The children of the Carnation Revolution? Connections between Portugal’s anti-austerity movement and the revolutionary period 1974/1975

Putting the past into action: How historical narratives shape participation in collective action

“…Third, certain actions might be more appealing because they align with group descriptive norms (e.g., Albro, 2009; Polletta & Jasper, 2001). By informing the ingroup descriptive behavioral norms, historical narratives may increase preference for the tactics the group used in the past (Baumgarten, 2017; Borland, 2008). For instance, the centrality of Portugal's 1974 Carnation Revolution—when thousands of civilians joined in a military coup—in the historical narratives adopted by contemporary Portuguese activists has contributed to a preference for more aggressive, confrontational tactics such as the seizure of state property (Baumgarten, 2017).…”

“…By informing the ingroup descriptive behavioral norms, historical narratives may increase preference for the tactics the group used in the past (Baumgarten, 2017; Borland, 2008). For instance, the centrality of Portugal's 1974 Carnation Revolution—when thousands of civilians joined in a military coup—in the historical narratives adopted by contemporary Portuguese activists has contributed to a preference for more aggressive, confrontational tactics such as the seizure of state property (Baumgarten, 2017). We predict that activists will be more likely to engage in and to express preference for tactics that feature prominently in their endorsed narratives of past collective struggles (Hypothesis 21).…”

“…By integrating research and theory on historical narratives and collective action, we theorize the pathways through which historical narratives impact three predictors of collective action that have received most attention in models of collective action (e.g., Thomas et al., 2012; van Zomeren et al., 2012)—perceived injustice, group efficacy beliefs, and group identity (see Figure 1). We also examine how historical narratives can shape collective action tactics (e.g., Baumgarten, 2017), such as preferences for normative and non‐normative action (Tausch & Becker, 2015). While our focus is primarily on the influence of historical narratives on driving these antecedents and types of action, we also point to instances in which the same historical narratives might inhibit collective action.…”

Challenging the meaning of the past from below: A typology for comparative research on memory activists

“…The second strand, Daphi and Zamponi argue, examines “memories in movements” or how memories of various pasts affect a movement’s internal functioning and cohesion. Studies have shown how memories determine dynamics of contention (Bosco, 2004), provide symbolic resources and points of orientation that influence movement framing (Baumgarten, 2017), built movements’ identity (Daphi, 2017; Gongaware, 2011; Polletta and Jasper, 2001), and repertoires of contention (Zamponi, 2018). Memory is viewed as “a cultural resource out of which activists draw symbols and ideas” (Kubal and Becerra, 2014: 872), or as one of several “cultural building blocks” for a movement’s collective identity (Daphi, 2017; Polletta and Jasper, 2001: 299).…”

Divided national memories and EU crises: how Eurosceptic parties mobilize historical narratives

“…The success of the Left Bloc in the 2015 parliament election was akin to the rise of Podemos and Syriza, as this loosely structured radical left party profited from the anti-austerity social movement and became the third political force in the Portuguese Parliament. But it was the Portuguese Communist Party that used nationalism in their campaign slogan "For a patriotic and left-wing policy" (Lisi 2016) and in their media outlet used the Carnation Revolution and its commemoration to protest against the sitting right-wing government (Baumgarten 2017). Portugal became another example of the Southern defiance to "Brussels" in 2015 when the Socialists formed a government backed by the Left Bloc and the Portuguese Communist Party.…”