Does the New Middle Class Lead Today's Social Movements?

Abstract

The conventional wisdom that today's movements are led by a section of the 'new middle class' is really the old functionalist theory of (post)modernizing elites that denies class analysis. The 'young adult nucleus' thesis is proposed as an alternative theory. The leading social forces in movements in affluent countries are intellectual radicals and 'advanced elements' from groups that experience some form of exploitation, oppression or collective hurt. They are Gramscian intellectuals as opposed to professional intellectuals. They are people who took the 'opportunity during socialization' when young adults to choose what often became a lifelong 'activist career' for social justice.