God, Politics, and Protest: Religious Beliefs and the Legitimation of Contentious Tactics
Author(s)
McVeigh, Rory; Sikkink, David
Abstract
Most students of social protest now agree that protest participation and participation in institutionalized politics are both potentially effective means of addressing individual and collective grievances. A primary conceptual distinction between the two forms of political participation centers on the contentious nature of protest. We focus attention on the disruptive potential of religious beliefs and values and argue that approval of contentious tactics is a critical link between religious beliefs and protest participation. We analyze data from a representative sample of churchgoing Protestants in the United States. Results show that four factors increase the likelihood that Protestants approve of contentious tactics: volunteering for church organizations, a perception that religious values are being threatened, a belief that individuals should not have a right to deviate from Christian moral standards, and a belief that humans are inherently sinful. Approval of contentious tactics and frequent volunteering for church organizations are the only variables in our analysis that differentiate conservative Christian voters from those who combine conservative Christian voting with protest participation.
