Preliminary communication
“MOVEMENTISING” THE MARGINAL. RECRUITMENT TO THE ANTI-WAR CAMPAIGN OF CROATIA
Bojan Bilić
; London, UK
Abstract
The operation of the Anti-War Campaign of Croatia has remained under-theorised in spite of its importance for the present-day human rights oriented civic scene in this post-Yugoslav country. This paper draws upon in-depth interviews and documentary sources to examine both structural and motivational factors that propelled individuals towards participation in the Anti-War Campaign. Given that the war in the 1990s was perceived by the Croatian authorities and the general public as an act of aggression, the anti-war undertakings of its citizens were precarious and dangerous activities. In accordance with the McAdam model of recruitment to high-risk activism, this paper shows that the participants in the Anti-War Campaign were already involved in an extensive network of activist ties. The anti-war engagement was closely related to prior civil rights activity as well as to biographical availability. The Croatian anti-war activists in the early 1990s were predominantly urban university students or recent graduates occupying the narrow niche between freedom from parental supervision and the absence of adult responsibilities.
Keywords
Anti-War Campaign of Croatia; high-risk activism; recruitment
Hrčak ID:
84962
URI
Publication date:
31.7.2012.
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