Abstract
AbstractGiven the prevalence of riots throughout human history, the lack of normative theorizing about them compared to other forms of political violence is striking. The author hypothesizes that this is due to riots' extra-institutionality. Riots areextra-publicbecause they involve the participation of crowds, rather than institutionalized groups such as parties or social movements. They areextra-statebecause they violate the state's monopoly on violence. Riots areextra-legalbecause they constitute a form of unlawful assembly. They are alsoextra-parliamentarybecause they operate outside the normal legislative process. This article considers justifiable reasons to resist each of these foundational institutions, and proposes provisional criteria for a justifiable riot. The author concludes by urging political theorists to further examine the normative dimension of riots.
Highlights
I would be the first to say that I am still committed to militant, powerful, massive, non-violence as the most potent weapon in grappling with the problem from a direct action point of view
I argue it is because riots are extra-institutional in four ways (1) they are extra-public because rioting crowds self-organize; (2) they are extra-state because rioting disrupts the state’s monopoly on violence; (3) they are extra-legal because they involve breaking laws concerning public assembly; and (4) they are extra-parliamentary because rioters express their grievances outside of normal political processes
When we evaluate the countertraditions that defend crowd action, we find four criteria by which we can assess whether a rioting crowd is behaving justly or unjustly
Summary
I would be the first to say that I am still committed to militant, powerful, massive, non-violence as the most potent weapon in grappling with the problem from a direct action point of view. I argue it is because riots are extra-institutional in four ways (1) they are extra-public because rioting crowds self-organize (they are not formally institutionalized groups such as parties or social movements); (2) they are extra-state because rioting disrupts the state’s monopoly on violence; (3) they are extra-legal because they involve breaking laws concerning public assembly; and (4) they are extra-parliamentary because rioters express their grievances outside of normal political processes.
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