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Constructing a Security Threat?

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Constructing a Security Threat? Constructing a Security Threat? Identifying Securitization in US State Level Politics Framing of the BLM Protests Rebecka Bjuremalm Supervisor: Josefina Erikson Bachelor Thesis, Political Science Department of Government Uppsala University, Spring 2021 Word count: 11,723 Page count: 43 Abstract This thesis investigates US state level politics framing of the BLM protests during 2020, by inductively identifying frames and then proceeding to study if and on what grounds securitization occurs in these. Press statements, interviews and documents from eight Mayors and Governors in six of the states where the protests have been the most prominent are analyzed. From this material, four frames have been identified: the alienated outsider frame, the constructive rage frame, the limited guardian frame, and the desecuritizing frame. Recent developments in securitization theory investigate human life and dignity as a reference object, making a case for integrating humanitarianism in terms of grounds for justifying extraordinary measures. Three grounds for securitization are investigated empirically in the identified frames: state, social and humanitarian security. The study concludes that whilst both state security and to a lesser degree humanitarian security are detected in the identified frames, societal security seems to be the most prominent. This suggests that large-scale identities are the most common reference objects in the treated context. Further research is encouraged, especially in terms of distinguishing potential frame alignment processes by looking at a greater number of states over a longer period of time. Key words: securitization, Copenhagen School, framing analysis, protest movements, Black Lives Matter, securitized citizens, contentious politics 2 List of Abbreviations BLM: Black Lives Matter ACLED: The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project PACT: Protecting American Communities Task Force DHS: Department of Homeland Security B.I.E.: Black Identity Extremists IACHR: Inter-American Commission on Human Rights 3 Table of Contents 1. Introduction 5 1.1 Aim and Research Questions 6 1.2 Disposition 7 2. Theoretical Framework 8 2.1 Securitization Theory 8 2.2 Three Grounds for Security 9 3. Previous Research and Background 10 3.1 Securitization of BLM, other Minority Groups and Public Protests 10 3.2 Perceptions of Protests as Illegitimate or Threatening 12 3.3 Perceptions of Protests as Legitimate and Rights-Based 13 3.4 The Case of BLM 13 3.4.1 Contested Tactics: Peaceful or Violent? 14 3.4.2 The Federal Response to the Protests 14 4. Research Design 15 4.1 Choice of Methodology 15 4.2 Analytical Framework 16 4.3 Validity and Reliability 18 4.4 Sample and Material 19 5. Findings and Discussion 21 5.1 Findings 21 5.1.1 The Alienated Outsider Frame 21 5.1.2 The Constructive Rage Frame 23 5.1.3 The Limited Guardian Frame 26 5.1.4 The Desecuritizing Frame 27 5.2 Discussion 29 6. Conclusion 33 References 35 Appendix 39 Analytical matrix accounting for frame classifications 39 Analysed Material 41 4 “Law without force is ineffectual, and human beings without laws miserable” - G.E.M Anscombe (Goodin & Pettit, 2005) 1. Introduction The use of force requires grounds for justification. Sovereign states hold a monopoly on the legitimate use of physical force, which serves to protect citizens from undue violence from each other as well as the state. What happens then, when that protection is perceived to be unequal or discriminatory in nature? Such questions have been raised by the Black Lives Matter movement. In the recent court case of State of Minnesota v. Derek Chauvin, police officer Derek Chauvin was tried and convicted of the murder of George Floyd (Minnesota Judicial Branch - 27-CR-20-12646: State vs. Derek Chauvin). The verdict was highly anticipated all over the world, illustrating the high stakes of handling matters of systematic racism and disproportionate use of force. Before the verdict, massive protest mobilisation culminated in tensions and civil unrest. The BLM protests call attention to the salient nature of black human security, and problematize ineffectual legal remedies for promoting justice. However, these protests have not been uncontroversial in nature. How politicians justify clamping down on or increasing state induced law enforcement against such protests, for example calling in the National Guard, is an action that may be expressed in different terms with varying motives and justifications. One possible ground for justification could be securitization. Moreover, the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED)’s 2020 report on demonstrations and political violence in America highlights a dissonance: whilst more than 93% of all demonstrations connected to the BLM movement did not engage in violence or destructive activity, 42% of respondents in a recent Morning Consult poll believe that most BLM protesters are trying to incite violence or destroy property (The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, 2020). One possible mechanism for this discrepancy could be securitization, which further points to the relevance of exploring such trends. Earlier research on the securitization of public protests and minority groups has demonstrated that identifying such phenomena and groups as security threats has enabled the state to disrupt and restrict the rights of these groups. For example, labeling them as a threat to national security 5 and/or identity (Taylor Saito, 2019), or securitizing critical infrastructure in order to withhold a group from their rights, for example securitizing oil assets to deprive indigenous groups of land rights (Plotnikoff, 2020). Securitization of BLM has earlier been applied mostly to Washington politics or analyzed through media framing (Leclercq, 2019). This thesis therefore aims to examine how BLM protests have been framed by state-level politicians: eight Mayors and Governors in six different states in the context of the spring 2020 protests. Furthermore, recent developments in securitization theory present humanitarianism as a new ground that may rival other grounds for security in legitimizing emergency measures (Watson, 2011). This thesis therefore seeks firstly to identify how the protests are framed, secondly if securitization occurs and thirdly to differentiate between three different grounds for securitization: state, societal and humanitarian. Elected state-level politicians face multiple and potentially contradictory concerns at once. These politicians are responsible for ensuring overall security in their states and cities, whilst also obligated to listen to their electorate which positions them in an intersection. It is therefore of interest to map out which strategies are used to balance protests rights with public safety. 1.1 Aim and Research Questions The overarching aim of this study is to understand how state actions to counter public protests are legitimized, through a case study of US state level politics framing of the BLM protests. By employing securitization as a possible mechanism for such legitimization, the study aims to explore how three different types of security are balanced against other grounds for justification by elected politicians. The research questions are as follows: How are Black Lives Matter protests framed in recent US state level politics statements? To what extent does securitization occur in these frames? Is state, societal or humanitarian security most prominent in these frames? This paper will utilize framing analysis to examine press statements, interviews and documents from eight Mayors and Governors in six of the states where the protests have been most prominent. The overarching contributions of this study are of both empirical and theoretical 6 nature. The empirical aspiration of this thesis is to examine official political perceptions of problems, causes and solutions in the case of the BLM protests. The study is further motivated by the fact that to the best of the author’s understanding, these empirics have not previously been studied. The theoretical aim of this thesis is twofold. The first aspiration is to explore recent developments in securitization theory that present humanitarianism as a subfield, by weighing human life and dignity as a possible reference object when interpreting the material. The second aspiration is to supplement earlier research on the topic. The securitization framing of protest movements and minority groups in general and of BLM in particular has focused on media framing. By studying politicians, this thesis aims to address this horizontal research gap. Furthermore, focus has been directed toward federal politics. By studying the local level, this thesis aims to address this vertical research gap. As security threats constitute grounds for justifying extraordinary actions outside the normal bounds of political procedure, such as secrecy and violations of civil and political rights, it is of utmost importance to understand the grounds for legitimizing such measures. 1.2 Disposition The first section of this thesis will introduce a theoretical framework on securitization, including conceptualizations of the three grounds for security. The second section will present previous research on the securitization of BLM, public protests and minority groups as well as theoretical grounds for understanding protests as either illegitimate or rightful. The third section will put forward a brief background to contextualize the treated issue. The fourth section will present the research design,
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