Cambridge Socio-Legal Group Seminar: 'Making Protest: Protest Brokers and the Technology of Mobilization'

Speaker: Sarah J. Lockwood

Bio: Sarah J. Lockwood is an Assistant Professor in the Centre of Development Studies and Department of Politics and International Studies at the University of Cambridge. She is also a Fellow of Clare College, and a Research Affiliate at the Institute for Democracy, Citizenship and Public Policy in Africa at the University of Cape Town, where she co-directs the Political Parties in Africa project. Her work lies at the intersection of comparative politics and the political economy of development, with a substantive interest in protest and other forms of democratic accountability. She uses a multi-method approach, combining in-depth qualitative fieldwork with statistical analysis, surveys, and experiments, to answer two related questions: When and under what circumstances do individuals mobilize in pursuit of political, social and economic change? And what effect does this have on government accountability, resource allocation, and the quality of governance? She holds a PhD in African Studies and Government from Harvard University, an MA in Government from Harvard University, an MSc in African Studies from the University of Oxford, and a BA in Political Science from Columbia University. More details on her publications and current research projects can be found at https://www.sarahjlockwood.com

Protest brokers – intermediaries who connect elites desiring mobilization with communities of potential protesters – play an important role in the organization of collective action in many parts of the world. They help to determine where protests take place, affect the ways in which protestors are mobilized, and shape the type of protests we see. Despite their importance, however, we currently know relatively little about the individuals that fill these roles, their interests and preferences, and the details of their day-to-day activities, limiting our understanding of collective action in critical ways. Drawing on over 26 months of fieldwork, along with surveys and experiments, this project examines the role of protest brokers in South Africa - showing how brokers shape where collective action happens, affect the likelihood of violence at protests, and impact the response of the state to citizen demands.

This event is a hybrid event. If you are in Cambridge, please do join us in the Faculty. To attend online you must register via Zoom.

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