UNIVERSITY OF BUEA

FACULTY OF LAWS AND POLITICAL SCIENCE

DEPARTMENT OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

Course Title: Movements For Peace And Social Change

Course Code: CRE208
Course Instructor: Dr Nola Nour

Assignment: Select a major movement and

describe what type it is and why

Group Name: Group 30

Group Members:
1. Nji Marrinette Nsoh (LP19B412)
2. Ewondu Kucita Lunje (LP19B375)
3. Anicet Dubois Nlen+
4. d (LP19B059)
 Answer
Social Movements occur when large groups of individuals or organizations work
for or against change in social and/or political matters. Social movements have
been described as "organizational structures and strategies that may empower
oppressed populations to mount effective challenges and resist the more powerful
and advantaged elites"[ CITATION Wik \l 1033 ]. They represent a method of social
change from the bottom within nations. In 1966, cultural anthropologist David F.
Aberle identified four kinds of social movements: alternative, redemptive,
reformative, and revolutionary. He based his categorization on; who a movement is
trying to change and how much change a movement is advocating[ CITATION Val \l
1033 ]. Other categories have been used to distinguish between types of social
movements; the scope, the type of change, the methods of work, the target and the
range of the movement.

An example of a social movement is the gay rights movement, also called

Homosexual rights movement or gay liberation movement that seeks to eliminate
sodomy laws barring homosexual acts amongst consenting adults; and calls for an
end to discriminating against gay men, lesbians and transgender persons in
employment, credit, housing, public accommodation and other areas of life. It is a
reformative social movement because it seeks to change only a few aspects on how
our society functions, in particularly towards LGBT persons.

The gay liberation movement started in the late 1960’s in the USA for decades
have urged lesbians and gay men to engage in radical direct actions and to counter
societal shame with gay pride[ CITATION goo \l 1033 ]. The most basic form of activism
was an emphasis on coming out to family, friends and colleagues and living life as
an openly gay person or lesbian. Over the decades, through small groups and
influential men who came into the spotlight gay rights movement have seen huge
progress like lesbian, gay and bisexual individuals are now allowed to serve in the
USA military and in other places, they can now get married and adopt
children[ CITATION Wik1 \l 1033 ]. But there are still countries like Cameroon who are
slow or hesitant to adopt these policies and so the reformative social movement
still continues.

References
google. (n.d.). Gay liberation. Retrieved from Google arts and Culture:
https://artsandculture.google.com/asset/christopher-street-liberation-day-march-1973-rudy-
grillo/sgERsESrmqGMAg

Valerie Houghton, P. (n.d.). Social Movement Definitions: Alternative, Redemptive, Reformative &
Revolutionary. Retrieved from Study.com: https://study.com/academy/lesson/social-
movement-definitions-alternative-redemptive-reformative-revolutionary.html

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Gay liberation. Retrieved from Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gay_liberation

Wikipedia. (n.d.). Social_movement. Retrieved from Wikipedia:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_movement