Not All Springs End Winter: Political Economy of Mass Youth Movements in Bangladesh Before, During and Since Shahbag

by Anupam Debashis Roy

From the language movement of 1952 to the Road Safety Movement of 2018, the history of Bangladesh is deeply rooted in its history of mass youth movements. This book is dedicated to analyzing the specific methods that worked and did not work in those movements, from the theoretical framework of political economy.

It will discuss movement strategies, grievance framings, mobilization tactics, organizational structures, usage of symbols, framing of demands and objectives, etc., both in the historical movements and in the contemporary movements.

The book briefly discusses the Language Movement of 1952, Mass Uprising of 1969 and the Movement for Democracy in 1990. It, then, provides an extensive critical analysis of the 2013 Shahbag movement and the political events and the overall atmosphere of the democratic space ever since. It also provides an analysis of the new movements, i.e the “No VAT” movement of 2015, and the quota reform movement and the road safety movement of 2018.

The book shows how the new movements have learned from the old movements and how they are increasingly improving in terms of methods and tactics. It also provides critiques of the methods used historically and the methods amended. It also provides a brief history of the past and the contemporary, and discusses, in some detail, the third force leadership that is brewing from the leaders and participants of the movements of the past decade that can lead to new politics in the Bangladeshi landscape in this decade.

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Praise for the book:

“This book is a must-read for anyone who appreciates nuanced and fact-based analysis. Anupam is a gifted young political analyst who is poised to be a prominent Bangladeshi voice in the coming days. His book is theoretically informed, critically crafted and sheds significant insights into the political economy of the Bangladeshi youth movements by challenging simplistic dominant narratives,”

—Dr. Mubashar Hasan,
Research Fellow,
University of Oslo, Norway
and Assistant Professor,
Political Science and Sociology,
North South University.

“A timely analysis of social movements in Bangladesh since 2010 identifying their achievements as well as their pitfalls and drawing lessons for the activists of the future. The author writes with passion from first-hand experiences of a participant which makes the book highly readable. He draws our attention to the need and importance of social movements in giving birth to a new kind of politics meeting the aspirations of the youth.”

— Dr. Rounaq Jahan
Distinguished Fellow, Center for Policy Dialogue
Visiting Scholar, Columbia University
Ex-Professor of Political Science, Dhaka University

“There is a compelling reason to read his analysis. His argument to locate these movements within the
broader political scene and explore its larger implications for the future of Bangladeshi politics
deserves our attention.”

–Dr. Ali Riaz
Distinguished Professor &
Thomas E Eimermann Professor of Political Science (2018-2020)
Department of Politics and Government
Illinois State University Normal, Illinois. USA

Author Bio (shortened):

Anupam Debashis Roy is an editor and organizer of Muktiforum, a platform for anti-authoritarian writers, artists, and political activists dedicated to building a liberal, pluralist and pro-people society. He is currently a graduate student of Political Science at Boston University and an incoming JD candidate at Harvard University.

Kindle Edition

Published February 5, 2020

About the author

Anupam Debashis Roy is a Bangladeshi columnist, author and activist who is currently an editor of Muktiforum, a platform for writers, artists and activists dedicated to building a liberal, pluralist and pro-people society. He is most known for his columns and political activism against authoritarianism in Bangladesh and abroad. He is also the author of storybook Sontan (The Offspring) and Opraproboyoskota (Non-adulthood), a book of poems.

Born: Anupam Debashis Roy, May 14, 1997
Occupation: Author, Columnist, Vlogger, Journalist, Researcher and Activist.
Nationality: Bangladeshi
Alma Mater: Howard University (BA)
Genre: Allegory, Parody, Satire, Lyric, Dystopia, Humor, Magical realism, Realistic fiction.
Main interests: Politics, Philosophy, Economics, History, International Relations, Literature.
Influences: Friedrich Nietzsche, Friedrich Hayek, Gayatri Chakravorty Spivak, Karl Marx, Antonio Gramsci, Subhas Chandra Bose, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhasani.
Political Platform: Muktiforum.

Aside from being an author and activist, Roy is also known for his satirical political videos published on YouTube and Facebook. His web series Choromchitro (The Radical Report) has been widely acclaimed. He has also made an explainer series in collaboration with Dhaka Tribune titled The Breakdown.

Reviews

[Shams Rahman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Over the years, I’ve indulged myself in many books regarding policy and politics. I’ve always enjoyed books that delve into different political issues. Yet, I’ve rarely seen anything as refreshing and as unique as Anupam Debashis Roy’s Not All Springs End Winter. I always believed that the best political books are born of the baptism of fire. That they’re often written by the most passionate activists who are battle hardened by a lifetime of fighting for what they truly believe in. This, evidently holds true for the brilliant book and its even more brilliant writer, Anupam.

