Indignant We Stand, Divided We Fall: Social Protest Movements and the Polarisation Paradox of Democracy in Spain

This paper focuses on the social protest movements that have been taking place in Spain since May 2011, and considers the wider socio-political implications of the ‘Indignado’ movement within the EU. It provides an analysis of the 'Spanish revolution', which started with the aim of challenging two party dominance in the national political arena but has developed into a movement against Neoliberalism inspired by the protests in Iceland and quickly echoed in many other European countries. The paper explores qualitative and quantitative explanations on the roots of the phenomenon, and draws from recent studies on the polarization of US politics in order to assess the long-term consequences and potential legacy of the ongoing social protests.