As various surveys have shown, a significant proportion of the Greek population has taken part in at least one protest event against austerity policies and structural adjustment reforms during the last crisis-ridden years. Do these protests exemplify a reactionary aspect of the Greek political culture or are they signs of an active process of contestation and empowerment? In our research we focus on the main organizations/groups that called and coordinated the major and most visible protest events of the period (general strikes, demonstrations, square occupations). Our sample includes trade unions, political parties, anarchist groups, justice oriented groups and Indignados, while their repertoires of contention are combinations of demonstrative, confrontational and violent protests. In this paper we will focus on the interplay between forms of action and the political claims raised by each group. Our findings are based on a questionnaire that was distributed to the main organizers of each organization.
