Autonomy and independence movements

The purpose of this dissertation is to develop the theoretical concept of social movement momentum by examining the origins, framing strategies, and organizational dynamics of the East Timor transnational social movement. To accomplish this, in-depth interviews of twenty activists and intellectuals involved in the East Timor movement from 1975-1999 were conducted and examined using qualitative data analysis methods. Specifically, comparative historical methods utilizing grounded theory and the phenomenological approach were employed. This study fills a gap in the social movement literature by engaging and expanding the main theoretical debates in sociology over movement mobilization, political outcomes, movement emotions, solidarity, and movement framing. These debates, along with the theoretical concept of social movement momentum as developed in this dissertation, are used to explain and analyze interviewees' first-hand accounts of the East Timor campaigns. . This resulted in a series of successes that represent the peak of the momentum in the East Timor movement. In sum, this study aids researchers in understanding how the successes and failures of social movement activity can be better explained using the theoretical concept of social movement momentum. By analyzing the significance of momentum in a movement post hoc, this study contributes a more nuanced understanding of how social movements create social change.

Early twentieth-century Ireland was the setting of a complex political situation dominated by overlapping social, ideological, and ethnic conflicts. A group of working-class nationalists led by James Connolly attempted to fuse the class and national struggles, incorporating elements of nationalist cosmology, Marxist teleology, syndicalist trade-union practice, and the cultural militarization of Ireland's "physical-force" tradition. This thesis critically examines their hybrid theory and revolutionary praxis. With its analysis of the failure to realize an independent, socialist Ireland, it contributes to broader discussions of the relationship between nationalism and socialism, and the ability of these theories to address cultural heterogeneity.