Sociology of the Anarchists - Gozips.uakron.edu - The University of ...

Critical Mass's only real credo is the saying: “We're not blocking traffic, we are traffic!”
Blickstein and Hanson (2001) explain that Critical Mass has been
referred to as a protest, a form of street theater, a method of
commuting, a party, and a social space. Difficult to pin
down, CM is often easier to define by what it is not than by
what it is. It is not, for example, a formal bicycle advocacy
organization. It has no dues-paying members, provides no
particular services, and has no stated mission... most
Critical Mass groups share a number of common elements,
including a decentralized network of organizers and the use
of both traditional and cyber-facilitated methods of
communication. Critical Mass' open form allows movement
issues to be framed in ways that encompass multiple
geographic scales and that mobilize supporters with a wide
range of motivations for participating in the monthly rides.
(p. 352)
Table 9. Top 6 U.S. states or Canadian provinces with Critical Mass Rides
State
Cities with
Rides
California 21
Illinois 9
Texas 7
New York 6
Ontario 6
Ohio 5
Source: criticalmassrides.info, Date accessed: ? Author's analysis.
Together these top 5 states (minus Ontario) compose over 37 percent of all U.S. rides
from all 50 states, with California being far-and-away the largest practicing grounds for
Critical Mass.
Critical Mass: US (127), Canada (16)
3. Earth First!
Earth First! groups adhere to their well-known slogan “No Compromise in Defense of
Mother Earth!”.
As already mentioned, a fair number of articles have been written about the activities of
Earth First!, likely because of their prominence (and the focus on the environmental
movement generally). A number of these articles, however, look at groups based in the
United Kingdom; these articles have been surveyed, but are not commented on here.
[ Williams 77 ] [ this is a draft. do not cite. ]