Toward the Full Institutionalization of European Protest

Mass protest in Western Europe and North America has become increasingly institutionalized since the late 20^th and early 21^st centuries. Studies, primarily based upon newspaper reports, showed how the normalization of protest was marked by low levels of confrontation between demonstrators and police. The unique research reported here, which uses field observations, interviews with protest organizers and reports from protesters themselves on 75 mass protest events that were staged in nine European countries between November 2009 and May 2013 on a variety of public issues, is consistent with that portrayal. Observations from these different vantage points agreed that the police and protesters were, except in rare instances, cooperative and non-aggressive toward one another. Their interactions were based on dialogue and shaped by the mutual goal to stage a peaceful protest event. The few events where confrontations did take place were still quite tame compared with police-protester conflict earlier in Europe or in less institutionalized national settings. The implications of protest groups forgoing disruptive repertoires at mass protest events are discussed.