Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations

The Eagle, the Condor, and Exodus: New Directions in Political Theater and Border Spectacle

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

5-4-2021

Abstract

This article identifies key actors and explains the strategies they utilized in two recent border events: (1) the protests against the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline in Standing Rock, and (2) the migrant caravans originating in Central America. The study identifies the systematic use of two legitimizing narratives: (1) the prophecy of the eagle and the condor, and (2) the biblical story of Exodus. The present work advances new directions in border studies by analyzing borders as magnets for activism. We also demonstrate the malleability of messaging when shifting operations from one border to another and illuminate the effects of standard propaganda techniques combined with new technologies and media platforms in an era of hyper-partisanship.

Comments

© 2021 Association for Borderlands Studies

Publication Title

Journal of Borderlands Studies

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1080/08865655.2021.1918570

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