Globalised Resistance and the Bring Back Our Girls Movement

This book uncovers how women's movements in the Global South are changing the face of transnational activism in their mobilisations against militarism and conflict-related gender violence. Drawing on the case study of the Bring Back Our Girls (BBOG) movement established by Nigerian women for the rescue of Nigerian schoolgirls abducted in 2014 by violent extremist group Boko Haram, the book argues that BBOG is one of several emerging forms of transnational resistance in Africa that are breaking old moulds and forging new directions for social movements globally. The book argues that current research on social movements focuses too much on professional advocacy by formal civil society organisations and networks in the Global North. In doing so, it misses the increasingly spontaneous, mass-based protests initiated and led by Global South actors grounded in Global South contexts. Unpacking the workings of the BBOG movement, both internationally and regarding on-the-ground daily struggles in Nigeria, the book highlights their considerable implications for the practice and study of international politics. This book is an important read for researchers of international relations, decolonisation, social movements, and transnational human rights activism. Activists and leaders of social movements will also find the policy implications highlighted by the book useful. The Open Access version of this book, available at http://www.taylorfrancis.com, has been made available by KU 2025 under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial-No Derivatives (CC BY-NC-ND) 4.0 license.

Titilope F. Ajayi is an academic and independent research, training, and facilitation consultant with specialisations in gender/women, conflict, peace and security, civil society, and social movements. With a focus on Africa, her recent work includes scholarly and policy projects on women and violent extremism, gender and humanitarianism, feminist movements, approaches to norm change around gender violence, and new dimensions of transnational activism. During her 18+ years of experience in international development, Titilope has led and managed research in regional and international NGOs, and consulted for INGOs and international organisations. Fluent in French, she is especially keen on strengthening the evidence-policy nexus in her areas of interest. A three-time fellow of the Social Science Research Council, Titilope holds a PhD in international affairs from the University of Ghana.

Introduction 1: Mirroring the World: Global Politics and the Evolutions of Contemporary Transnational Activism 2: Bring Back Our Girls: The (Her)story of a Movement 3: A Historical Overview of Theoretical Approaches to Transnational Activism 4: (Re)Situating Non-NGO Agency in Transnational Activism 5: 'New' Structures and Forms of Transnational Activism 6: Motives of Participation in Transnational Activism 7: Conclusion: Lessons from Bring Back Our Girls for the Study of Transnational Activism