Return of Tyranny Why Counterrevolutions Emerge and Succeed | Killian Clarke
Please join the Institute for Middle East Studies for this discussion of Killian Clarke‘s new book Return of Tyranny: Why Counterrevolutions Emerge and Succeed.
Why do some revolutions fail and succumb to counterrevolutions, whereas others go on to establish durable rule? Marshalling original data on counterrevolutions worldwide since 1900 and new evidence from the reversal of Egypt’s 2011 revolution, Killian Clarke explains both why counterrevolutions emerge and when they are likely to succeed. He forwards a movement-centric argument that emphasizes the strategies revolutionary leaders embrace both during their opposition campaigns and after they seize power. Movements that wage violent resistance and espouse radical ideologies establish regimes that are very difficult to overthrow. By contrast, democratic revolutions like Egypt’s are more vulnerable, though Clarke also identifies a path by which they too can avoid counterrevolution. By preserving their elite coalitions and broad popular support, these movements can return to mass mobilization to thwart counterrevolutionary threats. In an era of resurgent authoritarianism worldwide, Return of Tyranny sheds light on one particularly violent form of reactionary politics.
You can participate in this event in-person or virtually. The event is open to the public and the media.
Speaker
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Killian Clarke a political scientist who studies how everyday people can transform the worlds in which they live. Much of his work focuses on revolutions — or movements seeking to overthrow an established regime and found a new political order. Clarke examines why revolutionary movements break out, why some struggle and why some succeed, and why some are able to establish lasting change. He also studies an array of related political phenomenon like unarmed protest, armed rebellion, authoritarianism, and democratization. Much of his research is grounded in the Middle East and North Africa, and at Georgetown he is affiliated with the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies.
