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The Failure of RemainAnti-Brexit Activism in the United Kingdom |
eBook Available
The first comprehensive study of the UK’s grassroots anti-Brexit movement that emerged after the June 2016 referendum.
Studies of the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the European Union (“Brexit”) have largely focused on the role of politicians and political parties, on the one hand, and the characteristics of Leave and Remain voters on the other. The Failure of Remain offers the first comprehensive study of the UK’s grassroots anti-Brexit movement.
Emerging in the weeks and months following the June 2016 referendum, this movement was the most significant and wide-scale mobilization of pro-European support that the UK had ever witnessed. In The Failure of Remain Adam Fagan and Stijn van Kessel assess participants’ ideologies, arguments, and strategies. Drawing evidence from first-hand interviews, an original survey of anti-Brexit activists, and an analysis of their campaign materials, Fagan and van Kessel conclude that while the anti-Brexit movement was successful in mobilizing a large number of pro-European citizens, its impact was limited by weak links to political elites and institutions, divisions between organizations and activists, and the absence of a clear stance on the UK’s relationship with the European Union.
In the context of enduring debates about the future direction of European integration, The Failure of Remain reveals the difficulties of formulating effective pro-European arguments.
Emerging in the weeks and months following the June 2016 referendum, this movement was the most significant and wide-scale mobilization of pro-European support that the UK had ever witnessed. In The Failure of Remain Adam Fagan and Stijn van Kessel assess participants’ ideologies, arguments, and strategies. Drawing evidence from first-hand interviews, an original survey of anti-Brexit activists, and an analysis of their campaign materials, Fagan and van Kessel conclude that while the anti-Brexit movement was successful in mobilizing a large number of pro-European citizens, its impact was limited by weak links to political elites and institutions, divisions between organizations and activists, and the absence of a clear stance on the UK’s relationship with the European Union.
In the context of enduring debates about the future direction of European integration, The Failure of Remain reveals the difficulties of formulating effective pro-European arguments.
Details
Part of the McGill-Queen's Studies in Protest, Power, and Resistance (number 4 in series)
208 Pages, 6 x 9
8 diagrams, 3 tables
ISBN 9780228014126
January 2023
Formats: Cloth, Paperback, eBook
“This book offers rich insights into the theme of pro-EU movements – a rare but theoretically and empirically intriguing phenomenon. It contributes to two strands of literature, the politicization of Europe and the broader social movement literature and brings these threads together in a nuanced explanation that reflects the authors’ deep familiarity with the case.” Journal of Common Market Studies
“Failure to Remain is a well argued, theoretically and empirically informed analysis of a phenomenon that until now was mostly described through impressionistic media lenses. A welcome addition to the scholarship on grassroots mobilisation, it sheds light on dynamics that go beyond British politics which might soon become central in several Western polities.” The International Spectator
“Failure to Remain is a well argued, theoretically and empirically informed analysis of a phenomenon that until now was mostly described through impressionistic media lenses. A welcome addition to the scholarship on grassroots mobilisation, it sheds light on dynamics that go beyond British politics which might soon become central in several Western polities.” The International Spectator
Adam Fagan is professor of European politics at King’s College London and senior editor of East European Politics.
Stijn van Kessel is Reader in European politics at Queen Mary University of London.
Stijn van Kessel is Reader in European politics at Queen Mary University of London.
Tables and Figures vii
Acknowledgements ix
Abbreviations xi
1 Introduction 3
2 Theorising and Analysing Pro-European Activism in the United Kingdom 16
3 The Politics of Europe in the United Kingdom 42
4 Mapping Anti-Brexit Activism in the United Kingdom 67
5 Framing Leave and Remain 107
6 Conclusion 140
Appendix A: List of Interviews 155
Appendix B: Survey Questionnaire 156
Notes 163
References 167
Index 187
Acknowledgements ix
Abbreviations xi
1 Introduction 3
2 Theorising and Analysing Pro-European Activism in the United Kingdom 16
3 The Politics of Europe in the United Kingdom 42
4 Mapping Anti-Brexit Activism in the United Kingdom 67
5 Framing Leave and Remain 107
6 Conclusion 140
Appendix A: List of Interviews 155
Appendix B: Survey Questionnaire 156
Notes 163
References 167
Index 187
9780228017516
$75.00 CAD
Cloth
