Regressive Movements in Times of Emergency : The Protests Against Anti-Contagion Measures and Vaccination During the Covid-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Since the very beginning, with mass media and social media focusing on the pandemics, anti-vax protests have received sustained attention. Initial commentary often focused on the heterogeneity of the protests, whose participants seemed to belong to different milieus, from the Far Right to esoteric groups that opposed mainstream medicine and espoused alternative therapies. In reality, in their forms and claims, these protests developed as a regressive response to the health crisis. Conspiracist beliefs—from the politicized QAnon and Great Replacement conspiracies widespread on the Far Right to the chemtrails and 5G ones present in an exoteric milieu that promoted alternative health practices—were clearly expressed in the slogans and symbols used by the protestors. Referring to most recent developments in social movement studies, this volume contributes to the analysis of contentious politics in emergency times, as times characterized by deep disruption in everyday life and rapid structural transformations in society. In order to understand how specific strains are transformed into actions, it considers the opportunities and challenges for different actors in moments of intense mobilization in which different and contrasting claims are put forward. While these moments are rich in innovation, they build upon existing social movement infrastructures, which contribute to give meaning to feelings of dissatisfaction in the populace by proposing a shared definition of problems and solutions. Looking at the wave of anti-vax protests, the analysis addresses the spread of the protests, their forms, as well as their rapid decline.