Governing Youth Politics in the Age of Surveillance

"Governing Youth in the Age of Surveillance may be one of the best books available documenting and analysing how the war on youth has become an international issue. Global in its reach, intellectually brave, and theoretically unsettling, this is a book that everyone should read if they are concerned about what is happening to youth in a world in which authoritarianism is on the rise. But there is more at work here than an insightful, if not brilliant critical analysis, there is also a language of resistance, hope, and a call for the renewal of public spheres that give democracy some substance and hope for the future."

-Henry Giroux, Professor for Scholarship in the Public Interest, McMaster University, Canada

"This timely edition of critical essays analyses political (re)action and resistance from young people to the growing inequality and injustices of neoliberal societies, and the state’s intensified effort at suppressing them through increased surveillance. From the criminalisation of Muslim youth in Britain and Kenya, the repression of student protest in Canada and Malaysia, and sexual identity in Russia, to the silencing of dissent in Spain and constricting of young women’s politics in India, this collection of essays provides both a warning, and hope for the future. These eclectic studies of what Mandela described as ‘the heroism of youth’ provide a crucial book for challenging times."

-Paddy Rawlinson, Associate Professor of International Criminology, Western Sydney University, Australia

"Mai ‘68, Puerta del Sol, Chilean, Maple and Arab Springs…Youth politics has always been a driving force of democratization and emancipation. The quelling of this force of change by attempts to depoliticize and criminalize it is much less known and discussed. The indispensable Grasso and Bessant’s Youth Politics in the Age of Surveillance sheds light on evolving strategies from governments that sacralise youth but penalize young people. Truly essential!"

-Marie-Christine Doran, Associate Professor, School of Political Studies, University of Ottawa, Canada

"Commitments in many countries to strengthening the political participation of young people, to combat the so-called democratic deficit, have been paralleled by the growth of ubiquitous surveillance of that behaviour. Youth political protest is, throughout the world, increasingly monitored and regulated. Grasso and Bessant’s important text documents these developments and demonstrates the importance of remaining on our guard, distinguishing the warm rhetoric of youth participation from the cold realities of state - and non-state - intervention and control."

-Howard Williamson CBE CVO, Professor of European Youth Policy, University of South Wales, UK

"The events of 9/11 and other more recent attacks on humanity have had global impacts on not only the economic and political landscapes but also the ethos of society. Perpetuated by both real and perceived threats, societal policies and practices, including those about and for young people, have been driven largely by fear. Fear responses rarely lead to improved social progress and rather reinforce images of "radicalized" youth culture. This book aims to debunk and add alternative and progressive perspectives, to the response of young people as they broaden and deepen their political and civic engagement under the stronghold of restricted government policies of surveillance and criminalization. It is a narrative that must be told and there is no one better to tell it."

-Dana Fusco, Professor of Teaching Education, City University of New York, USA

"This book provides important insights into contemporary youth oriented groups involved in various kinds of political dissent. A particular strength is the rich breadth and depth of the cases which collectively provide timely insights into to how campaigners are mobilizing across the world- and how state institutions and other agents of power are responding."

-Dominic Wring, Professor of Political Communication, Loughborough University, UK