SURPLUS CITIZENS : social struggle, social division and nationalism in the greek crisis

The crisis in Greece has elicited the full spectrum of responses - from optimism for a left parliamentary politics inspired by Syriza's electoral victory, to pessimism about the intransigence of the EU and calls for the reinstatement of full national sovereignty in Europe. In Surplus Citizens, Dimitra Kotouza questions the terms of the debate by demonstrating how the national framing of social contestation posed obstacles to transformative collective action, but also how this framing has been challenged. Analysing the increasing superfluousness of subordinate classes in Greece as part of a global phenomenon with racialised and gendered dimensions, the book interrogates the strengths, contradictions and limits of collective action and identity in the crisis, from the movement of the squares and neighbourhood assemblies, to new forms of labour activism, environmental struggles, immigrant protests, anti-fascism and pro-refugee activism. Arguing against the strategic fixation on unified identities and pointing instead to the transformative potential of internal dispute within movements, Surplus Citizens highlights the relevance of a discussion of Greece to collective action beyond it, as we continue to traverse a global financial crisis that has provoked conflicts over nationalism, immigration and the rise of neo-fascism. The crisis in Greece has elicited the full spectrum of responses - from optimism for a left parliamentary politics inspired by Syriza's electoral victory, to pessimism about the intransigence of the EU and calls for the reinstatement of full national sovereignty in Europe. In Surplus Citizens, Dimitra Kotouza questions the terms of the debate by demonstrating how the national framing of social contestation posed obstacles to transformative collective action, but also how this framing has been challenged. Analysing the increasing superfluousness of subordinate classes in Greece as part of a global phenomenon with racialised and gendered dimensions, the book interrogates the strengths, contradictions and limits of collective action and identity in the crisis, from the movement of the squares and neighbourhood assemblies, to new forms of labour activism, environmental struggles, immigrant protests, anti-fascism and pro-refugee activism. Arguing against the strategic fixation on unified identities and pointing instead to the transformative potential of internal dispute within movements, Surplus Citizens highlights the relevance of a discussion of Greece to collective action beyond it, as we continue to traverse a global financial crisis that has provoked conflicts over nationalism, immigration and the rise of neo-fascism. -- Provided by publisher The crisis in Greece has elicited the full spectrum of responses - from optimism for a left parliamentary politics inspired by Syriza's electoral victory, to pessimism about the intransigence of the EU and calls for the reinstatement of full national sovereignty in Europe.0In 'Surplus Citizens', Dimitra Kotouza questions the terms of the debate by demonstrating how the national framing of social contestation posed obstacles to transformative collective action, but also how this framing has been challenged. Analysing the increasing superfluousness of subordinate classes in Greece as part of a global phenomenon with racialised and gendered dimensions, the book interrogates the strengths, contradictions and limits of collective action and identity in the crisis, from the movement of the squares and neighbourhood assemblies, to new forms of labour activism, environmental struggles, immigrant protests, anti-fascism and pro-refugee activism.0Arguing against the strategic fixation on unified identities and pointing instead to the transformative potential of internal dispute within movements, 'Surplus Citizens' highlights the relevance of a discussion of Greece to collective action beyond it, as we continue to traverse a global financial crisis that has provoked conflicts over nationalism, immigration and the rise of neo-fascism Struggle and Nationalism in the Greek Crisis 4 Contents 6 Acknowledgements 7 Note on Transliteration 9 List of Abbreviations 10 Introduction: Squares and Frontiers 12 1 The Making of Greek Capitalism through Race, Gender and Class 24 2 Victories, Defeats and Neoliberal Transformation, 1973–2008 52 3 Symptoms of Crisis 80 4 Social Struggle, Non-Identity and Popular Democracy 114 5 Citizens from Democracy to Riot 128 6 Labour and Superfluity 143 7 Solidarity, Charity or Exchange? 164 8 The Forest Against Work, Workers Against the Forest 181 9 Care, Vulnerability and Gender Politics 194 10 Everyday Racism, Crisis Nationalisms and Migrant ‘Autonomy’ 208 11 Surplus Population Management by a Nation-State in Crisis 216 12 Nationalism from Below 241 13 Migrant Struggle and Anti-Fascism 257 Conclusion 283 Index 292 Surplus,Citizens How Grassroots Movements Have Survived And Thrived Amidst A Harsh Political And Economic Crisis Dimitra Kotouza. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.