The idea for this book came from two (inter-linked) observations, one empirical and one theoretical. As for the former, after the hope of the Arab Spring, there was the shock of the increasingly brutal civil wars that, in some countries, had followed failed social movements’ mobilization for democracy. As for the latter, the understanding of these specific forms of escalation into political violence seemed thwarted by a lack of dialogue between research on civil wars and research on social movements, which had proceeded quite apart from each other.
The Advanced Scholars’ grant from the European Research Council for my project on Mobilizing for Democracy provided the theoretical background as well as the resources for the empirical work. In the intellectually rich environment of the Center on Social Movement Studies (Cosmos), located first at the European University Institute and now at the Scuola Normale Superiore in Florence, was most important for the development of our work, providing innumerable stimuli during the various stages of our work. Donatella della Porta is also grateful for a stimulating visit at the Hertie School of Governance in Berlin.
As always, Sarah Tarrow contributed with care and commitment in making this volume more readable.