture is just the opposite.
Just as in America, the right to protest is guaranteed in the French Constitution. But the French are granted this right in reality. That leads to real change. The cultural differences are how the French protest and how the police handle the protesters.
Because the French government follows its constitution, French protesters can be more enthusiastic - they know they will not be pepper sprayed, beaten, or arrested unless things become violent. The police are present, just as in the US, but the French police are there to support the protesters, not the government.
The French police clear the way for the protests and keep those not protesting out of the way. If it looks like the protesters are effecting change, the police are there to protect the protesters' rights, not the government’s desire to shut it down. If the protests get out of hand, the French police respond quickly and effectively, but peaceful protest, even when it is bringing about change, is protected.
This cultural perspective results in an upward spiral: citizens' rights are respected, thus protests are more robust. Stronger protests result in positive change and more rights for the people. More rights result in stronger protests, and so on.
Thai Protest Culture
And Thai protest culture? It’s just, well Thai. As in the US and France, the Thai constitution guarantees the right to protest the government. But they do it differently.
The 2014 protesters in Bangkok shut down two of the main arteries in the city, Asok and Sukhumvit roads. They did this by erecting a stage and putting on live music. This attracted vendors selling protest swag. Bedazzling your protest t-shirt was popular.
My son and I took a transect across the city from Phrom Phong to Chinatown to see what was happening. A lot of protesting. A lot of music. A lot of sales booths. We saw no police.
Police were called in some places and a popular series of pictures at the time showed a high-ranking police official coming to the protest, jumping out of his car, posing with a protester for a selfie, and then getting on to official police business.
These were not idle protests. They resulted in a coup d’etat and a new government.
American protesters can’t even get regulatory change on Wall Street to protect small investors because the culture won’t allow it.
In the most restrictive cultures, protesters are shot and killed. Sadly, the culture accepts this, even if it does not like it. If someone is arrested or even killed, it might be looked at in terms of, “They were protesting, what did they expect? You are not allowed to do it.”
If someone is killed protesting in the US, France, or Thailand, the culture sees this as unacceptable. People have the right to protest, no one should be killed while protesting.
Different cultures accept and expect different results from protests. The Thais expect change and have fun doing it. The French expect change and are serious about it. The Americans expect to exercise their rights but know nothing will change.