From protesting against Jose Mourinho at Manchester United to rallying against their club’s owners at Tottenham, these stories demonstrate the continuing importance of fan activism. They offer new insights into the nature of fans as political actors and contribute to the growing body of research that takes fandom seriously as a practice that shapes and reshapes identities.
The papers in this issue show how the personal characteristics of people involved in a protest can shape their attitudes toward it and their peers. Writing about a person’s personality, hobbies and family in a news story can help readers connect with them, as well as promote positive attitudes toward underrepresented groups.
For example, Black football fans whose club is in relegation trouble use boycotts and demonstrations to voice their concerns to the club and pressure city leaders for change. But they also seek to maintain their moral integrity — and see those who are willing to walk away as traitors whose commitment to the cause is nebulous at best.
In addition, fans can use popular culture references to build connections with others and to inspire a sense of collective identity. Civil rights activists in the 1960s deployed biblical allusions and superheroes because these symbols embodied heroic struggles and deep commitments that resonated with them. The same is true for the use of images from Star Wars and other blockbuster franchises by supporters in a Wisconsin protest over worker rights, as illustrated by Jonathan Gray in this issue.