Spontaneity and Civil Resistance

Abstract

This chapter examines the contingent and endogenous causes that sparked the Umbrella Movement in Hong Kong. Spurred by two contingent events generating pre-emptive and massive mobilization, the movement was a spontaneous transformation of the long-planned Occupy Central campaign. Networked efficiently through social media, autonomous individuals from diverse backgrounds rallied in various physical spaces, resulting in a self-mobilized and decentralized protest structure. These dynamics and ecology facilitated participatory practices and sustained a resilient occupation. Using an on-site survey, in-depth interviews, and participant observation, this chapter constructs a counter-frame conceptualizing the Umbrella Movement as a popular civil resistance, thereby contesting the official and media framings that regard the occupation as an illegal assembly, separatist movement, or social justice movement.