Besides being a student of law, economics and political science, Anupam is also a lifelong political activist himself, as such, it should come as no surprise that he has a deep understanding of the inner workings of youth protests in Bangladesh. Not only does he understand it from the lens of an academician, but, he also understands all of it firsthand as an activist.

It is very easy for a writer to get carried away while writing about movements like the language movement that occurred in 1952. This, of course, is an issue that’s close to every Bangladeshi’s heart. Yet, this book manages to maintain remarkable level of neutrality cover to cover.

What makes this book truly unique is the fact that this is not a historical account of all the protests that has happened in Bangladesh from 1952 to modern times. No, of that kind you will find many. This book objectively examines how and why youth protests succeed or fail in Bangladesh. It does so with impressive objectivity. In that sense, you can call it a handbook for partisans in Bangladesh.

Sure, it is unlikely that all of you will agree with everything that’s written in this book. That’s perfectly reasonable. Any good book on the social sciences should make at least some of its readers feel that way. But, what this book will do is teach you how to learn lessons from the protests of the past. To any true activist, that is invaluable.

This is an absolute must read if you want to bring about effective change through political activism.

[Sarwar Tusher]

অনুপম যদিও বাংলাদেশের ইতিহাসের একটা লম্বা সময়কালকে ধরতে চেয়েছেন, সচেতন পাঠক মাত্রই তাঁর উদ্দেশ্য বুঝতে পারবেন ; তিনি মূলত বর্তমানের চরম স্বৈরতান্ত্রিক আবহকে মোকাবেলা করতে চান একটা অধিকতর ন্যায্য নিকট ভবিষ্যতের দিশা খোঁজার মাধ্যমে। তিনি তরুণ লেখক-অ্যাক্টিভিস্ট-রাজনৈতিক কর্মীদের সামনে উন্মোচন করতে চান আন্দোলন করার পাশাপাশি আন্দোলনের রূপকল্প নিয়ে ভাবার, চিন্তা করার অপরিহার্যতা। তাঁর বইয়ের নামের মধ্যেই সেই ইঙ্গিত আছে, বসন্ত মাত্রই শীতের নির্জীব, স্বৈরতান্ত্রিক রুক্ষতাকে দূর করেনা। আন্দোলন অনেক সংকটের মুশকিলের সাময়িক আসান করলেও, নেসেসারিলি তার স্থায়ীত্বের নিশ্চয়তা দেয়না। ফলে একটা ইস্যুভিত্তিক আন্দোলনের পরে আরো প্রবল স্বৈরতন্ত্র-ফ্যাসিবাদ জেঁকে বসতে পারে। এজন্যই কী চাই, কেন চাই তার পুঙ্খানুপুঙ্খ বিশ্লেষণ করা জরুরি। তাহলেই কেবল যেকোন গণআন্দোলন তাৎক্ষণিক প্রতিরোধের রাজনীতিকে ছাপিয়ে ডিউরেবল গণতান্ত্রিক বন্দোবস্তের অভিমুখ খুঁজে পাবে। অনুপমের বইটা সেই আলাপ-আলোচনা-পর্যালোচনাকে বেগবান করার ক্ষেত্রে একটা অত্যন্ত বিনস্ত-পদ্ধতিগত সংযোজন।

[Mubashar Hasan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a must read for any one who appreciates nuanced and fact based analysis. Anupam is a gifted young political analyst who is poised to be a prominent Bangladeshi voice in the coming days. His book is theoretically informed, critically crafted and sheds significant insights into the political economy of the Bangladeshi youth movements by challenging simplistic dominant narratives,

[Tanzia · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author’s framework begins strong and I think the book would’ve been a better read if it ended at a deeper dive into the Shahbagh movement. By the time the author reaches the Road Safety Movement, his theories become convoluted and confusing. Although he has mentioned at the start of the book that some of the analyses would be coming from his personal experiences while trying to mobilize forces on the field, reported facts quickly broke down into charged opinions.

He does bring a fresh perspective on how social movements can be better structured and I would recommend this book just for these structural reform recommendations alone. But, overall, it felt like the author bit off more than he should have, especially by the end. I have a lot more notes, but I’d like to end by saying this is still a great first-step read for idealist young activists in Bangladesh.

[Saiyen Azad · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is awesome. I'm studying in Political Science, Anupam also finished his graduation from Political Science. At first he started making video about several issues. Which helped me to think in different ways. I think aftermath this book will be the curriculum book for our future generation who will be studying in Political Science. This book discusses our contemporary movements, what kind of mistakes are made in the movement, how the mistakes should be corrected.
The main things are Anupam is a student of Political Science and an activist. He tries to find out the facts in his view. If you have another view, then think about this and have any objections you can discuss about it. Anupam is welcoming.