College campus activism: Distinguishing between liberal reformers and conservative crusaders

Abstract

Abstract This article reviews scholarship on college campus activism in the U.S. We use ideology as a lens with which to examine and discuss college protest. Specifically, we distinguish between right‐wing and left‐wing college campus movements and examine recent developments. We begin with a discussion of basic concepts from social movement theory and provide an overview of the theoretical differences between right‐ and left‐wing movements. Then, we provide a historical overview of college protest and discuss future directions for sociological inquiry into contemporary campus activism. Our discussion is motivated by recent examples of progressive movements such as the “Mizzou protests” and the campus chapters of Black Lives Matter, and alt‐right groups such as Identity Evropa.