Today’s class really resonated with me in terms of
transnational politics because of the documentary we watched on the Arab
Spring. To see transnational revolutionary movements in action, under that kind
of leadership really drove the point home about how these types of
transnational groups organize and orient their members. I was impressed to see
that there was no bureaucratic structure that took over the movement, but that
it was a collective leadership by the followers who believed in the same cause.
Technically, Ahmed Maher organized and led the movement, but I think that his
charisma and peaceful protest tactics actually allowed the movement to flourish
and gain momentum, to be then picked up by the followers of this movement. All
of this is bigger than him and we actually see a collective leadership and a
kind of self-organization within the Arab Spring revolutionary movement. I was
also impressed with the level of organization and preparation for the protests,
with the initial leaders studying Serbian protest tactics in order to better
serve their purpose and achieve their goal. I think it really helped them
mobilize the public and add pressure onto state authorities. After watching
this documentary, I’ve realized that charisma actually plays a major role in
leadership. Maher’s charisma and organizational skills, as well as his belief in
the cause inspired followers to make major sacrifices and take great risks by
protesting, knowing that the Egyptian police respond with brutal force. The
greatest accomplishment was that Mubarak actually resigned after 18 days of
such protests and that just makes the case for the effectiveness and the force
of peaceful transnational revolutionary movements.
I completely agree with you! I think it is really interesting that his charisma had such a huge impact in leading this transnational movement, yet he did not end up doing much "in front of the group leading" but more behind the scenes organization.
ReplyDeleteEven though the man's Facebook protest created a huge turnout in the revolution, I still find it hard to consider it charisma. It was interesting how his whole group was behind the scenes and was unable to go protest for what they believe in just because the police went directly for them to punish them for this revolution.
DeleteI think it is a different kind of charisma. I do believe that you can come off as charismatic through the internet. While everything is up to interpretation by the reader, there is a certain presence you can give up. For example, a Facebook profile says a lot about a person. I usually assume that someone with a lot of friends has them for a reason. Through his use of social media, he promotes his cause in his own manner that allows for other people to follow him.
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