Question

2) How do social movements build power?

Answer 1

The purpose of social science is to study systematically all aspects of human condition and human behavior, using a methodology borrows from the physical sciences wherever possible. Social sciences emerged when some social philosophers determined to use the scientific method to study specific aspects of human behavior in the social world.

When we consider economics as a social science, the above said explanation also should be considered. Economics is not an independent subject. It includes political science, sociology, psychology and such other social sciences too. We discuss our topic from there: How do social movements build power?

Social movements usually emerge from under class groups who lack meaningful access to other official and institutionalized means of power. So social movements are things that areise from the powerless people for the creation and generation of power. Charles Tilly, famous sociologist defines social movements "as a series of contentious performances, displays and campaigns by which ordinary people make collective claims on others".People assemble themselves, for a common purpose, where people of similar goals could find each other, gather and organize. According to Shannon,social movements can be defined as "organizational structures and strategies that may empower oppressed populations to mount effective challenges and resist the more powerful and advantaged elites" The best example of this idea can be traced back to the Reformation period, when people started questioning the Church and this  European movement aimed initially at reforming the beliefs and practices of the Roman Catholic Church.The Reformation ended the unity imposed by medieval Christianity and, and historians marked this as the beginning of the modern era.

There are a number of social movements that united the people and threatened the thrones or power. The Renaissance, and The Salt March and Non-Cooperation Movement in India are the best examples of such social movements. All social movements have a common goal of raising awareness among the people. In case of any kind of social injustice, the people have the right to protest.When people stand together for a common cause and raise their voice, it will never go unheard. We may recall the time when Mahatma Gandhi, the great Indian leader called for Sathyagraha to drive the British away from the country. The whole nation stood behind him towards this goal. And it is written with golden letters in the annals of Indian history that their revolution for freedom was a bloodless revolution!!  So the social movements that proclaims the need of a minority people coming together for a greater effect has a great impact on the building up of power.