Sruggles for the World: The Revolution of Norms

In “The Struggle for the World”, Lindholm and Zúquete examine the similarities among aurora movements even though they manifest themselves in different ways (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). Aurora movements become known as political organizations and social movements that take a stand against capitalist globalization as they seek to eliminate injustices (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 2). These movements have different political tendencies from the left wing to right wing and no wing (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). This spectrum looks at the right wing groups that are present in Europe, the left wing groups in Latin America and the groups that don’t identify with either wing such as “the international slow movement” (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 2). Some of the main examples of aurora movements discussed by Lindholm and Zúquet are the Zapatistas, the European New Right (ENR), Slow Food, global rave counterculture and movements of movements, which looks at the World Social Forum (WSF) (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). These movements have apparent identities through their own quests, but they all strive to alter the flow of history and launch a new world where human race is recognized, justice rules and contentment is universal (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 3). From the global justice movements on the left to the antiglobalist movements present on the right, their main objective is to resist and revolutionize (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 2-3). Aurora movements become active disputants to global operations where they come up with resolutions that are “global in their ramifications”, while in the process of overturning the organization of the present time (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 3). These movements see the established struggle of our era to be the liberal- capitalist norm versus those who challenge their ideas (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). Some of the emerging ideas for action based on the goals of aurora movements can include the liberation of a country, a person or certain communities (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 8-9). Through the examples present in the book it will become clear that these movements share similar discourses, values and intentions in order to free humanity and create the dawn of a new age (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010).

The first aurora movement discussed by Lindholm and Zúquete is the Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN), which began as an indigenous armed group who proclaimed war on the Mexican government (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). This movement advocated for political and economic democracy for those who were oppressed such as local Indigenous communities, which began in Chiapas, Mexico (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). The Zapatistas were composed mostly of Chiapas’s indigenous peoples along with the leader of the movement Subcomandante who addressed the public and governments in order to gain global support (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). This movement views neoliberal globalization as a war of defeat because combined with capitalism it diminishes what lies in these countries such as their culture, language, relationships and economic system (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). The Zapatista was on the rise when NAFTA was implemented which was seen as a threat to indigenous activities because the leader of the movement saw the United States as the bad guy (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). Marcos the sub- command held the U.S. accountable for the international expansion of money and market as well as the conformity of other nations having to be attacked by their way of life (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). The Zapatista National Liberation Front members view the process of neoliberalism as not allowing you to be a human being, which leads to struggle and rebellion (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). This is an example of what led the Zapatista’s to create a global network of resistance throughout Mexico and across the globe through different voices and media outlets (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). This movement became a quest for dignity through developing a society based on ruling through the desires of the people (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). The diverse Indigenous communities have been marginanlized and the Zapatistas are working to restore memory and joy for Mexican Indigenous communities whose sense of identity was taken by European colonizers (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). One of their main goals is to “build an alternative modernity” which is founded on purpose, fairness, liberty and togetherness (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 13). This movement applies the strength of Emiliano Zapata’s ideology because it is important for these communities to resist in order to preserve the sacred authority of their ancestors (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 19). The marches and rallies for indigenous dignity were impactful and the organization of dances, folk, concerts, and sports event was apart of the Zapatistas movement to ritualize pride (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 20).

The second movement analyzed is the intellectual movement called the European New Right (ENR), which was comprised of academics, writers and journalists (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). This movement identifies itself as one that is opposed to liberalism, Marxism, democracy and egalitarianism (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). The ENR received attention through their published manifestos and conferences held across Europe (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). The Zapatista’s and the ENR movement share similar mindsets in that they both argue that their beliefs are becoming devalued (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). The ENR have vocalized that the practices of Europe have drastically changed due to “universalist, mercantile, hegemonic and homogenizing values (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 49). The New Right takes a Gramscian “metapolitical” approach towards cultural change in order to create a new public opinion or mentality (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). This is why their main goal is to attain an “intellectual coup d’etat” which means to overthrow the existing government (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 50). This movement can also be seen as spiritual as the members of the ENR see themselves as descendants of people who have a different opinion from the established religious dogma (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). The members of the ENR movement have beliefs that create an organization of resistance and a collection of free spirits (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 50). They view the struggles in the world as a result of modernity and liberalism, some of these struggles include the rise of “individualization, rationalization, universalization and desacralization” (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 51). One of the main goals of this movement was to provide ideological reasoning for the right- wing politics in Europe (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). Through their manifesto it becomes clear that they are looking for the rebirth of a new faith, focusing on promoting mystical unity, which looks at the spiritual re- presentation of society (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 54). This movement detests bourgeois advancement and the way of American life becomes a common theme of the ENR (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 57). An example to portray this theme is that ENR has animosity towards the American way of life because it presents this idea of the promise land and holds the power to warn against cultural genocide (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 58). The ENR sees free markets as evil and argue that humanity becomes imprisoned by consumerism and the globalized market society (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 57). It becomes important to understand that the ENR movement makes strong arguments towards perceiving the American- style capitalism as a foundation based on the twin evils of universalism and individualism (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 63). This idea pushes ENR to advocate for communities to paint a picture of what they want and how the world needs to reclaim humanity organically and not a consumer good (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 63).

