Violence, Nonviolence, and the Palestinian National Movement [Paperback]

Wendy Pearlman demonstrates that the use of violent or nonviolent protest derives from a national movement's organizational structure.Why do some national movements use violent protest and others nonviolent protest? Wendy Pearlman argues that much of the answer lies inside a movement's organizational structure. Nonviolent protest requires coordination and restraint, which only a cohesive movement can provide. When, by contrast, a movement is fragmented, factional competition generates new incentives for violence and authority structures are too weak to constrain escalation. Pearlman reveals these patterns across one hundred years of Palestinian history, with comparisons to South Africa and Northern Ireland. Taking readers on a journey from civil disobedience to suicide bombings, this book offers fresh insight into the dynamics of conflict and mobilization.Why do some national movements use violent protest and others nonviolent protest? Wendy Pearlman argues that much of the answer lies inside a movement's organizational structure. Nonviolent protest requires coordination and restraint, which only a cohesive movement can provide. When, by contrast, a movement is fragmented, factional competition generates new incentives for violence and authority structures are too weak to constrain escalation. Pearlman reveals these patterns across one hundred years of Palestinian history, with comparisons to South Africa and Northern Ireland. Taking readers on a journey from civil disobedience to suicide bombings, this book offers fresh insight into the dynamics of conflict and mobilization.Why do some national movements use violent protest and others nonviolent protest? Wendy Pearlman shows that much of the answer lies inside movements themselves. Nonviolent protest requires coordination and restraint, which only a cohesive movement can provide. When, by contrast, a movement is fragmented, factional competition generates new incentives for violence and authority structures are toolÓ,