How does protest become criminalised? Applying an anthropological
perspective to political and legal conflicts, Carolijn Terwindt urges us
to critically question the underlying interests and logic of prosecuting
protesters. The book draws upon ethnographic research in Chile, Spain,
and the United States to trace prosecutorial narratives in three
protracted contentious episodes in liberal democracies. Terwindt
examines the conflict between Chilean landowners and the indigenous
Mapuche people, the Spanish state and the Basque independence movement,
and the United States' criminalisation of 'eco-terrorists.' Exploring
how patterns and mechanisms of prosecutorial narrative emerge through
distinct political, social and democratic contexts, Terwindt shines a
light on how prosecutorial narratives in each episode changed
significantly over time. Challenging the law and justice system and
warning against relying on criminal law to deal with socio-political
conflicts, Terwindt's observations have implications for a wide range of
actors and constituencies, including social movement activists,
scholars, and prosecutors.