Negotiating liberty: the use of political opportunities and civil society by barbary state captives and Guantánamo Bay detainees
Date
2016-06
Authors
Banham, Cynthia
Goodin, Brett
Journal Title
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Volume Title
Publisher
Wiley
Abstract
This article contrasts two distinct sets of prisoners who were held by foreign governments: sailors from the United States held captive in Algiers in the late-eighteenth century and British citizens detained in Guantánamo Bay in the early-twenty-first century. The article uses social movement theory to examine and compare the campaigns orchestrated by these men and their supporters, and the role of those campaigns in securing their freedom. It demonstrates the utility of social movement theory in comparing cases of foreign detention that transcend centuries, regions and communication technologies. We find that successful campaigns on behalf of citizens held captive abroad, and the timeline of those successes, are contingent on
the exploitation of domestic political opportunities and an external event to trigger government action on behalf of the captives
Description
Keywords
prisoners, United States, late-eighteenth century, British citizens, Guantánamo Bay, early-twenty-first century, social movement theory, campaigns, freedom, foreign detention, domestic political opportunities, external event
Citation
Collections
Source
Australian Journal of Politics & History
Type
Journal article
Book Title
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Access Statement
Open Access