"What Have You Done with Our World?". the Generational Issue in 5 Post-2011 Social Movements

This presentation aims to identify the place of the generational issue within the post-2011 movements. It is based on a generational and comparative analysis of 5 social movements initiated by the younger generations from 2011 to 2016 : Indignant in Madrid, Student Movement in Santiago de Chile, Printemps Erable in Montreal, Umbrella Movement in Hong-Kong, and Nuit Debout in Paris. The comparison is founded on a large database of writings and slogans (n = 1400) collected by direct observation within the 5 movements. These slogans were subjected to a statistical and textual analysis, with the aim of identifying the "generational grammars" of these movements. The analysis confirms : 1 - the existence of a "we" that is primarily generational within the collective identities claimed, identifiable at the statistical level ; 2. the existence of shared generational demands structured around three interrelated issues: education, justice, and democracy ; this generational matrix thus relies on the defense of the value of education - studies, at what cost? - on justice between generations - who must pay the debt? - and the future of democracy - which right to speak? ; 3. the existence of three large variants of this generational matrix, structured mainly according to the type of social movement and the model of the welfare state.