Lastly, the Slow Food movement is a grassroots organization that was established by Carlo Petrini, an Italian man who was disappointed by the bureaucratic structure of his town (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). This movement brought a leftist eco friendly, antigolobalist plan with the idea that traditional local food production would develop a health and egalitarian way of life founded on good wine and food (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 103). Through conferences slow food activists alongside food producers would analyze important issues and exchange solutions on producing food in a sustainable way (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010). In order for Slow Food to advance their plans they used active communications and propaganda networks (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 105). Slow Food wants to established itself as a decentralized organization which members from different countries focus on the issue of how fast life interrupts our habits which can lead to diseases (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 107). This movement is against the “Americanized homogenization of taste and industrial agriculture” (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 107). This movement was argued by others to possess utopianism qualities but just like many alter- globalizing movements Slow Food argues that scientists are the true utopians since they implement industrial methods that they think would create healthy food while resolving issues like hunger (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 107). In the long- term this movement presents the idea of encouraging food that is rightly produced through humane animal practices and where workers are treated fairly and there are good relationships with farmers (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010, p. 108).

A movement from outside the book that caught my attention was the animal rights movement with paying close attention to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), which is known as an internationally recognized animal rights organization (Atkins-Sayre, 2010, p. 309). PETA displays its support for animal rights and challenges the ideas of the animal-human disconnect by expressing a “shared identity through discursive and visual appeals” (Atkins-Sayre, 2010, p. 309). It started from a small grassroots organization into something bigger through its many tactics to gain attention and to create change in the animal rights welfare movement (Atkins-Sayre, 2010). Through their many media stunts, antifur banners, factory campaigns and television advertisements this organization draws in viewers to acknowledge the similarities to the Other (Atkins-Sayre, 2010, p. 309). The goal of this group was to bring attention to an issue that society turns a blind eye to by making waves to inspire people to question the difference that are made between human and animal (Atkins-Sayre, 2010). This movement was founded on the doctrine that ‘‘animals are not ours to eat, wear, experiment on, or use for entertainment’’ (Atkins-Sayre, 2010, p. 310). Some of their work efforts include uplifting the rights of animals by arguing against animal research, animal dismemberment, wearing furs and using animals for circuses and rodeos (Atkins-Sayre, 2010, p. 310). Their voice was able to create change during a 1991 Supreme Court case when a scientific researcher was being charged for the first time for animal cruelty (Atkins-Sayre, 2010). PETA is known to be like most contemporary social movements where they are troubled by cultural changes that focus on identity issues (Atkins-Sayre, 2010, p. 311). These kind of movements are known to focus on themes of personal and collective identity, challenge social norm, the philosophy of the governing system and dismantle the accepted “naming of the world” (Atkins-Sayre, 2010, p. 311). PETA has also challenged the scientific community in regards to the way animals are being tested in the labs as well as the corporations buying into the products such as Revlon (Atkins-Sayre, 2010, p. 311). Through their ads and messages PETA asks people to think about what they purchase and what they eat by applying visual rhetoric which makes viewers rethink their own identities and beliefs towards animal rights (Atkins-Sayre, 2010, p. 311-312).

Another movement that shares similar ideals with aurora movements is the anti- sweatshop movement which involves a group of actors and campaigns located in “larger corporate accountability movement that aims to identify sweatshop conditions and to define and enforce labor standards within the global apparel industry” (De Winter, 2012, p. 101). This movement has altered the perception of corporations as an actor whose identity, secondary rights and responsibility focuses on making profit and operates as the creator of wealth (De Winter, 2012, p. 101). The anti- sweatshop movement works with declarations like the International Labor Organization (ILO) conventions, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the Rio Declaration as a way to integrate moral codes of conduct (De Winter, 2012, p. 103). These codes focus on labor standards, which are displayed in ILO conventions some of which include “freedom of association bans on child and forced labor, and minimum standards with respect to wages, working conditions, and health and safety” (De Winter, 2012, p. 103). One of the main goals of the movement is to strive for the “adoption of these codes and “the education of consumers through direct actions” (De Winter, 2012, p. 103). The activists of this movement analyze the impact of the reorganizing of the apparel industry by applying the discourse of anti- globalization activism (De Winter, 2012, p. 104). The movements plans to reduce the effects of the reorganizing of the apparel industry on workers becomes crucial by constructing neoliberal globalization as a conscious development of “governmental and corporate elites” (De Winter, 2012, p. 104). Through this movement it becomes more evident that the apparel industry becomes linked to sweatshop conditions due to the fact that profits can be created through “downward pressure on wages” (De Winter, 2012, p. 105). The anti-sweatshop movement reveals how working conditions involve extensive work hours, low wages, unsafe working conditions and physical and psychological aggressive pressure (De Winter, 2012, p. 106). Some of these manufacturers who have not adopted moral code conduct include Nike, Reebok and Levi’s (De Winter, 2012, p. 106). These movements reveal different struggles of the world and how their agendas strive to exclude injustices (Lindholm & Zúquete, 2010).