Publication Date

2012

Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

First Advisor

Ledgerwood, Judy

Degree Name

M.A. (Master of Arts)

Legacy Department

Department of Anthropology

Abstract

This thesis explores the process through which identity intertwines with participation in contentious politics to form an imagined community characterized by opposition to a state government. Specifically, it draws on the memories, actions, and goals of individuals from Burma who act in opposition to the government of Burma while living in Thailand. It demonstrates that, for a displaced political coalition, this process results in an imagined opposition community that draws on local, regional, national, and global communities for ideological and material support.

This thesis further posits that, in order for such an imagined opposition community to successfully resist and influence hegemonic pressures, civil society initiatives have used ideological affiliation as a gateway into forming political coalitions with Western international non-governmental organizations. This affiliation, discussed through the paradigms of social memory, identity, and globalization theory, demonstrates the ways in which a transnational setting alters the nature of state-centric views on political contention.

Extent

147 pages

Language

eng

Publisher

Northern Illinois University

Rights Statement

In Copyright

Rights Statement 2

NIU theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from Huskie Commons for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without the written permission of the authors.

Media Type

Text

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