Political Activist Ethnography

Studies in the Social Relations of Struggle

By Joe Kadi

January 1, 2025 https://albertaviews.ca/political-activist-ethnography/

Edited by Agnieszka Doll, Laura Bisaillon
and Kevin Walby
ATHABASCA UNIVERSITY PRESS
2024/$37.99/274 pp.

Over the past few decades, folks from marginalized communities ranging from BIPOC to feminist to disability justice have transformed how and why research happens, who does it and for what purposes and whose benefit. Political activist ethnography (PAE) is a key strategy within this major shift in the world of research. This new anthology does an excellent job of explaining it.

PAE challenges traditional thinking in refusing to accept that research and activism are separate, distinct categories that constitute a binary—in which academics study and investigate while activists do hands-on social change work. PAE raises fascinating questions about the overlap between research and activism, and provides examples of the ways that folks engaged in activism and the academic world do both at the same time. Take for example A.J. Withers’s essay, the first case study presented. Withers, now an academic, worked as an anti-poverty organizer with the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty (OCAP). Withers provides an in-depth discussion about the ethical principles that guided their research: accountability, utility, accessibility, reciprocity and reflexivity. Their thinking on the need for accessible language (important for everyone, particularly folks without postsecondary education, with intellectual disabilities, and whose first language is not English) was thoughtfully done, as was the discussion about the importance of research being set up so that it offered something concrete to OCAP members.

I also appreciated the essay by Aziz Choudry reflecting on his in-depth interviews with activists and their ongoing research work. Choudry provides insights about the ways activists have consistently engaged in research—and how often they are not perceived as such. His praise of activists’ critical thinking skills spoke to my own years of activist work, which provided me with an incomparable education no university could match.

Sue Bradford, a long-time activist connected to the radical left of Aotearoa/New Zealand, took on a research project involving consultations with progressive activists in 2010, focusing on the absence of a left-wing think tank in that country and how this lack impacted social change work. Several actions resulted from her research, including the formation of a new think tank, Economic and Social Research Aotearoa. Through her piece, Bradford raised questions about herself and her actions. This deep reflection is characteristic of the book, as all authors combine enthusiasm for PAE with attentiveness both to challenges and to their own identities. Offering provocative and stimulating questions and insights about social justice movements, power and relationships, this book is well worth the read.