Identity Talk in the Peace and Justice Movement

Abstract

This article examines identity talk in several peace movement organizations from 1982 to 1991. Identity talk directs attention to how identity discourse concretizes activists' perceptions of social movement dramas, demonstrates personal identity, reconstructs individuals' biographies, imputes group identities, and aligns personal and collective identities. Six types of identity talk are identified and illustrated: associational declarations, disillusionment anecdotes, atrocity tales, personal is political reports, guide narratives, and war stories. These stories revolve around the themes of becoming aware, active, committed, and weary. Suggestions are offered for possible future research.

Transsexuals' Sexual Stories

“…Based on principles of symbolic interactionism (Mead, 1934) and dramaturgy (Goffman, 1959), most research on identity work focuses on how people use language to construct an image of self (Dunn, 2001;Fields, 2001;Hadden & Lester, 1979;Holden, 1997;Hunt & Benford, 1994;Phelan & Hunt, 1998;Schwalbe & Mason-Schrock, 1996;Snow & Anderson, 1987;Storrs, 1999;Wolkomir, 2001Wolkomir, , 2004. For example, Fields (2001) showed how parents with gay and lesbian adult children use discourses of gender, sexuality, and parenting to portray themselves as moral beings and their children as normal.…”

Challenging the Degeneration Thesis: the Role of Democracy in Worker Cooperatives?

“…Again, this awareness arose at points of encounter at which individual subjectivities are varyingly reinforced, reinterpreted and redefined in light of new experiences and knowledge (Benford and Hunt, 1994). The following quote is taken from a focus group with Collective Traders.…”

Shadows of Solidarity: Identity, Intersectionality, and Frame Resonance

“…While much of the literature points to the frames developed and deployed during mobilization (Benford & Snow, 2000), frames also function during micromobilization due to their role in interpreting social conditions and constructing collective identity. Thus, they do function not only at the level of conscious strategic action in the political landscape, but also in the realms of "identity talk" and personal interaction within organizations (Hunt & Benford, 1994). In these interactional and discursive contexts, identities are announced, embraced, rejected, and engaged (Snow & McAdam, 2000).…”

“…Examples of comparison include examining who served in spokesperson positions, the rhetoric of conference panels and speeches, the reaction and conversation of participants, and who participated the most and the least. Thus, "identity talk" (Hunt & Benford, 1994) through discourse and interaction were the primary locations in which I examined frame resonance in the conference spaces. Throughout observation and analysis, considering that these conferences were not only activist spaces, but social and academic arenas as well, was important in helping me comprehensively understand the culture of these conferences.…”